Does this affect any of you

[Rumour]

I really don't understand the need for a pay out! When these people bought a car they were told the cost and the total cost of the agreement and the payments! They agreed and signed a contract to that effect. How were they miss-sold? Next, cafes will be under scrutiny because they didn't tell customers that some of the cost of their coffee went to Mrs Miggins for cleaning!

 

[TeamRienza]

A note of caution regarding interest free loans.

It used to be the case that the loan was interest free, but if a payment was missed or the final payment was even a day late, the loan became interest added, and not necessarily just for the missed period. Interest would be charged on the whole loan for the whole of the agreed period.

This was common in the furniture trade.
Another case of the small print being crucial.

Davy

 

[YeoBlade]

I used to work next to a used car dealer, cheap stock, and was quite friendly with him and always chatting, he may have used XYZ finance on his sales and explained that depending on the customer and credit rating he could offer loans but with much higher APR %, rates if they were struggling to get the loan needed, and they were high rates! he would then get a monthly payment from the finance company for the additional higher interest rates he had manipulated out of the customer, so with maybe 20 cars he'd sold on finance still being paid off it was a nice little additional earner, But XYZ finance co. are having to repay these mis sold loans, not the dealer doing the dirty deed, but, was he just helping them out by getting them an car

 

[RichardHelen262]

A few years ago Helen decided she had seen a new Mercedes that she had taken a liking to,
So after some research she decided on the spec and colour and that Mercedes in Sheffield had the exact vehicle in stock,
So we went over to Sheffield and there it was sat in the showroom, after telling the salesman that we wouldn’t be requiring finance, they weren’t keen to sell it to us,
This went on for several months with different main agents within 100 miles of home, in the end we took out finance, then as soon as we got it home we paid off the finance.
I would never had thought it would be so difficult to buy a car

 

[YeoBlade]

A few years ago Helen decided she had seen a new Mercedes that she had taken a liking to,
So after some research she decided on the spec and colour and that Mercedes in Sheffield had the exact vehicle in stock,
So we went over to Sheffield and there it was sat in the showroom, after telling the salesman that we wouldn’t be requiring finance, they weren’t keen to sell it to us,
This went on for several months with different main agents within 100 miles of home, in the end we took out finance, then as soon as we got it home we paid off the finance.
I would never had thought it would be so difficult to buy a car

But you're buying finance, the car is just the tool needed to get the sale

 

[trevskoda]

They can give an interest free loan because they buy the goods at Trade price. Their selling price is a lot more than they buy for and can ffer 'interest free' to catch the eye of the Public.

They dont give the loan, its with a sep co and not connected with them, i phoned today and ask the girl, her reply was the people who take out long term 5 year payments are 15% or higher pay for you, so she said you being a short loan and monies up front to cut the bill will get no interest on loan.

 

[Fisherman]

A few years ago Helen decided she had seen a new Mercedes that she had taken a liking to,
So after some research she decided on the spec and colour and that Mercedes in Sheffield had the exact vehicle in stock,
So we went over to Sheffield and there it was sat in the showroom, after telling the salesman that we wouldn’t be requiring finance, they weren’t keen to sell it to us,
This went on for several months with different main agents within 100 miles of home, in the end we took out finance, then as soon as we got it home we paid off the finance.
I would never had thought it would be so difficult to buy a car

I bought several pre reg and second hand mercs over 25 years from dealerships in Glasgow, Oxford, Birmingham (twice), Manchester, Ayr, and my last one in 2017 from Perth. I always traded in my old one in and paid cash every time.

 

[trevskoda]

A few years ago Helen decided she had seen a new Mercedes that she had taken a liking to,
So after some research she decided on the spec and colour and that Mercedes in Sheffield had the exact vehicle in stock,
So we went over to Sheffield and there it was sat in the showroom, after telling the salesman that we wouldn’t be requiring finance, they weren’t keen to sell it to us,
This went on for several months with different main agents within 100 miles of home, in the end we took out finance, then as soon as we got it home we paid off the finance.
I would never had thought it would be so difficult to buy a car

As been in the trade for years you are correct on what you have found, in my day it worked like this, car £8000, profit £2000, you come in to buy and barter, they drop £1000 of price, you agree and sign the papaers for hp over 3 years, hp co give them a kickback of say £500, so infact the money they make cuts the £1000 loss they ageed to by half, win win for them as car sold, co i worked for had to sell 40 cars a mth to keep the dealership, so discounts for hp buyers is common, no way do they really want cash for discount.

 

[RichardHelen262]

I bought several pre reg and second hand mercs over 25 years from dealerships in Glasgow, Oxford, Birmingham (twice), Manchester, Ayr, and my last one in 2017 from Perth. I always traded in my old one in and paid cash every time.

I think another part of the problem we were having, is that it was a new model that had just been released, so there were more customers than cars available, I had also got a buyer for our old Merc, so they didn’t have that to sell on afterwards either, so again less profit for them.

