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Car finance commission – make a claim to the FCA scheme

a small hatchback with a number plate saying REFUND

The FCA Car Commission Compensation Scheme was announced on 30 March 2026.

The FCA estimates that about 12 million HP & PCP agreements that started between 2007 and late 2024 may be eligible for a refund, averaging £829.

Let’s look at some of the details and what you should do now.

Contents

  • What car finances are eligible for a refund?
    • Finance types and dates
    • The three reasons why an agreement may be “unfair”
    • Minor exclusions
  • How much may a refund be?
    • Calculating a refund
    • FCA estimates of refund amounts
    • Refunds are per case
    • How likely is your claim to be upheld?
    • Don’t count your chickens…
  • The timetables for claims and refunds
    • The general approach
    • The timetable for older loans that started pre 2014
    • The timetable for loans from 2014
  • What should you do now?
    • If you haven’t yet made a claim for all previous finances
    • If you have made a claim
  • Summary

What car finances are eligible for a refund?

Finance types and dates

The finance types covered are Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) and Hire Purchase (HP).
Leased cars (PCH) are not included in this scheme.
If you got a loan and choose to buy a car with it, that is not car finance, and it isn’t included.
Finance taken out by a company is not included.

Vehicle types covered are cars, vans, motorbikes and campervans. Caravans are not included – but if you had a caravan on HP this may have had an unfair discretionary commission arrangement (see below for more about DCAs) so you can make a complaint to the lender about this outside the scheme.

Start and end dates – the finance agreement must have started between 6 April 2007 and 1 November 2024.
The finance may have ended, or it may still be running.
You may have sold the car later.
You may have defaulted on the agreement or had the car repossessed.
(If you have defaulted on an agreement in the last few years, look at an affordability complaint which may get you a larger refund than a commission reclaim.)
None of this matters for a commission refund – what matters is when the finance agreement started.

The three reasons why an agreement may be “unfair”

To get a refund, the commission arrangements on your car finance have to be unfair for at least one of the following three reasons:

Discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs)
This is the largest category, covering over 10 million agreements. These DCAs meant that you may have paid more interest than you should have. That extra interest was set by the dealer or broker as their commission.

Unfairly high commission
This may apply to  over 2 million agreements
This is seen as unfair if the commission is a high percentage of the costs of the finance and the size of the loan.
There is also a “very high category” when the refund will be calculated more generously and will be a lot more – this will be rare, under 100,000 agreements.

Contractual ties
This may apply to over a million agreements.
You may have thought the dealer or broker was finding you the cheapest finance they could. But they may have had an raangement that they always used one lender. So this may not have been the cheapest.

If there was an obvious link, you would have expected this, so it isn’t unfair. I got a Toyota from a Toyota dealer and I was not surprised when the financing came from Toyota Finance. But this may still be unfair for another reason eg if there was a DCA used.

Minor exclusions

There are some minor exclusions from the Scheme including:

  • Claims for very high value loans – amounts higher than 99.5% of other loans that year – are not covered by the scheme. You can still complain to the firm and the Financial Ombudsman about these large loans
  • The commission was very low – £120 or less for agreements beginning before 1 April 2014 and £150 or less from that date
  • The finance was at 0% interest – you couldn’t have got this cheaper by going elsewhere

How much may a refund be?

Calculating a refund

It is normal to have paid some commission on car finance. The scheme estimates how much extra commission you may have paid because of the unfairness – the refund is that amount.

In the small number of very high commission cases, all the interest paid is refunded.

FCA estimates of refund amounts

The FCA estimates that the average refund for upheld cases will be:

  • £881 for contracts that started after April 2014
  • £734 for contracts that started before April 2013

It has given estimates of the average refunds by the reason for the unfairness:

  • DCA commission – £810
  • high commission – £1,203
  • contractual tie – £807

Ignore this next bit if this is all too many numbers…

The FCA also gives the estimated median averages. If you list all the refunds in size order, the median is the middle one, so half the people getting a refund get less and half get more than that.

In all the FCA cases, the median averages given are lower than the mean. For example, the median payout for a DCA case is expected to be £641, less than the mean average of £810.  This happens when there are some very big expected payments which increase the mean payment.

Refunds are per case

You make a separate claim for each car finance agreement in the period. So the above numbers are estimates for each individual case.

If you had 4 agreements during the 2007-2024 period and two are upheld as unfair, you will get two refunds.

How likely is your claim to be upheld?

The FCA estimates that:

  • 34% of agreements may have had a DCA agreement
  • 8% of agreements may have had an unfairly high commission
  • 4% of agreements may have had an unfair contractual tie.

Don’t count your chickens…

In general you are likely to have paid more commission and so may get a bigger refund if the interest rate was high or the loan amount was large.

But beyond that, it’s very hard for you to guess if your case will be upheld or how much you might get back.

This is a very uncertain process. Some people with several claims may not win any of them, some will win them all. You may lose some and win some even if you always got your cars from the same dealer and the same finance provider.

The timetables for claims and refunds

The general approach

If you complain early, your case gets priority. You will be told if the claim is upheld sooner and you will be paid sooner.

If you choose not to complain, the lender will later contact you if you have an eligible complaint.

The FCA has set up two schemes with different timetables depending on when your finance agreement started:

  • one scheme is for older contracts that started before April 2014
  • the other is for more recent contracts.

The second scheme, for more recent loans, starts first and the refunds for these loans will be paid earlier.

Quick summary – newer loans are paid before older loans, and you are paid much earlier if you complain now.

The timetable for older loans that started pre 2014

It is estimated that over 4 million of these cases should get a refund.

If you complain before 31 August, the lender will tell you if you are due a refund and how much by 30 November.
After you accept the offer, it should be paid within a month, so end 2026/early 2027.

If you don’t complain to the lender before 31 August, the lender will contact you by 28 February 2027 if you’re eligible for a refund.
You then have to reply within 6 months saying you want to be included in the scheme.
The lender then has 3 months to tell you what you are owed and another month to pay it.
So payments will be in the last half of 2027.

The timetable for loans from 2014

It is estimated that nearly 8 million of these cases should get a refund.

If you complain before 30 June, the lender should tell you if you are due a refund and how much by 30 September.
If you accept the offer, it should be paid within a month, so about November 2026.

If you don’t complain to the lender before 30 June, the lender will contact you by 30 December 2026 if you’re eligible for a refund.
You then have to reply within 6 months saying you want to be included in the scheme
The lender then has 3 months to tell you what you are owed and another month to pay it
So payments will be from April – Sept 2027

What should you do now?

If you haven’t yet made a claim for all previous finances

SEND IN A COMPLAINT NOW !

You could sit back and hope the lender contacts you. But that may take nearly a year longer to get a payout as the early complainers get priority.

Also if you have moved, the lender may not find your current address. Making a complaint now solves this problem as you give your contact details

Use MSE’s free tool to send in a complaint: MSE complaint generator.

If you can’t remember all your finances, or who the lenders were, Equifax, the credit reference agency, now has a free Car Finance Checker app. This has details of most car finance records since 2007. You can find more details, including a link, in the MSE free tool page.

If you have made a claim

You may not need to do anything:

  • if you have been told you paid a DCA, you will be getting a refund (unless the extra commission was tiny). You don’t need to do anything now – you will be in the early batches of payouts
  • if you haven’t yet had a response, don’t worry! You have complained before the start of the scheme, you will get a response and will be in the early batches of payouts.

BUT if you complained early, your complaint will only have asked if there was a DCA on your finance agreement. Here if you have been told you did not pay a DCA, you may still qualify for a refund for one of the other two reasons.

