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How do I know if I have been mis-sold a Lloyds Bank Finance agreement?
Warning signs of customers being mis-sold PCP include:
- The car salesperson told you their finance was the ‘best option’ rather than encouraging you to shop around or giving you a range of alternative options.
- The salesperson did not give you information about any commission that they were getting from Lloyds Bank for you signing up to the agreement.
- You were not told exactly how much commission they would get from the finance company.
What’s the issue with buying a vehicle with a Lloyds Bank PCP finance agreement?
Lloyds Bank is one of the first UK banks to allocate hundreds of millions of pounds in anticipation of having to pay compensation to car finance customers. Lloyds has set aside £450 million for potential redress following the launch of a major investigation by City watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) into whether customers have overpaid on their car finance loans. The FCA has recently started a detailed review into historic commission arrangements in the motor finance industry following a high number of complaints from customers to car finance providers, including Lloyds.
Any Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) car agreement from dealerships may have included a hidden, secret or discretionary commission fee paid by the lender finance company. Often unknown to the consumer, this fee inflates the price of the contract. This means that if you have taken out a PCP financial plan with Lloyds Bank since 1st April 2014, you may be able to claim the money from the commissions. TLW Solicitors can help you get a refund for PCP mis-selling.
Government-backed watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), has banned finance deals where the car dealers and their sales teams could earn more commission if customers were sold a more expensive PCP finance deal. This would often happen without the buyer even knowing what commission the sales team was getting. This is known as a ‘secret’, ‘hidden’ or ‘discretionary commission’ and meant that customers were unfairly paying more than they should. Many UK drivers are now eligible to make PCP claims for each car contract that may have been mis-sold.
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Mis-Sold Lloyds Bank PCP Car Finance FAQs
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What is a secret, hidden or discretionary commission?
This is where the car dealer sells you a finance package for the car but does not tell you that they are getting a commission or just how large the commission they are getting is. Most customers expect the salesperson or dealership to make their money on the sale of the car, but they do not realise that they may also be getting a commission from the finance company, in this case Lloyds Bank, for the PCP finance agreement that goes with it. In turn, this means that the customer is potentially paying more than they should when buying the vehicle.
Because of the high risk of there being a conflict of interest between the customer and the car dealer (the dealer recommending Lloyds Bank finance products based on the amount of commission as opposed to what is best for their customer), and to ensure full transparency for their protection, the exact amount of this commission should be disclosed to the customer.
If the payment of commission and the amount of that commission has not been explained, then the customer can claim compensation for mis-sold PCP car finance, together with interest.
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Explain the mis-sold car finance process
If you or a loved one have taken out PCP car finance after 1st April 2014 and before 1st January 2021 and you think you may have been mis-sold, then get in touch with our mis-selling team by phone on 0191 293 1500, email info@tlwsolicitors.co.uk or complete either the Start Your Claim or Request a Callback form below.
A member of our team will then go through your case and explore your options in a free, no-obligation discussion.
If appropriate, we will then contact Lloyds Banking Group and get all the relevant documents and contracts on your behalf to see if you have a claim and if so, what it might be worth. We can still investigate your claim even if you no longer have the paperwork for the finance agreement.
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Who is affected by PCP Car Finance mis-selling?
Anyone who has taken out PCP finance with any dealership for any manufacturer’s vehicle since 2014 and before 1st January 2021 may be affected.
Common manufacturers we work with include:
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How much compensation can I claim for mis-sold Lloyds car finance?
This depends on many factors including the wording of the finance agreement with Lloyds, the interest rates charged, the amount of finance and how long ago the PCP finance agreement was signed. However, you may well be entitled to thousands of pounds in compensation.
If you think that you have been mis-sold car finance, get in touch with our PCP mis-selling team and we can discuss your claim and what it might be worth.
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How long will my mis-sold car finance claim take?
This varies from claim to claim. If the dealership and/or Lloyds Banking Group accepts responsibility for the alleged PCP mis-selling and agrees to put things right, then a compensation claim can take just a few months.
However, in our experience, this is unlikely to happen. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) are carrying out an investigation into the mis-selling of car loans, the outcome of the investigation is unlikely to be known until December 2025, and so settlement of most claims will happen after this date.
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How many claims can I make?
There is no limit on the number of contracts you can make a claim for if each PCP finance agreement included hidden, secret or hidden commissions.
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What will it cost to make a mis-sold car finance claim?
It will cost you nothing to make an enquiry and once our team has reviewed your potential refund case and if we feel it suitable, then we will enter into a no-win-no-fee agreement. That means, if the case is unsuccessful, we will not charge for the time we have spent on the case. Our costs are governed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. More details of which can be provided to you before you decide if you wish to proceed with a claim.
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What sets TLW Solicitors apart in mis-sold car finance cases?
‘Secret/hidden/discretionary commission’ car finance mis-selling claims can be very complex. Our team of specialist lawyers has many years’ experience of dealing with a wide range of financial mis-selling cases.
Our lawyers are very familiar with the regulatory framework and the various financial institutions involved in these cases, such as City regulator, the FCA and Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) which is an independent government backed body, set up to resolve disputes between consumers and FCA regulated financial institutions such as Lloyds Banking Group. The team is also very experienced in taking cases to Court, if necessary, to ensure that clients get the compensation they are rightfully owed.
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What is a secret, hidden or discretionary commission?
Get in touch
If you or a loved one bought a car on Lloyds Bank finance after 1st April 2014 and before 1st January 2021 and were not told about the amount of commission that the dealership or salesperson received, then you may be able to claim compensation for PCP mis-selling.
Contact our specialist PCP mis-selling team for a free no-obligation discussion about making a NO WIN, NO FEE refund claim.