 

[GMJ]

Haggle not barter!

 

[gasgas]

These claim things really really annoy me. They are only started by Grabbers-R-Us lawyers out to make more money. I had a car on a PCP which would probably qualify. However as I am over the age of consent I am able to read the terms and conditions. If I don't like them or I don't like the repayments I won't sign. Simple. If I sign, I have agreed. I have no reason to complain about my own incompetence.
An annoying result of all these "We must claim at each and every occurrance that I don't like or doesn't suit me even if it's my own fault" incidences is that our church Harvest Festival won't accept any fresh harvest. No fruit or vegetables, no fresh bread or cakes, no sheaves of wheat. The reason: Someone is scared that someone will sue the church for giving them an apple they don't like the taste of.
It really gets my goat . . . . .which I can't give, they won't accept live or dead animals, either . . .

 

[gasgas]

But you're buying finance, the car is just the tool needed to get the sale

Exactly. When I wor-a-lad I had a Vespa and my first girlfriend. Bring all keen, I used to go to her work and pick her up after the shop closed. It was a shop that had white goods and furniture, and everything was labelled "10/- a month" or whatever it cost per month but NEVER the £150 real price. I asked her why there were no purchase prices and she explained that their customers only ever buy stuff on monthly payments. I don't think that she, and I certainly didn't realise that the customers were paying £300 for a £150 washing machine. She also said that after the customers had been paying their monthly payments for 6 months they would get a letter, and be told in the shop : "Well Mrs Muggins you have paid off so much of your hoover, you can afford to have a new carpet now. Come and look at these . . . "
And later in life when I became a computer shop manager the boss was always on at me to sell the things on finance. "Don't tell them the BBC Micro is £399, say it is £20 a month. It sounds cheaper". The customer would end up paying 50% more than the cash price. Being a "never lend nor borrow money" kind of chap I didn't want to dump my customers in this trap so I never offered monthly payments from the finance company unless the customer asked.

Strangely although I have bought lots of motorhomes, both new and used I have never had this pressure to go for finance from the sales staff. I wouldn't anyway go for it because many years ago I learned my lesson when I had finance on a caravan. Suddenly unemployed I couldn't afford the payments so the day after I was made redundant I sold it. Since then I always say to myself "If you haven't got the cash, you can't afford it". It's no use taking the attitude of assuming that in the future your income will be the same as it is now.

 

[trevskoda]

Some say never buy into something you cannot afford, in that case how come most of us end up married.

 

[barryd]

Some say never buy into something you cannot afford, in that case how come most of us end up married.

I married an accountant. They seem to have magic money trees.

 

[colinm]

I've only ever had one loan which I paid off in a year.
I'm not sure it's the best policy, a friend of a friend always said "I hope I die owing a million pounds", sounds like a winner to me.

 

[GMJ]

I thought the whole reason that these claims were being brought is that punters were either lied to/had info kept from them, regarding the best/cheapest interest rate compared to what they were being asked to pay on the loans. They knew what the interest rate was that they were going to pay but this wasn't necessarily the best rate that the garage could provide, so that they (the garage) could get more commission.

So folks did have their eyes open it's just that they were lied to. In those circumstances I'm not sure how many would have thought to question the interest rate or the commission. Faced with the offering they would have just taken it or not I guess.

Or maybe I have it wrong?

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Bought our first van with a AA loan, bought and sold for the later ones, car is PCP? others all good models and paid cash.

 

[ricc]

Back in the last century in the agricultural machinery business we would sell new machinery at retail price, as dealer we would get say 25 percent discount from the manufacturers for stock . Customer could have 10 percent cash discount or sign up for interest free credit, credit sales were between customer and manufacturer , we would get a reduced commission say 15 percent with the missing 10 going to the finance co.
This evolved over time so we could sell used equipment via a finance co.as well.

But basic principle was customer either paid full asking price with finance or haggled for cash sale discount.

 

[trevskoda]

Of to bank this morning to beg for cash, im paying a lump of eye loan of today as even though no interest i would not want it landing on wifes step if i keiled over, not into depts.

 

[colinm]

I thought the whole reason that these claims were being brought is that punters were either lied to/had info kept from them, regarding the best/cheapest interest rate compared to what they were being asked to pay on the loans. They knew what the interest rate was that they were going to pay but this wasn't necessarily the best rate that the garage could provide, so that they (the garage) could get more commission.

So folks did have their eyes open it's just that they were lied to. In those circumstances I'm not sure how many would have thought to question the interest rate or the commission. Faced with the offering they would have just taken it or not I guess.

Or maybe I have it wrong?

Not as I understand it.
They where not told the salesman was taking a commission, this is not the same as being lied to or not told best rates, it is a requirement of finance act that anyone taking a commission informs you even if they offer the best rate going.