Some lenders will have told you that they have automatically raised a non discretionary commission complaint for you. But if you havn’t be told this, then to make sure you get one of the early payouts, you need to complain again.  Use the same MSE tool, it is not updated to cover more than just DCAs.

If you have already signed up with a claims firm or firm of solicitors, you will often be charged a fee to exit the contract. But as you don’t know what (if any) refund you may get, it may be hard to decide what to do. There are some more details in the MSE tool.

Summary

12 million unfair car finance contracts since 2007 – that’s a lot. And more people may get refunds than seemed likely in early 2024, because the “unfairness” reasons have been extended to include high commission and contractual ties you were unaware of.

There is no way you can tell if your car finance should get a refund:

  • looking at the finance paperwork (if you still have it) doesn’t help;
  • you may have been overcharged commission even if the finance was easily affordable for you.

I suggest you make a claim for each HP or PCP car finance agreement you have had that started between 2007 and late 2024, unless the finance was at 0% interest.

Making a claim now is easy to use the MSE free tool. And the free Equifax car agreement checker app helps by giving you the details of most of the old car finances you have had.

This article was rewritten for the new Scheme in March 2026 


More articles:

Car finance affordability complaints

overdraft trap

In your overdraft all of the month?

refund sign in neon letters

How to ask for refunds for all types of debt

April 1, 2026 Author: Sara Williams Tagged With: cars

Comments

  1. George A Calder says

    February 6, 2024 at 11:08 pm

    Hi
    I bought my car from a Peugeot Dealer, in 2010

    The finance company Peugeot used is no longer trading, it was
    Banque PSA Finance UK Branch Trading as Peugeot Financial Services, Quadrant House, Princess Way, Redhill RH1 1QA

    However the car company now uses
    Stellantis Financial Services UK Ltd
    61 London Road,
    Redhill, Surrey,
    RH1 1QA

    Does this mean the Car company still has to deal with my complaint?
    thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 7, 2024 at 8:26 am

      I suggest you contact Stellantis and send them the query about your finance. Let me know what they reply.

      Reply
      • George says

        February 7, 2024 at 11:08 am

        Thanks for the quick response
        I’ve emailed Peugeot, and Stellantis, will let you know how they respond.

        Reply
  2. Leanne says

    February 7, 2024 at 12:54 pm

    I assume if the company you used has gone bust, we cannot claim. Infuriating that this was allowed to happen as this was the first snowball point for my husbands credit issue. Someone should be held accountable.

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 7, 2024 at 2:27 pm

      Which lender is this? You also have a possible car commission claim against the dealer or broker.

      Reply
  3. Stephen John Garrod says

    February 7, 2024 at 5:59 pm

    Hi i purchased 2 cars through Wilson & Co – Grimsby the first in 2016 a Vauxhall Corsa reg no FY66 GVN Agreement Number 913084 and the second being also a Vauxhall Corsa reg no FY68 WNC Agreement number 1095367 the monthly payment was £174.80 by DD to VAUXHALL FINANCE PLC ref 01937711 913084 .The recent Martin Lewis Money Show advised that we should log a complaint following ongoing investigation by FCA

    Reply
  4. David says

    February 8, 2024 at 11:35 am

    Perhaps a silly question but if I’d already made an affordability complaint on a HP taken out prior to 2021 and won and had all interest refunded, there’s no more to do regards this latest scandal?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 8, 2024 at 11:43 am

      That is correct. You won’t get two refunds for the same interest.

      Reply
  5. Michael says

    February 8, 2024 at 12:32 pm

    Hi Sara. After reading your article, I sent an enquiry to VWFS about my Audi car finance taken out in 2017 and all paid up. The response is interesting, especially with regards to timescales; I quote the key sections:

    *The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a statement on 11th January 2024, detailing a change to the way motor finance complaints of this type are handled.
    *This change means that the usual 8 weeks given to respond to complaints is paused where the commission model used was a Discretionary Commission Arrangement (DCA).
    *Based on our initial review we believe a Discretionary Commission Arrangement may apply to your agreement and as such the pause applies to your complaint. If our investigations find a Discretionary Commission Arrangement does not apply to your agreement we will respond to your complaint within the normal 8 week timeline.
    *Based on current FCA instructions the pause on DCA complaints will be for a period of 37 weeks until 25 September 2024 and we are not required to respond to DCA related complaints until after this date, at which point either a further pause may apply or the normal 8 week timeframe will start.

    Keep up the good work!

    Michael

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 8, 2024 at 1:15 pm

      “Based on our initial review we believe a Discretionary Commission Arrangement may apply to your agreement and as such the pause applies to your complaint. If our investigations find a Discretionary Commission Arrangement does not apply to your agreement we will respond to your complaint within the normal 8 week timeline.”

      that is a pretty reasonable approach. You can now assume if you don’t hear anything in the 8 weeks that there is a discretionary commission arrangement on your finance and that you have a claim.

      Reply
      • Michael says

        February 8, 2024 at 1:54 pm

        Yes, I do understand that. It was the 37 week pause I thought might be interesting for others looking to claim.

        Reply
  6. Sam says

    February 8, 2024 at 3:08 pm

    Hi,

    If I wanted to contact the dealer about Discretionary Commission, would I be better speaking to the dealership I picked the car up from or Car Finance 247 who arranged the finance?

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 8, 2024 at 3:39 pm

      I am suggesting people contact the lender. But if the lender is out of business or doesnt reply, you could ask the dealer.

      Reply
  7. Zh says

    February 8, 2024 at 8:37 pm

    Hi, I got a car loan in 2017 through CF247. The lender was Hitachi. I still have the agreements that I signed and sent back. Do you have contact details for Hitachi please? I think they’ve rebranded. Thank you

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 8, 2024 at 9:10 pm

      Hitachi have rebranded to Novuna. What sort of loan was this? Was it car finance secured on the car? Or GP, PCP or leasing?

      Reply
      • Zh says

        February 8, 2024 at 11:20 pm

        Hi thank you for your response. it was a fixed loan agreement. I’m not sure if it was secured on the car. I can’t seem to find that in the agreement I signed. It says about missed payments they can take legal action. The car and its make and model is named in the agreement as the reason for the loan. Sorry I’m not much help. Not sure if it was secured on the car. Thank you

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 9, 2024 at 10:02 am

          you have a copy of the agreement? Does it have a a heading saying either: HIRE PURCHASE AGREEMENT REGULATED BY THE CONSUMER CREDIT ACT 1974 or CONDITIONAL SALE AGREEMENT REGULATED BY THE CONSUMER CREDIT ACT 1974 ?

          Reply
          • Zh says

            February 9, 2024 at 5:50 pm

            Hi Sara, it says neither of those but Fixed Sum Loan Agreement regulated by the Consumer Credit Act 1974

            Hope that makes sense. Please let me know if you need anything else. Thank you

          • Sara (Debt Camel) says

            February 9, 2024 at 6:32 pm

            ok that is not “car finance” so far as I can tell, it is a normal unsecured loan that you took out to buy a car.

            I don’t know is it is likely that there was any discretionary commission element on this loan. You can ask Novuna – ComplaintsTeam@NovunaPersonalFinance.co.uk. I am not optimistic about this but it is simple to ask so why not?

          • Margaret says

            February 23, 2024 at 1:35 pm

            Hi Someone queried about dcas on FIXED SUM LOAN AGREEMENTS… that was our query too
            On ford.co.uk…I found this….. Am very hopeful
            This will apply to you if:

            There was a discretionary commission arrangement relating to your agreement.
            You used car finance to buy a car before 28 January 2021. This includes hire purchase agreements, Personal Contract Purchases and fixed-sum loan agreements.

