VWFS Mis Selling Claim

chanz4

MrsM2016 said:

The FCA brought in rules in April 2014 (CONC 2.5 Conduct of business : credit broking) and these are the key points then and since:

CONC 2.5.3(3) Adequate time to read and consider the terms – suggesting that the customer was “rail-roaded” into signing the agreement 

CONC 2.5.8(13) Giving preference to a funder – suggesting that better rates were available, but the broker chose the most lucrative for themselves.

CONC 3.3 Clear fair and not mis-leading - suggesting that the communications didn’t explain everything to the customer.

CONC 4.5.3 Disclosure of commission – primarily inferring that the broker is obliged to inform the borrower of the amount of the commission.

For someone thats reading into all the rules etc, did you not read it when signing for the car?  I have a case going through the ombudsman and ahs been for over a year, the commission one isnt as dry cut as you think.

JamoLew

what was your intent when you took out the original deal ?
If it was to hand back the vehicle, you have lost nothing, but have paid £zz x yy months to use the car
If it was to pay the balloon payment off and keep the vehicle - you can do exactly that now (the fact that the balloon is higher than the actual value is irrelevant - would you be as concerned if the actual value was £10k higher than the balloon ?)
Either way if you ignore the current value of the car - you are in exactly the same position that you though you would be in

Shakin_Steve

I'm confused, very confused. If the current value of the car is less than the balloon payment, then you're obviously not going to keep it as you could buy the same car cheaper somewhere else. So, can't you hand it back and then buy it for cash as a second hand car? 

Go on, tell me I'm totally misunderstanding and a bit stupid.

DrEskimo

Shakin_Steve said:

I'm confused, very confused. If the current value of the car is less than the balloon payment, then you're obviously not going to keep it as you could buy the same car cheaper somewhere else. So, can't you hand it back and then buy it for cash as a second hand car? 

Go on, tell me I'm totally misunderstanding and a bit stupid.

It's unlikely they can buy it cheaper than the GFV, as the valuation and GFV are based on trade in price, not what a dealer will sell it for, or even a private seller.

At this stage it becomes irrelevant what the OP has paid so far in terms of depreciation and interest on borrowing the money. That is done. It now becomes a question of what car does the OP want to drive next. If the final payment for their car is a good price relative to the used market then it still is a sensible purchase, regardless of what it's value is relative to the final payment in on their current PCP.

What the OP is complaining about is the original finance deal they took out, as they claim the interest rate was too high and the details of the finance product wasn't explained in detail.

Shakin_Steve

I see. So if you got it into your head that the balloon payment was no greater than the retail value of the car (ignoring the trade in value), then at least you know every bit of it's history, unlike any second hand forecourt vehicle.
That's for me to understand, btw, not in reply to the OP.

DrEskimo

Shakin_Steve said:

I see. So if you got it into your head that the balloon payment was no greater than the retail value of the car (ignoring the trade in value), then at least you know every bit of it's history, unlike any second hand forecourt vehicle.
That's for me to understand, btw, not in reply to the OP.

Absolutely.
I mean I guess there are examples where cars are worth substantially less than the GFV, where the final payment can be even lower than what a dealer will even advertise them for, but I can't imagine it's very common. I know this happened on some early deals on EVs, given there wasn't much of a history to judge prices on (and they have jumped up and down since...).

Whether you could hand that back to BCA/Manhiem and then try and find it again to bid and buy back at lower price at auction...well possibly but it would be no easy feat!

MrsM2016

Thanks for the input.
It says in my contract I am not allowed to buy the car at auction. Ive looked into its value through all channels, the brand have their own "value my car" tool which I used and then confirmed by looking at similar spec/ mileage on auto trader and the auction sites.
Thanks for giving some indication of a timescale Chanz. I fully expect VWFS to say they did nothing wrong and have to go to the Ombundsman so it's good to manage my expectation as to how long it will take.

