Martin Lewis has issued a warning to anyone who suspects they may have been mis-sold car finance. The majority of people purchase their vehicles through leasing agreements, where they pay an upfront deposit for their car and then a monthly fee with interest.
The MoneySavingExpert was presenting Good Morning Britain today, where he discussed car finance. It was disclosed last week that a staggering 44 percent of car leasing agreements, sold between April 2007 and November 2024, might have been mis-sold.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) explained that during the specified time period: "Motor finance companies broke laws and regulations in force at the time by failing to disclose important information. This led to unfairness, with consumers denied the chance to negotiate or find a better deal and, in some instances, paying more for their loan."
Speaking on the ITV morning show today, he outlined three ways someone could have been mis-sold finance through:
He emphasised that there was no way to determine how people were mis-sold without checking, and anyone due compensation will be contacted starting in 2026 and will receive any money owed automatically. However, he added that it is worth individuals registering their own complaint to speed-up the process, reports the Mirror.
He stated: "There's a risk on older cases that they don't have the documentation that you do. There's a risk that you've moved house or have a different address. There's a risk you got married and changed your name. For all of those reasons, I would prefer to be in the group that has complained and has to opt out of the payment rather than they have to find you and opt in."
He mentioned that his team would be creating templates to assist those concerned and that they would be ready in the forthcoming weeks. "As long as you make the complaint before the re-dress scheme starts, you'd be ok," he added.
Martin has been championing for those who had been mis-sold car finance. An estimated four million car finance deals have already been the subject of a complaint – leaving potentially around 10 million which could still be pursued.
Martin advised people to use a letter template at MSE.com to ensure they 'opt-in' to the compensation scheme. He also provides a step-by-step guide on how to lodge a complaint and what subsequent steps should be taken for those who have already done so.
He stated: "If you haven't already complained, then the firms have to try and identify all the people who were mis-sold under all these categories and need to get in touch with you within six months of the scheme [starting], but then you'll have to opt in."
He added: "So you'll have to actively say 'I want to be a part of this and I want to get that money.' Now, in my view – and I suggested this to the regulator boss when I was talking to him about this – in most cases it would be a lot easier if you were in the 'I've already complained' category. So that means you probably want to put in a complaint NOW, so that you're in that category by the time the redress scheme starts (if you were mis-sold)."
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