          • Margaret says

            February 23, 2024 at 2:29 pm

            https://www.ford.co.uk/support/how-tos/owner-resources/ford-credit/how-to-make-a-complaint-about-the-discretionary-car-finance-commission
            Sorry I forgot to add the link that may justify the inclusion of FIXED SUM LOAN AGREEMENTS containing DCAs

          • Zh says

            April 17, 2024 at 6:12 pm

            Hi just to update, I had a response from CF247 and their response was:

            “ We have now reviewed your agreement and can confirm that your lender Hitachi Capital did operate a discretionary commission arrangement at the time you took out finance on vehicle: ”

            I then contacted Novuna (new name for Hitachi) and they raised a complaint and obviously it has been put on hold until FCA decision. So definitely worth enquiring even if it is marked as a fixed loan sum. Hope that helps anyone else. X

          • Zh says

            April 17, 2024 at 6:14 pm

            Thank you for your advice Maragaret. It really helped me x

  8. Stacey-Ann says

    February 8, 2024 at 11:57 pm

    Hello my finance was with The car finance Company, they have gone into insolvency from 10/11/2023. Is there anything I can do.

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 9, 2024 at 9:59 am

      send a similar query to the dealer or broker you got the car through.

      Reply
      • Stacey says

        February 13, 2024 at 9:45 pm

        Hello Sara, thank you for replying. If the dealer I I the car finance from has closed is there any other way.

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 14, 2024 at 7:35 am

          probably not :(

          Reply
  9. Robyn says

    February 9, 2024 at 1:43 am

    I have contacted my lender and received a response, so thought it may be useful to share part of it.

    “The Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has recently introduced temporary changes to the handling of complaints where the complaint relates to a discretionary commission arrangement (“DCA”) between us and the Introducer and/or where the commission was calculated using a DCA commission model. I can confirm that an element of DCA commission was paid in connection with your above agreement.

    The changes include a pause of the 8-week time limit in which we are required to provide our final response to your complaint. The pause will expire on 25 September 2024 and therefore based on the new rules currently in place, we will have 8 weeks from this date by which to issue our final response. In addition, the time-period in which you will have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman has also been extended from 6 months to 15 months from the date of our final response.

    Please note that in light of the above, we will hold your complaint paused pending the outcome of the FCA’s investigation and you will receive a final response from us within 8 weeks following the 25 September 2024.”

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 9, 2024 at 9:58 am

      Thanks – so you do have a claim to make.
      which lender is this?

      Reply
      • Robyn says

        February 9, 2024 at 10:06 am

        I assume from the reply that I’m to sit and wait for the final response, and that the action is now with the lender to contact me and nothing presently on my end in terms of progressing the claim? This is Blue Motor Finance.

        More than happy to forward on the full email to an address if it would be useful for helping you create templates etc for people.

        Reply
        • Tania says

          March 1, 2024 at 11:56 am

          Hi Robyn
          I’m also with Blue Motor Finance taken out in February 2020 I’m glad you posted this but I think my actual car dealer has gone burst but I’m still paying the finance company ? I’d like to see the email you sent them to start with ?
          Kind Regards

          Reply
          • Sara (Debt Camel) says

            March 1, 2024 at 12:31 pm

            Robyn has pasted in the important bits in the comment just above.

  10. Lisa says

    February 9, 2024 at 10:08 am

    Hello, I have had 3 car finances in the past 18 year but unfortunately i can remember what dealer the finance went through, No policy no, no car reg etc
    Is there anyway i can find out this info?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 9, 2024 at 10:09 am

      type of car?

      Reply
      • Lisa says

        February 9, 2024 at 10:11 am

        I had 1 Ford KA From ford main dealer, 1 Ford ka from Arnold Clark and my Ford fiesta which i have now i have submitted that claim already

        Reply
      • Sara (Debt Camel) says

        February 9, 2024 at 10:16 am

        So you know the dealers. You can ask them who the finance was through.

        Or you can just assume it is Ford and send in a query about them as well. Put your date of birth in the query and the address you lived at at the time and the name of the dealer.

        Reply
  11. Stephen Smith says

    February 9, 2024 at 11:35 am

    Hi,
    On 13/01/24 I sent an email to Black Horse using the template on your website.
    To date I have not even had an acknowledgement of receipt.
    Is this normal?
    Many thanks

    Reply
    • Flo Roberts says

      February 11, 2024 at 7:31 am

      I haven’t heard anything either and have commented awaiting Sara’s reply 🙂

      Reply
      • Robert says

        February 11, 2024 at 12:34 pm

        Is it the correct email address that is listed for Black Horse? I am asking as I emailed them yesterday regarding this matter also.

        Obviously I don’t expect a response straight away, however if you emailed them in January & it’s 4 weeks already, I am wondering if it is the correct email address? I used the one listed here also.

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 11, 2024 at 8:46 pm

          The address on my page is the one that Lloyds have asked me to list.

          Reply
          • Robert says

            February 11, 2024 at 8:59 pm

            Thank you Sara. I just wasn’t sure after reading the other comment regarding not hearing anything back from Black Horse.

            Thank you for clarifying.

  12. Ali = says

    February 9, 2024 at 1:01 pm

    Hi, thank you for your advice, what a great website!
    I had the following response from Toyota FS re 2 finance agreements I took out with them in 2009 and 2012:
    “Thank you for your recent Letter of complaint regarding mis-sold finance and undisclosed commissions.
    We have extensively searched our records using the information you provided and I can confirm we have been unable to locate any records for you.
    If you had an agreement that closed more than 6 years ago, the information would be anonymised as it falls outside of our retention period. Therefore, we do not hold any Personal Data for you.
    In view of the above, we now consider the matter to be resolved.”
    I realised that one of the years I gave them was wrong so I have sent them another email correcting this, but what if they come back with the same response, do I then contact the Financial Ombudsman with my complaint? Many thanks :)

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 9, 2024 at 1:28 pm

      At this point I think you should just wait and see what the FCA says. But one thing you can do in the meantime is ask the dealer/broker if there was any discretionary commission paid.

      Reply
      • Ali Alway says

        February 9, 2024 at 1:43 pm

        Thanks for the quick reply :) Will do!
        Also, just in case it helps anyone, the email address they replied to me from is commissioncomplaints@toyota-fs.com

        Reply
      • Ali Alway says

        February 12, 2024 at 6:42 pm

        Hi Sara!
        I have had the following email back from the place I bought the cars:
        “Thank you for your email.
        I note that both purchases were made prior to Listers taking over the franchise.
        Please can I ask that you forward to complaint on to Toyota Financial Services
        Email: complaints@uk.toyota-fs.com Telephone: 0330 107 9477″
        So Toyota FS have told me they haven’t got my records as the deals were over 6 years ago, and the dealer who I got the cars from has been taken over by a different franchise who have told me to take my query to Toyota! I guess I’ll just wait to see what the FCA says later on this year as it looks as if I’ve hit a brick wall for the time being?
        Many thanks

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 12, 2024 at 9:04 pm

          Yes I think you have.

          Reply
          • Ali Alway says

            February 13, 2024 at 10:46 am

            Thanks for all your guidance! Much appreciated :)

    • Ali says

      April 9, 2024 at 6:45 pm

      Hello again Sara
      I’ve just had the following response from Toyota: “Thank you for your email asking for confirmation of whether we paid the dealer a discretionary commission.
      After reviewing our records, we’ve not been able to find any record of your agreement with us. This may be because our data retention policy requires us to delete data after a certain amount of time has passed.
      To allow us to make further enquiries with our records, we’ll need you to send us all the following:
      A copy of the agreement you had with us.
      Registered keeper details (for example, the vehicle’s logbook showing your name, or a DVLA letter).
      A copy of your driving licence.
      A copy of a utility bill in your name dated within the last three months.
      Please email these details to commissioncomplaints@toyota-fs.com.
      If you send us all these documents, we will then have important information including which dealer you were introduced to us by and when your finance agreement was arranged. This means that we can then search our other records to see if any introduction of you to us might have fallen into a discretionary commission arrangement.”

