A guide to know your rights in a car finance agreement

Whether you’re looking to buy your dream car or a cheap run-around, car finance is a great way of buying a new car if you don’t have the funds to pay outright. When buying a car in the UK, you have legal rights and protections. In case of any vehicle issues, the Consumers Rights Act covers you. The Citizen's Advice Bureau can also offer free help and guidance if you can't resolve an issue with the seller.

Consumer Rights When Buying a Car on Finance

According to the Consumers Rights Act, all goods must be as described in the sale. They should be both fit for use, and of satisfactory quality. However, when you buy a car, some issues may go unseen until after you’ve purchased the vehicle. If this happens, you can seek redress if the vehicle is not in the condition presented by the dealer/seller.

If you’re buying a used car, a small amount of wear and tear is to be expected. However, if bigger issues present themselves and they were not specifically disclosed in the ad, you should seek redress.

Brought a Faulty Car on Finance

If you realised that the car you bought on finance is faulty, you should have a look through your agreement. This will help you find out if your issue is provided for, and then you can reach out to your car finance provider and inform them of the fault. You should also include any proof and documents you have, such as a picture of the original ad.

If the issue is not resolved, the second option is to have the car finance agreement cancelled by your lender. Reach out to the seller of the vehicle and the car finance company to do this.

If neither of these options works, you can escalate your case to the Financial Ombudsman. They are the point of contact for all financial complaints and money matters in the UK.

Buying Rights

If you buy a car from a dealer:

• Many car dealerships will offer a 12-month warranty (check your agreement).
• You have the right to return the vehicle within 30 days from the day of purchase.
• If a fault arises within 30 days and the dealership does not fix the vehicle within a reasonable time, you can take it elsewhere for repairs and claim back the cost (You must have proof that the issues were there when you bought the car).
• You still have protection within the first 6 months after the purchase.

If you buy a car privately:

• The Consumer Rights Act doesn't apply.
• The seller must accurately describe the car and have the legal right to sell the vehicle.

PCP Claimsline - Claim for mis sold car finance

PCP Claimsline is a claims management company Manchester, that makes car finance claims easy. We’ll need all the agreements in the last ten years that you are looking to claim for. If you don't have the finance agreements to hand we can still help, as long as we have the lender and/or the dealer name from who you originally took the finance agreement from. To make a claim, you can either fill in our short form, and someone will be in touch within 20 minutes or give us a call to speak to one of our advisors.

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