Motorists who bought car on finance between 2007 | Tech News

Drivers who purchased a car on finance between certain years have been told to write to firms now to make sure they don’t miss out on possible compensation. Experts at Consumer Voice have stressed petrol, diesel and electric road users should “complain now” to their finance lender if they feel they may be affected after having bought their cars between the years of 2007 and 2021.

Writing to a firm and asking whether a discretionary commission fee was added to a finance policy is crucial to determining if payouts are due. Motorists who are told a commission fee was applied will likely be “owed compensation” when the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) investigation has concluded. However, motorists are unlikely to receive any compensation or payouts until after December due to an extension offered to firms last year. 

Consumer Voice said: “You should complain now to your car finance lender if you’re concerned that you paid too much and weren’t told about a commission being paid by a lender to the dealer who arranged your loan. 

“Download our free template letter if you suspect the interest you agreed on a car loan was too high and need help complaining.

“Car finance firms have been given longer than the usual 8 weeks to respond to complaints because of the ongoing investigation by the regulator. 

“The regulator has given car finance providers until 4 December 2025 before they need to respond in full to complaints about discretionary commission arrangements.” 

And motorists have also been told to dig a bit deeper on their enquiries.

The experts added: “However, providers are responding to complaints to confirm whether you had a DCA or not on your loan.

“Anyone who has been told by their finance provider that they didn’t have a discretionary commission on their loan should now be asking if any commission was applied at all. If it was, you may still be owed compensation.”

Motorists could be set to receive a staggering £1,100 in compensation payouts if car finance firms are found to have mis-sold road users over discretionary commission fees. 

This is an extra charge unknowingly issued to motorists bills with those who purchased a car between 2007 and 2021 most impacted.

Money Saving Expert founder Martin Lewis has also urged individuals to get in touch with finance companies.

Martin has launched a free car finance reclaim tool which walks road users through how to issue a complaint.

Last year, Martin revealed that over one million road users had sent letters to firms in the first month of the service between February and March 2024.