      I don’t have either agreement but I did send them credit reports with details of the agreements and all the payments made, and also a letter from them to me confirming completion of one of my agreements. I have also just emailed the DVLA with Subject Access Requests asking for proof that I was the registered keeper of both vehicles.
      I can easily send them driving licence and utility bill. I feel that they aren’t being very helpful!
      What are your thoughts about this?
      Many thanks ☺️

      Reply
      • Sara (Debt Camel) says

        April 9, 2024 at 7:02 pm

        Do you know the number plates? The dealer you went through? Does you still use the same bank – if you do, you can try to get bank statements that could confirm when you paid a deposit and when you finance payments started

        Reply
    • Ali A says

      April 9, 2024 at 10:15 pm

      Hi Sara, thanks for your reply. I’ve given Toyota both car reg numbers, and given them the name and address of the dealer, but I haven’t looked for bank statements so I’ll also do that-thank you 😊

      Reply
      • Sara (Debt Camel) says

        April 10, 2024 at 8:25 am

        How long ago was the finance?

        Reply
    • Ali Alway says

      April 13, 2024 at 9:49 am

      The first one was 2009 and the second one was 2012

      Reply
  13. Robert says

    February 10, 2024 at 2:00 am

    Hi, I have been reading this with interest & I have 2 questions that I need advice on. It is to ask/find out if my questions are worth asking to the finance companies in question.

    My first question to you on here is, I took out HP finance on a car (I still have the car at the moment as it was for 60 months that I took out the HP)
    I paid a deposit on the car on 28th December 2020 & got the car on 8th January 2021, the HP started from 10th of January 2021 & has came out on the 10th month ever since.
    The HP is through Black Horse & it is at an APR interest rate of 6.9%.
    It is to ask if there is a possibility that the dealership who I got the car from has used the discretionary commission?

    Back in 2003, I was 23 years old & for the first time ever, I got a brand new car (53 registered, brand spanking new at the time) anyway, the HP at that time was through a company called GMAC finance & at the time, I was paying £267 per month on the finance. I believe that there was at the time PPi on the financial terms, but I paid it because I had agreed to it. Unfortunately I don’t have the terms of the agreement now, however I do have the details of the car I got at the time & the dealership & salesman details that I got the car from (they are a major dealer who are still on the go now) I don’t really hold out much hope on this because it was from back in 2003.

    Thank you.

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 10, 2024 at 12:15 pm

      Yes it is possible that there was discretionary commission on the Black Horse finance – ask BH if there was as the article above says

      The GMAC is very old – no one knows at the moment if discretionary commission was used at a back then, or if it is possible to claim so far back. But I suggest you start by asking the dealer.

      .

      Reply
      • Robert says

        February 10, 2024 at 12:56 pm

        Hi Sara, thank you for your quick response, I appreciate that.
        I will use the template email & see what Black Horse reply back.
        As for GMAC (2003) I appreciate that was a long time ago now, I accept that the ship has long sailed on that matter.

        Thanks again Sara, I will keep you updated with Black Horses response.

        Reply
        • Kevin says

          February 20, 2024 at 9:11 pm

          Hi Robert I also purchased two vehicles through black horse could you tell me how to get the email template to get the ball rolling thanks Kevin

          Reply
          • Sara (Debt Camel) says

            February 21, 2024 at 7:46 am

            It’s in the article above these comments

        • Stephen Smith says

          February 21, 2024 at 8:17 am

          Hi Robert,
          Could you also post on here if/when you get a response from Black Horse because all I’m getting at the moment is the sound of silence!!
          Cheers

          Reply
          • Sara (Debt Camel) says

            February 21, 2024 at 9:20 am

            I haven’t heard of anyone getting a response from BH. As one of the very largest lenders and losing a key case at the Ombudsman they will have tens of thousands of complaints.

          • Robert says

            February 22, 2024 at 9:07 pm

            I have just seen your comment Stephen, regarding Black Horse. I have heard absolutely nothing from them whatsoever, not even an acknowledgement that they have got my query/question regarding this matter.
            But, when/if they do get back to me, I will absolutely post it on here for anyone else who is waiting for them to respond.

  14. Helen Warren says

    February 10, 2024 at 3:13 pm

    Hi Sara
    I’ve purchased new Toyotas from a main dealer in the past 6 years, financed through Toyota & not a credit broker. I assume because of this, I would not be eligible for any refund?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 10, 2024 at 3:35 pm

      The finance company may still have paid the dealer discretionary commission. Send that email and ask the finance company – then you will know where you stand.

      Reply
  15. Derek says

    February 11, 2024 at 8:45 pm

    I’ve traced most of my finance agreements except for one. I don’t know the full registration number, not the agreement number. All I know is the dealer, branch, make, model and date of the agreements which was Dec 28th 2012.

    Whilst the dealer remains open they closed the branch some while ago.

    Given the limited details that I have do you think it worth writing to the companies registered office and ask who is dealing with possible claims?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 11, 2024 at 8:48 pm

      You know who the lender was?

      Reply
      • Derek Austin says

        February 14, 2024 at 12:55 pm

        Not 100% sure but I have a sneaky feeling it was Lombard

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 14, 2024 at 12:56 pm

          Then ask Lombard

          Reply
  16. Marie says

    February 11, 2024 at 9:10 pm

    Hi I had car finance through carfinance 247 the lender was startline how would I know if carfinace247 upped the interest rate etc

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 11, 2024 at 9:44 pm

      You send the query that that the article above suggests to startline.

      Reply
  17. Alex says

    February 12, 2024 at 10:30 pm

    If both the finance company and car dealership you purchased from no longer exist is there nothing I can do?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 13, 2024 at 7:49 am

      Probably not. Except some finance companies just transferred their business to another one… which lender was it?

      Reply
  18. Damian says

    February 13, 2024 at 7:00 am

    Hi, very interesting article. I have had several arrangement dating back to about 2007. For a number of reasons, hold no information on reg or finance agreements. But I do know that they were with Close Brothers and Black Horse. Could I get my info via SAR?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 13, 2024 at 7:45 am

      Possibly. But why not just send start with a query as the article suggests?

      Reply
  19. Lisa says

    February 13, 2024 at 7:21 pm

    I know people above have contact black horse with no luck I emailed also tonight however noticed they have a spiel and form on their website for such complaints. Maybe worth filling in the form also if no one has heard back.

    Reply
  20. Stephen Smith says

    February 13, 2024 at 8:03 pm

    Thankyou for that. I will give them a couple more weeks to respond before I complete this.

    Reply
  21. Conny says

    February 13, 2024 at 10:04 pm

    Hi, there’s a section on my First Response Finance car HP contract which say “The dealer does not provide independent financial advice. The dealer acts as a credit intermediary and may receive a commission from First Response if you enter into an agreement with us. ” Does this mean I can apply even though they made a statement they don’t? Thank you

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 7:39 am

      No. FRF pay commission, there is nothing wrong with that. What matters is whether the commission included a “discretionary” element, that is what the Ombudsman has decided is unfair. And FRF have said clearly they have never paid any discretionary commission.

