Quick Guide:
• Potential entitlement to compensation for hidden commission mis-selling if you bought a Volkswagen or VW car on PCP finance post-April 1st, 2014.
• Lack of clear explanation regarding commissions during the purchase could mean unknowingly entering into an unfair Volkswagen or VW PCP agreement.
• Possibility to halt the loan and claim a refund for fees and interest if you have a valid claim.
Have you purchased a new or used Volkswagen or VW car since April 1st, 2014?
Was the Volkswagen or VW vehicle acquired through a PCP finance agreement?
What’s the concern with purchasing a Volkswagen through a PCP finance agreement?
When purchasing a new or used car, customers often opt for a Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) financial plan. However, some Volkswagen PCP finance agreements may have been mis-sold by dealerships or their sales teams. If commissions were not transparently disclosed to the customer during the agreement process, this could potentially inflate the price of the PCP agreement without the buyer’s knowledge, a phenomenon known as a hidden commission – leading to a Volkswagen PCP Claim.
Recently, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), a government-backed watchdog, has prohibited car finance deals where dealers and their sales teams could earn more commission if customers were enrolled in a pricier PCP financial plan. Often, buyers remained unaware of the commissions received by the sales team, resulting in unfair overpayments by customers, leading to a flurry of Volkswagen PCP Claims.
What is a secret/hidden commission in a Volkswagen agreement?
This occurs when the car dealer sells you a finance package for the car without disclosing that they receive a commission, or the extent of that commission. While most customers anticipate the salesperson or dealership making money from the car sale, they might not be aware that a commission from the finance company for the Volkswagen PCP finance agreement is also involved. Consequently, the customer could potentially pay more for the Volkswagen than necessary.
Due to the significant risk of a conflict of interest between the customer and the car dealer- where the dealer might recommend finance products based on the commission amount rather than the customer’s best interests – full transparency is vital for customer protection. It is imperative that the exact amount of this commission is disclosed to the customer.
If the payment and amount of commission have not been adequately explained, the customer has grounds to make a Volkswagen PCP Claim.
What are the indicators that I have been mis-sold car finance on my Volkswagen?
Warning signs of potential car finance mis-selling for Volkswagen (VW) include:
• The VW car salesperson promoting their finance as the ‘best option’ instead of encouraging you to shop around or providing a range of alternative finance choices.
• The VW car salesperson fails to make a disclosure regarding any commission received by the dealership or salesperson from the finance company for your Volkswagen PCP agreement.
• Absence of information regarding the exact amount of commission the dealership and/or the salesperson were receiving from the finance company.
How much compensation can I claim for mis-sold Volkswagen car finance?
The amount of compensation you can claim depends on various factors, including the terms of the finance agreement, the interest rates charged, the amount of finance, and the duration since the PCP finance agreement was signed. However, you could be entitled to thousands of pounds in compensation if you start a Volkswagen PCP Claim.
If you believe that you have been mis-sold car finance, reach out to our mis-selling team, and we can discuss your Volkswagen PCP Claim and its potential worth.
How long will my Volkswagen PCP Claim take?
The duration of your claim varies depending on the circumstances. If the dealership and/or the finance company acknowledge responsibility for the alleged PCP mis-selling and agree to settle the case, a compensation claim can be resolved within a few months. However, if the allegations are disputed, the claim might be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), where the resolution could take anywhere between 12 to 18 months.
If initiating court proceedings is deemed necessary, the process could again take between 12 and 18 months.
What will it cost to make a mis-sold car finance claim?
Making an enquiry about a Volkswagen PCP Claim will incur no cost. Once our team has assessed your potential case and if we deem it suitable, we will enter into a no-win-no-fee agreement. This means that if the case is unsuccessful, we will not charge for the time spent on it.
Common Volkswagen Models:
-> Up!
-> Polo
-> Golf
-> T-Cross
-> T-Roc
-> Tiguan
-> Touareg
-> Passat
-> Touran
-> Sharan