I think JonesMUFCforever is right that this post will just go on forever. Every time I post something it gets shot down, eg. giving the info I have a good credit score with Experian. If I hadn't have put that I'd have comments of "well maybe you didnt qualify for that offer because your credit score wasn't good enough" (TBF I got those anyway when there is no reason at all that I didn't qualify for the better interest rate), whereas when I post it I just get told that it has no bearing. Trying to post on here is a difficult balancing act as I try to give you enough information to help me and be constructive but the details then get misconstrued and it just turns into having to give more details to try and clear the confusion. And the whole time I am trying to bare in mind that this is a public forum and I dont want to share everything and I am pretty damn busy with my child and job as well as trying to get my ducks in order with this. So I am grateful to those of you who have been constructive, it has helped me solidify in my head what approach I need to take and I will be proceeding with my complaint.

Thank you for your help 

DrEskimo

MrsM2016 said:

Thanks for the input.
It says in my contract I am not allowed to buy the car at auction. Ive looked into its value through all channels, the brand have their own "value my car" tool which I used and then confirmed by looking at similar spec/ mileage on auto trader and the auction sites.
Thanks for giving some indication of a timescale Chanz. I fully expect VWFS to say they did nothing wrong and have to go to the Ombundsman so it's good to manage my expectation as to how long it will take.

I think JonesMUFCforever is right that this post will just go on forever. Every time I post something it gets shot down, eg. giving the info I have a good credit score with Experian. If I hadn't have put that I'd have comments of "well maybe you didnt qualify for that offer because your credit score wasn't good enough" (TBF I got those anyway when there is no reason at all that I didn't qualify for the better interest rate), whereas when I post it I just get told that it has no bearing. Trying to post on here is a difficult balancing act as I try to give you enough information to help me and be constructive but the details then get misconstrued and it just turns into having to give more details to try and clear the confusion. And the whole time I am trying to bare in mind that this is a public forum and I dont want to share everything and I am pretty damn busy with my child and job as well as trying to get my ducks in order with this. So I am grateful to those of you who have been constructive, it has helped me solidify in my head what approach I need to take and I will be proceeding with my complaint.

Thank you for your help 

Look through any post on this sub-forum and you will see the EXACT same advice given about credit scores. They are NOT a reliable indicator of how any 1 particular lender will view your credit worthiness, and indeed what rate they will offer.  I am afraid you are not special, the same advice is parted with all members who ask the same question.

Whilst I am sympathetic to your cause, as I am sure you were rushed into signing something and the salesman told you anything to get a sale, but you need to keep it objective. Provide specific examples about how you were rushed and explain exactly how you were mislead about the details of the finance product. E.g. if they stated that you only paid interest on the deprecation and not the balloon payment, this would be good grounds for a complaint. The part about promising equity is not though. The market is very different and there is never a guarantee on what the car will actually be worth. The salesmen would be perfectly within his right to tell how it has been, so unless he stated it would definitely be worth more, then there is no grounds for complaints. Finally, the part about the high interest rate and how you feel you should have been offered a better rate is unlikely to help. There is no indication a better rate from that lender was available at the time, and a made up score from Experian, or indeed any company, is irrelevant to proving this.

Whilst I wish you luck, if I was being completely blunt I would suggest that you simply chalk this up to experience and learn from it. In particular:
1) You did not have to be pressured into anything. I would never buy a car without spending months researching, so the idea that I would agree to one after a few hours when taking a car into a service is bonkers. You can just say no. Walk away.
2) The terms of the finance agreement were all written in black and white, including the total interest charges. You should have taken the time to take the agreement home and understood it fully.
3) Do your research. Shop around for cars and finance products and make sure you are getting a good deal. Better yet, come to forums like these before you sign and get impartial advice. I spend my time explaining PCP to many forum members on here as I do think it has many misconceptions.

Edi81

Please come back in a few months and let the regulars know how your complaint gets on.

phillw

DrEskimo said:
It's not a 'myth', it's a misconception. 

I think it's an assumption that people would only take out PCP if it's offered at 0%