      Reply
  22. Rhys says

    February 14, 2024 at 12:01 pm

    I complained to VWFS and received the following Final Decision. It seems they haven’t answered whether discretionary commission was involved and have only confirmed there was some form of commission. Should I proceed to take this to the Ombudsman?

    CONC 4.5.3 (R) is a Rule but applies to credit brokers. We are not a credit broker, we are a lender.
    In addition, the existence of commission was disclosed in the Agreement at clause 15 where it states “We may pay commission or other remuneration to a supplying dealer or other intermediary who introduces you to us.” You have signed the Agreement, agreeing to be legally bound by its Terms and Conditions. You were also provided with pre-contract information by Swansea Audi and a copy of the Agreement in advance of signing. You knew exactly how much you were going to be charged for the credit, the APR and the amount of the monthly instalments required under the Agreement. The pre-contract information stated that we might pay commission to a supplying dealer or other intermediary.
    Furthermore, you have signed a pre-contractual explanation checklist that states you were told to read the agreement carefully and were provided an opportunity to ask questions about the agreement. You did not pay the commission, we did and that is justifiable for the work the undertaken by the dealer. You were provided with pre-contract information and a copy of the Agreement numbered XXX for XXX, which clearly sets out the rate of interest payable under the agreement. You knew what the rate of interest payable under the Agreement was, and would have been able to consider alternative finance options from other lenders prior to signing the agreement.

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 3:13 pm

      Please go back to them and say you would like to know if the commission paid by VWFS to the broker/dealer included an element of discretion where the broker/dealer was allowed to determine what the interest rate on the finance would be and thereby get additional commission. Or was the commission paid a fixed amount that could not be varied by changing the interest rate on the finance.

      Say you do not want to have to send this complaint to the Ombudsman if there was a fixed rate of commission with no discretionary element. But if there was any discretionary element you will be making a complaint and the FCA is now allowing 15 months to take one of these complaints to the Ombudsman you understand.

      Reply
  23. Janet says

    February 14, 2024 at 12:49 pm

    Hi, I bought a Renault Clio on finance from Reg Vardy back in 2000. The lender was AFS (Automotive Financial Services Limited). Just checked and looks like AFS went into liquidation a couple of years ago. Thought l’d lost out but reading comments, looks like I should claim from Reg Vardy. Are the dealers liable in any way? Thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 12:59 pm

      Possibly. The ombudsman decisions in January were both against the lenders, but there is an argument that the dealer/broker was also at fault.
      Your problem here may be the age of the finance and whether there are any records – but why not ask Reg Vardy.

      Reply
  24. MRJT says

    February 14, 2024 at 3:40 pm

    What is the claim element? I have heard back off 2 that say discretionary commission applied.
    Does it mean the difference between the APR that could’ve been offered and the APR that was offered?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 3:44 pm

      Can you say who the lenders were and copy in the part of their reply to you saying that discretionary commission applies?

      Reply
      • MrJT says

        February 14, 2024 at 3:48 pm

        As a result, the FCA has paused the 8-week deadline for motor finance firms to provide a final response to customer complaints, where there was a discretionary commission arrangement between the motor finance lender and the introducer. I can confirm this change will impact your complaint.

        This is moneyway. It reads as if there was a discretionary commission?

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 14, 2024 at 4:50 pm

          Yes it does.

          Reply
  25. MrJT says

    February 14, 2024 at 3:50 pm

    Good Afternoon,

    Thank you for contacting Startline Motor Finance.

    Xxx ford focus reg xxx

    Commission: £680.60

    Model: APR Matrix (Min / Max Fatal) – dealer discretionary

    This is Startline. And reads like it affects me??

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 4:51 pm

      Yes it does. But can I check that it used exactly the same words as the response by Moneyway?

      Reply
      • MrJT says

        February 14, 2024 at 4:59 pm

        Sorry. It’s double posted. The second one ends at discretionary and is Startline.

        Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 14, 2024 at 5:10 pm

      ok I have removed that – so the reply simply said what commission was paid and had the words “dealer discretionary” and stops there.

      I think the reference to “Model: APR Matrix (Min / Max Fatal) – dealer discretionary” does suggest that was discretionary commission used.

      Reply
      • MrJT says

        February 15, 2024 at 9:18 am

        That’s correct yes. So those are the 2 I have had answers from. Moneyway was 2014 and Startline was 2018

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 19, 2024 at 5:18 pm

          I have now started a list in the article above of lenders who have sometimes used discretionary commission arrangements and included them.

          You can now send them a formal complaint asking what range of interest rates the dealer/broker had discretion over setting and for a refund of the difference between the interest rate you paid and the bottom of that range.

          Reply
      • mr Graham Bibby says

        February 15, 2024 at 7:42 pm

        Hi Sara, I’ve had car finance through Yes Car Credit and Black Horse Finance, the latter for a Corsa that I had leased as a instruction vehicle through Hitachi, I understand that even though I don’t have any documents, registration numbers etc I can request these from the finance companies and also ask if they used discretionary finance, given that they’ve been so underhanded with all of this up to now, what’s stopping them from just saying No, we have never used discretionary finance regardless of whether they have or not. The interest rate with Yes Car Finance was 49% and £189 per month, in the end I had to take out another loan to pay that off as it was crippling me. Thanks for all your help and advice on this subject.

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 15, 2024 at 8:58 pm

          How long ago were these finances taken out?

          Reply
          • mr Graham Bibby says

            February 15, 2024 at 9:14 pm

            2001, Yes Car Credit and 2007ish for Black Horse

        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 16, 2024 at 9:46 am

          ok that is too long ago to have any chance of winning an affordability complaint against Yes Car, in fact I am not sure it exists any longer.

          The Corsa – was this personal finance or a business finance?.

          Reply
  26. Stuart Garrard says

    February 15, 2024 at 7:26 pm

    Do you have any advice on what to do if the Company state that your records were destroyed due to GDPR?

    “Thank you for your recent correspondence regarding a vehicle you purchased from us and the associated finance arrangements.

    “As your purchase was more than six years ago, all records we may have held relating to your purchase will have been confidentially destroyed in line with our GDPR policy; we’re therefore unable to provide you with any details relating to the transaction or the commission arrangements that may have been in place.”

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 15, 2024 at 8:59 pm

      Who was the lender? How long ago was the purchase?

      Reply
  27. Natalie says

    February 15, 2024 at 8:27 pm

    Hi I took out car fiance in march 2010 I believe this was part of the intrest rate scandal.

    The company was fortis lease uk Ltd

    The company was dissolved in 2019.

    Can I make a claim through the dealer ?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 15, 2024 at 8:52 pm

      Possibly. The first step is to ask the dealer if there was any discretionary commission arrangement. See what the reply is.

      Reply
  28. Tim says

    February 15, 2024 at 10:51 pm

    Hi – does anyone have an email address for “Freeway, part of Bank of Scotland Vehicle Finance”? Freeway doesn’t seem to exist any more and I can’t find anything on the Bank of Scotland website?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 16, 2024 at 9:43 am

      I assume this was a long while ago? they were brand names of Lex Vehicle Finance which stopped trading in 2012 and has been since gone into liquidation.

      You can email larissa.kay@ltsbasset.co.uk but that may well not work. Who was the dealer and are they still in business?

      Reply
  29. Tim says

    February 16, 2024 at 11:10 am

    The ‘dealer’ was Drive the Deal who are still around…

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 16, 2024 at 11:44 am

      then I suggest you ask the dealer if there was any discretionary commission paid on the finance.

      Reply
  30. Jon Sheppard says

    February 16, 2024 at 10:04 pm

    Hello all. I got the below response from Tandem, but my original agreement was through a previous iteration / different company called 1st Stop Car Finance. I can’t find anything about whether they were one of the firms that ‘sometimes’ used discretionary commission arrangements or never used it. Does anyone know??

    Because their email seems like a bit of a fob off that they sent after only 2 days… all I asked for is my finance agreement they had in file for me.

    Thank you for your email.

    We are aware of recent media coverage regarding historical motor finance commission arrangements. I can advise that we have never used a discretionary commission model (sometimes referred to as a “Difference in Charge” model). This is confirmed within the following Money Saving Expert link: Car finance FREE reclaim tool & guide | MSE (moneysavingexpert.com)

    The Broker / Car Dealer had no influence over the interest rate charged on your loan and any introductory payment made did not influence the rate charged in any way. To clarify, the Broker / Car Dealer did not have any flexibility in being able to amend the APR to accommodate higher commission levels.

    All fees chargeable to you were disclosed within the signed agreement meaning you were fully aware of the total cost of the loan including the APR and monthly payment.

    I trust this has clarified matters for you but please let me know if you require any additional information.

    Kind regards,

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 18, 2024 at 9:50 pm

      That is clear that they have never used this form of commission. It isn’t surprising that this came back quickly – lenders that have never done this don’t need to locate the original agreement as they know what this will show.

      I have added them to my list in the article above.

      Reply
  31. K says

    February 19, 2024 at 3:13 pm

    Hi Sarah,

    I got this response from Car Finance 24. Thank you for your commission enquiry, received on 12 January 2024.

    We have now reviewed your agreement and can confirm that your lender Hitachi Capital did operate a discretionary commission arrangement at the time you took out finance on vehicle: Blue Vauxhall Corsa Club A/C Auto

    Please note, your finance started with Hitachi Capital on the 13 March 2018.

    Therefore, in accordance with the recent FCA statement, you are entitled to make a complaint in connection with your finance agreement. Your lender was responsible for setting the terms of the discretionary commission and therefore you need to contact them using the below details to raise your complaint. This is our final response on the matter.

    FINAL RESPONSE AND YOUR RIGHT TO COMPLAIN TO THE OMBUDSMAN

    You have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, free of charge – but you must do so within fifteen months of the date of this response.

    So my question is do I complain to Hitachi first or the FOS

    Reply
  32. Kyle Evans says

    February 21, 2024 at 8:52 am

    Had my finance with credit plus, who where trading as whichdeal Ltd. They have since become
    Insolvent and credit plus is now trading as Jump Financd Ltd all from the same address etc etc.
    they have sent me an email after my complaint saying they have nothing to do with it.
    What can I do?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 21, 2024 at 9:18 am

      Who was the dealer?

      Reply
  33. Craig says

    February 21, 2024 at 10:05 am

    Has anyone claimed against vauxhall finance or peter vardy .

    Reply
    • Danni says

      March 5, 2024 at 7:16 pm

      I contacted Vauxhall finance, they replied within hours confirming they didn’t use discretionary commission on mine

      Reply
  34. Anthony says

    February 21, 2024 at 4:03 pm

    Hi, I have had several cars from BMW each purchased on a PCP, my first question is did BMW Finance charge the discretionary commission and they second is I don’t have details of ALL of the vehicles, registration numbers or agreement numbers? I always transferred a cherished plate following the purchase so I simply can’t remember the details and I have searched all my emails to no avail I have had at least seven since 2013 and 2021!

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 21, 2024 at 4:20 pm

      They didn’t always use discretionary commission but they may have sometimes.

      Your credit reports should show any that were being paid in the last 6 years. If you bought them all from the same dealer, they may have the information.

      Reply
  35. OA says

    February 22, 2024 at 8:46 am

    Hi Sara! I received a response from Startline regarding the car finance commission – they said: Following receipt of your query regarding commission we can confirm that the commission paid was £XXX, there was a Discretionary Commission Arrangement (DCA) in place. I am now putting the formal complaint through but I’m unsure what to say/what to ask for? Do I ask for a refund of the whole fees or is it a percentage you’re entitled to?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 22, 2024 at 6:19 pm

      At the moment this isn’t clear…

      In the two Financial Ombudsman cases, people were awarded a refund of the difference between the interest they paid and the interest they would have paid if there had been no discretionary commission. So if (and I am making these numbers up) the dealer in your case was able to set the interest rate anywhere between 4% and 11% and you actually paid 7%, then you would get a refund of the extra 3% interest you paid because the interest rate was not set at the lowest figure.

      However it is possible that the FCA, who is looking into these refunds at the moment, may decide that refunds should be calculated differently.

      I suggest you say in your complaint that you feel you have not been treated fairly as this commission structure was not disclosed to you and you would like a refund of the additional interest you paid because of it, in line with the January Financial Ombudsman decisions.

      Reply
  36. Kelly McCandless says

    February 22, 2024 at 11:40 am

    I have sent an enquiry to Motonovo 2 weeks ago and have had no acknowledgement, not even an automated reply. I know some are using the excuse they have longer to reply but is that just for a complaint? I have only put in an initial enquiry. Should I just go ahead and put the complaint in so I can get it time stamped ?
    Thanks in advance

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 22, 2024 at 4:04 pm

      There is no hurry about this. I suggest you wait 8 weeks.

      Reply
    • Mika says

      March 2, 2024 at 9:24 am

      I have sent an enquiry to Motonovo too and have received two emails. First was to acknowledge my initial email and second had the below reply.

      Thank you for your recent communication requesting information about whether your finance agreement involved a discretionary commission arrangement. We have received your enquiry and are investigating this for you.

      We are receiving a high volume of enquiries in relation to discretionary commission arrangements, no further action is required from you at this stage and we will respond to you as soon as we can.

      For those whose agreements included discretionary commission we will register a complaint and they will be subject to the FCA pause on Car Finance Complaints.

      Enquiries on agreements without any form of discretionary commission will be informed.

      Reply
  37. Paul says

    February 22, 2024 at 11:48 am

    Hi Sara
    Just wanted to say no response received from Black Horse Finance too. Seems like they are not replying to anyone.

    Reply
    • Robert says

      February 22, 2024 at 9:01 pm

      I have just commented the exact same as you Paul.
      Stonewall silence from them.

      Reply
    • Surma Begum says

      February 26, 2024 at 5:39 pm

      Does anyone have black Horse email address?

      Reply
      • Roselyne says

        February 26, 2024 at 8:06 pm

        mse.motorcommission@blackhorse.co.uk

        This is the email I used for them last week and I received a response

        Reply
  38. Keith Rooney says

    February 22, 2024 at 12:38 pm

    Hi again, I don’t have my agreement numbers or past registrations how can I get them

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 22, 2024 at 4:07 pm

      Ask the dealer?

      Reply
      • Keith Rooney says

        February 23, 2024 at 8:05 am

        Thanks Sara, are tge email addresses of finance groups up to date as I emailed hyundai and they say to contact vertu motors, just checking ✔️

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 23, 2024 at 11:28 am

          So far as I know it is, and MSE has the same email address on their tool.

          Vertu looks like a car dealer. You could ask them, but I suggest you go back to Hyundai and say that as they provided the finance, you are asking Hyundai whether there was any element of discretionary commission that affected the rate of interest you paid.

          Reply
          • Keith Rooney says

            February 23, 2024 at 12:30 pm

            Thanks, I put in for 2 claims, got a third claim but don’t know the agreement number or registration, should I expect an acknowledgement with reference number or just wait and see.
            Much appreciated K.

          • Sara (Debt Camel) says

            February 23, 2024 at 12:32 pm

            just wait and see at the moment

  39. Thomas Flynn says

    February 22, 2024 at 3:39 pm

    Hi Sara. Am I correct in saying that Moneybarn were not one of the companies involved in discretionary commission? I have emailed them about 2 months ago but haven’t had a reply.

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 22, 2024 at 4:02 pm

      They have a clear statement on their website that they have never used discretionary commission.

      Reply
  40. Wayne says

    February 22, 2024 at 7:52 pm

    Ive had this from motonova Thank you for your recent communication requesting information about whether your finance agreement involved a discretionary commission arrangement. We have received your enquiry and are investigating this for you.

    We are receiving a high volume of enquiries in relation to discretionary commission arrangements, no further action is required from you at this stage and we will respond to you as soon as we can.

    For those whose agreements included discretionary commission we will register a complaint and they will be subject to the FCA pause on Car Finance Complaints.

    Enquiries on agreements without any form of discretionary commission will be informed.

    Reply
  41. Robert says

    February 22, 2024 at 8:59 pm

    Further to my previous comments, & in response to the person who pointed out that Black Horse actually have a link to contact on their website regarding this very matter.
    I done the email template provided by Sara on this website & forwarded it to the black horse email address also on this page, heard absolutely nothing back, not even an acknowledgment.

    I then seen the comment about Black Horse having the contact information regarding this very matter on their own website, so I also used their own website to send them the required information.

    This was 8 day’s ago now & again, I have not heard a single thing from Black Horse, no acknowledgement at all.
    Just silence. So, it’s just to say, of anyone does contact Black Horse, don’t expect them to even acknowledge you regarding this matter.

    I appreciate that it will take time, however it is frustrating to not hear absolutely anything from them.

    Reply
    • Toni says

      February 23, 2024 at 6:14 am

      Hi, I just wanted to say I contacted Black Horse about 4 weeks ago and I finally got an acknowledgement this week. At least that gives you a bit of guidance on the timescale they’re working to.

      Reply
      • Lisa says

        February 27, 2024 at 11:04 am

        Good to know, its been a few weeks and i submitted via both methods and heard nothing so far. Fingers crossed

        Reply
    • Simon says

      February 23, 2024 at 7:52 am

      I received an auto reply from Black Horse after 12 days using the contact details on MSE.

      Reply
  42. Chris says

    February 22, 2024 at 10:04 pm

    Had 2 agreements with Perrys mazda Huddersfield but around 2010 and have no paperwork, any idea who perrys used as finance

    Also 2 agreements with Cars2 seat in Wakefield , any idea who they used for finance ?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 22, 2024 at 10:06 pm

      You need to ask the dealers.

      Reply
  43. Derek Austin says

    February 23, 2024 at 9:27 am

    Just heard from Lombard that they didn’t pay any commission on my finance agreement with. ar I used them for.

    now just waiting for BMW x 2 and VW finance x 1

    Reply
  44. Aleks says

    February 23, 2024 at 11:32 am

    Hi
    I bought Kia in 2014 from Kia dealer and had finance with R Raphael&Sons but company went into liquidation in 2023. What should be my next step to check if I have paid commission?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 23, 2024 at 12:08 pm

      Ask the dealer. At the moment it isn’t clear if you will be able to claim against the dealer, but you are only asking if there was any discretionary commission paid.

      Reply
  45. MrJT says

    February 23, 2024 at 3:08 pm

    Sara, are you suggesting that when we have found out about whether or not it’s was discretionary we put a full complaint in about it?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 10, 2024 at 4:20 pm

      I am sorry I missed this comment.
      Has a lender told you there was discretionary commission – which lender? Most lenders are automatically treating this as a complaint.

      Reply
  46. Roselyne Kaguo says

    February 24, 2024 at 12:11 am

    Hi Sara,

    I wrote to Black Horse regarding a car they financed for me through Motorpoint in 2018. I used a template I had found on moneysavingexpert.com. They responded on the same day with the following:

    We’ve received your request

    Dear Customer

    We’ve received your request to check if there was a discretionary commission arrangement on your motor finance agreement with us. We’re experiencing a high number of enquiries at the moment and it’s taking longer than usual for us to respond.

    We’ll get back to you as soon as possible. If we need further information, we’ll get in touch with you using the contact details you’ve provided.

    Thank you for your patience while we look into this for you.

    Yours sincerely
    Customer Services
    http://www.blackhorse.co.uk

    Black Horse Limited. Registered office: 25 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7HN.
    Registered number: 661204 England and Wales.
    Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

    Reply
  47. Daniella says

    February 24, 2024 at 3:36 pm

    Hey all, I’ve just had a reply from the car finances from CA Auto finance, with the below. It took them around 3 days to come back with this. Just thought it would be helpful for people to no what to expect ☺️

    Thank you for your recent inquiry asking for confirmation of whether we paid the dealer a discretionary commission for your introduction to us. We’re checking our records and will come back to you in due course. You don’t need to contact us again. We’ll be in touch when we’ve completed the search of our records. Kind regards, CA Auto Finance

    Hope this helps!

    Reply
  48. Marion says

    February 25, 2024 at 3:02 pm

    I sent an email to Blue Motor Finance on 16/2/24. They are also on the list for sometimes having used Discretionary commission. I feel this is a fob of as firstly they responded very quickly, secondly they did not even address me by name only as shown below. Plus the interest on the finance is almost the cost of the value of the car.

    Commission query
    Inbox

    Blue Escalations
    Thu, Feb 22, 4:15 PM (3 days ago)

    Good afternoon

    Thank you for your recent email asking for confirmation of whether we paid the dealer a discretionary commission for your introduction to us.

    After checking our records, we can tell you that we did not pay a discretionary commission to the dealer.

    Kind regards,

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 26, 2024 at 8:45 am

      When did you take the finance out?

      Reply
      • Marion says

        February 26, 2024 at 12:04 pm

        Hi Sara, I took it out January 2019

        Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 26, 2024 at 1:28 pm

      The reply is clear that there was no discretionary commission paid.

      BMF have a different format reply they have sent out to some pople that says they did use discretionary finance (“The Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has recently introduced temporary changes to the handling of complaints where the complaint relates to a discretionary commission arrangement (“DCA”) between us and the Introducer and/or where the commission was calculated using a DCA commission model. I can confirm that an element of DCA commission was paid in connection with your above agreement.”) – they are not telling everyone that there was no discretionary commission. I see no reason to think their reply to you was inaccurate.

      Howvwer, have you considered if you have a possibsle affordability complaint against them? Blue Motor are losing a lot of these complaints. They will go through faster and you will get a larger refund if you win than for a commission claim. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/unaffordable-car-finance/

      Reply
      • Marion says

        March 1, 2024 at 3:04 pm

        Blue Motor Finance did respond to my email re Discretionary Commission stating they didn’t use it. I rang and spoke to them regarding the interest on my car finance which was £3000 short of the value of the car purchase. They completed my complaint over the phone and stated that someone would contact me to discuss

        Reply
        • Jenny says

          March 4, 2024 at 5:27 pm

          Hi Marion…We’ve just had this email from blue motor finance……
          Thank you for contacting us to confirm whether any commission was paid to the Introducer regarding your above agreement and whether the commission was calculated using a Discretionary Commission Arrangement (“DCA”). After checking our records, we can tell you that we did pay a discretionary commission to the dealer. We’ll treat your email as your complaint.
          I’ve only pasted the top half of the email as it goes on and on about the FCA’s pause till 24th sept so they are honest if they have added DCA. Hope that helps.

          Reply
  49. Helen Deleu says

    February 26, 2024 at 8:48 am

    Hi
    I send an email to moneyway using your template and the reply was more confusing, just they sent back the final statement, which I had it already . They don’t specify if was a discretionary, not discretionary, but I know found that was hire purchased, even though I said back then that is a personal purchase.
    Anyway , seem complicated, but I can tell that I paid 17,4% all commission.
    What now, do I insist for them to be more clearer on commission or what !?
    The loan contract was made on February 2018 at the end.
    Thank you

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 26, 2024 at 9:26 am

      I suggest you reply saying that you have asked if there was any discretionary commission arrangement on your contract, because their reply has not answered your question.

      Reply
    • Helen Deleu says

      February 26, 2024 at 12:21 pm

      I done this now , so again waiting for their reply.
      Curiously that they “answer” with a letter final statement instead of replying to my email .
      Thank you

      Reply
  50. Ben says

    February 26, 2024 at 4:14 pm

    Hi Sara,
    I got the below response from Startline. Does this mean closure of this case?

    “The current FCA investigation relates to Discretional Commission Arrangements (DCA) only.

    The commission paid (£632.93) relating to your Agreement was not a DCA which means the introducer did not have the ability to influence the APR of your Agreement or commission paid. Therefore, the current FCA investigation and announcement does not apply to your Agreement with Startline Motor Finance.

    Given this, and in line with your initial email, we have not logged a complaint on this basis.

    If you wish to get back in touch regarding this matter, please contact us using the below details.

    Kind regards,

    Startline Motor Finance Ltd”

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 26, 2024 at 4:18 pm

      yes that is clear, you do not have a potential claim for discretionary commission.

      How long ago did this finance start? Did repaying it cause you any problems?

      Reply
  51. Zif says

    February 29, 2024 at 7:28 pm

    Hi can I make a claim for a zenith which is for a salary sacrifice which I had through royal mail. I had a contract with them for 2 years.

    Many thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      February 29, 2024 at 8:05 pm

      was this a lease contract?

      Reply
      • Zif says

        February 29, 2024 at 8:19 pm

        Its a salary sacrifice lease vehicle.

        Reply
        • Sara (Debt Camel) says

          February 29, 2024 at 9:05 pm

          Sorry these claims don’t apply to lease cars

          Reply
  52. Lynne Gilchrist says

    March 1, 2024 at 5:10 pm

    I know the dealer but can’t remember the car reg what can I do?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 1, 2024 at 5:39 pm

      Ask the dealer if there was discretionary commission and who the finance lender was

      Reply
  53. Ruqayyah says

    March 2, 2024 at 3:18 pm

    What if the car finance company no longer exists?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 2, 2024 at 4:35 pm

      You can ask the dealer.

      Reply
  54. Kelly says

    March 4, 2024 at 12:27 am

    Hi Sarah,

    I contacted Honda Financial Services regarding discretionary commission arrangement and received this response.

    Thank you for your enquiry regarding a potential discretionary commission arrangement between Honda Financial Services and the dealer you purchased your vehicle from.

    From the information you have provided, we have completed our investigation and believe there is no discretionary commission arrangement on your agreement(s) with us and as a result, you are not impacted by the Financial Conduct Authority investigation into historical motor finance commission arrangements.

    Please do not hesitate to get in contact if you have any additional questions or concerns.

    Does this mean I haven’t been affected? I did ask them to provide me with documentation of my arrangement, but they haven’t provided me with this. Should I go back and ask them again?

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 4, 2024 at 7:15 am

      Yes, there was no discretionary commission and so there is nothing to try to claim. If you want You can ask them how much commission was paid, but there isn’t much point.

      Reply
  55. Kira-Beth says

    March 4, 2024 at 2:28 am

    Hi Sara!
    Raised my complaint with Santander consumer finance and they have confirmed the following –

    We can confirm that a DCA was in place between us and the credit broker relating to your finance agreement.
    As there was a DCA in place, we have forwarded your email to our Commissions department to log your complaint. You will receive a formal acknowledgement letter in the post, and we will begin to investigate the commission arrangement that was in place.

    Is there anymore I need to do or just allow them to provide response when they can? It does state the earliest they can provide final response is 25th Sept 2024

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 4, 2024 at 7:13 am

      Nothing more you need to do know except add a not to Calendar for end September! Santander will be waiting to see what the FCA says.

      Reply
      • Kira-Beth says

        March 4, 2024 at 12:45 pm

        Thank you Sara! You’ve been a great help with these complaints!

        Reply
  56. Donna says

    March 4, 2024 at 11:12 am

    Hi
    Has anyone had finance with Dacia Finance?

    Reply
  57. Stephanie says

    March 4, 2024 at 1:00 pm

    I’ve sent 2 emails, one to Ford and one to Black Horse. This is what I sent:

    1. A request for information you hold on my behalf. I would like to ask if my finance agreement with you (details below) had any form of discretionary commission arrangement between you and the broker / car dealer or any other entity involved in the transaction. If it did, I request you inform me within 28 days of the date of this communication.

    For the sake of clarity, this first request is purely for information and is not a complaint or expression of dissatisfaction, and is not subject to the FCA’s pause. If there is failure to comply with my request, please treat this request as a data subject access request under the Data Protection Act 2018/GDPR.

    2. If there is/was a discretionary commission arrangement in place in relation to my finance agreement with you, I request you treat this communication as a formal complaint arising out of the commission arrangement and the fact it was not adequately disclosed at the time it was taken out. The complaint should be treated as being made on the date of this communication. Please confirm to me within 28 days that you have done so.

    I’ve received an acknowledgement of complaint from Ford, so does this confirm that there was a discretionary commission arrangement?

    Blackhorse and sent me a response saying they are looking into my request. How long do they have to inform me if there was a discretionary commission arrangement or not?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 4, 2024 at 1:21 pm

      I’ve received an acknowledgement of complaint from Ford, so does this confirm that there was a discretionary commission arrangement?
      you would have to ask Ford that – it may be they didnt read what you write in much detail but just put it in the complaints pile.

      There is no set time for a lender to respond to a query. Really they should respond within 8 week, but BH may be overwhelmed at the moment.

      Reply
  58. John says

    March 4, 2024 at 1:15 pm

    Can you keep me informed with this please I had one with black horse back in 2007

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 4, 2024 at 1:19 pm

      I suggest you check back here once a month.

      Reply
  59. Angela Moffat says

    March 4, 2024 at 8:55 pm

    Good evening Sara ,
    My husband purchased a Mercedes Benz in 2007 and finance was taken out through Capital Bank ( Bank of Scotland ) He received a letter from Black Horse in 2010 to inform him that due to merger of Lloyds tsb and Halifax they were taking over agreement and changed the agreement number but stated that it wouldn’t affect terms of his original agreement with Capital Bank . He had already emailed his discretionary commission complaint to Black horse with the two agreement numbers and today my husband received a letter requesting further information as they cannot locate his records. If Capital Bank is no longer in existence will this mean Black Horse will not take any blame if this commission was used ? I have emailed Black Horse every bit of information I have kept so may need to sit tight and await their reply .

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 4, 2024 at 9:32 pm

      I think you need to wait and see what turns up.

      Reply
      • Angela Moffat says

        March 4, 2024 at 9:41 pm

        Thank you Sara
        I have emailed all the information I have to Black Horse this evening and I will let you know when I get a response.

        Thank you very much

        Angela

        Reply
  60. Nita says

    March 5, 2024 at 4:20 pm

    Hi Sara
    I am about to lodge complsint re unafordable car finance. I took it in 2017. Can not access my credit report for 2017 . Any suggestiins how to prove it was unafordable? Thank you

    Reply
    • Sara (Debt Camel) says

      March 5, 2024 at 4:22 pm

      do you have, or can you get, your bank statements for the 3 months before and 3 months after the finance started?

      Reply
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