The Best Car Finance Blog In The World

We all know that crooked private car park and land owners got their come upance when the Protection of Freedom Act 2012 was introduced that banned the clamping of cars on private land.

Have you ever, lost or stood on your car key (I use the expression ‘key’ lightly). My brother in law once had his BMW key eaten by their dog, just before the car was due to be returned at the end of the lease.

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He wasn’t too worried until he saw the cost of the replacement. I was staggered to read a report from company, Recover Me, whose founding director, Robin Reames, revealed the cost of replacement keys on the UK’s top 10 selling models. He explained that finding out the cost of a replacement key is nigh on impossible until you need to replace it.

Hence the reason for revealing the costs, which average £206 per car. Of course the reason why the costs are going up and will continue to rise is the amount of information stored within the circuitry of the key. It’s like a mini black box. I remember taking my BMW 7 series in for a service a couple of years ago and the service agent asked for my key, not to drive the car but to see what needed to be done!

In order to make sure you take good care of your car keys here is a list of the top 10 selling cars with the cost of the replacement key alongside:

1. Ford Fiesta                          £220
2. Ford Focus                          £220
3. Vauxhall Corsa                  £135
4. Vauxhall Astra`                £130
5. VW Golf                               £190
6. Nissan Qashqai                £280
7. Fiat 500                              £230
8. BMW 3 Series                    £216
9. VW Polo                             £210
10. BMW 1 Series                    £233

Shocking or what, worth their weight in gold – literally!! By Graham Hill

If you work in the finance industry you have probably been involved in debates and discussion over the last 12 months regarding some of the biggest changes to the consumer credit industry since the introduction of Hire Purchase in the 60’s. If you are a lender, broker, dealer or consumer (this includes small businesses that are small partnerships or sole traders) life will never be the same again.

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

The Government passed over administration of the Consumer Credit Act from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in April 2014. Since then confusion has reigned. I’m not going to talk about the affect on the lenders and the brokers but you need to understand the potential detrimental affect on you as a customer.

In the past when a dealer, broker, shop or anyone else had to provide advice on finance they had to hold a Consumer Credit Licence. It was a totally meaningless piece of paper, we all knew that, as long as you didn’t have a criminal record or were an undischarged bankrupt you could apply for and be granted a licence. It was simple but actually meaningless.

So when the FCA took over and changed the system from a single licence with a number of categories such as credit broking, debt collection, debt advice etc. we now have a three tier system, named Full Permission, Limited Permission and Appointed Representative. It was all beginning to look good, at last there was a body to police the consumer credit industry that might get rid of a large number of crooks and ensure that new entrants and even those already providing advice were properly qualified.

However, the opposite seems to be happening. In order to apply for permission brokers and dealers will need to spend a lot of money, not only in application costs but ongoing administration and reporting costs. This will result in some smaller used car dealers withdrawing their finance offering because the new regulations are far too complicated for them to understand.

It will also cause some brokers to withdraw for similar reasons so you as a customer will have less choice. It also means that the cost of being regulated will increase sharply so those costs will be reflected in the finance charges. On the other hand brokers who offer commercial finance to limited companies, i.e. non consumers are also being encouraged to apply for Full Permission.

I find this approach by trade bodies and lenders obnoxious. These companies with little or no experience of consumer finance will be able to provide customers any consumer product they wish from personal loans to HP and buy to let mortgages. It’s a disgrace, these brokers should never be given Full Permission but if recent history is anything to go by every applicant will be granted Full Permission with very few rejections.

Sounds like Consumer Credit Licences all over again. If you are currently considering various car finance options make sure that you are talking to someone who is properly qualified. By Graham Hill

Drivers have been complaining for years that the MPG figures provided by car manufacturers are inaccurate and don’t reflect every day driving. Correct, the figures are calculated by applying very strict conditions within a controlled environment to best reflect the conditions, known as Urban, Extra Urban and Combined.

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The fact is that every car is subjected to exactly the same tests so if nothing else the resultant figures provide a fairly accurate way of comparing the results of different models. It can’t be done any other way. If you were to drive the same Ford Fiesta round the same route in the middle of Bath on three separate days I guarantee you will achieve three different results.

Add to that changing weather conditions along with different driving styles and the results become meaningless and can vary massively. So let’s stop whinging on about the manufacturers’ fuel consumption figures and simply use them as a guide as to which cars use more fuel than others. In America the situation is different.

There have been a string of high profile cases involving Kia, Hyundai and Ford after they all admitted leading customers astray over fuel consumption figures. The cases resulted in hefty fines and compensation being paid to car buyers.

But before you start opening Word in order to start your claims process the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) say it is unlikely that any similar claim in the UK would succeed as the EU testing regime does not claim to represent real world driving conditions. Sorry ladies and gentlemen but simply drop the suggested MPG by 15 to 20, that should give you a more accurate figure. By Graham Hill

I’m in the process of setting up a new marketing business that will give those who sign into my new scheme access to a wide range of discounts and bonuses from cheap MOT, servicing and repairs to cheap subscriptions to motor magazines, special offers on tyres, discounts or added free benefits to roadside breakdowns and much more.

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

One of the latest developments is the addition of cheap legal advice from legal specialists. The need for such a service was highlighted when I read about the buyer of a new Audi A1which developed a fault after just 2 days.

The car was taken back by the supplying dealer for him to repair but after 2 weeks the fault had only just been identified as a fault with the ABS control unit. Unfortunately the dealer couldn’t find a fix so the driver, quite rightly demanded a replacement car. After a lot of buggering about without a solution the driver involved Auto Express who contacted Audi who agreed that the driver should have the car replaced.

By this stage I would have been on Audi’s rooftop with their MD dangling by his boot laces pleading to supply a new car even if he had to go to Germany to collect it himself. It is your legal right as well as claim compensation. In the end and no doubt as a gesture of bloody goodwill the driver not only had the car replaced but had the spec. upgraded to an S-Line.

We need a legal helpline for drivers to access in order to get rid of all the ignorance that exists about buyers legal rights. Watch this space, lots of exciting things happening this year. By Graham Hill

Conservative MP Sir Greg Knight has put forward a proposal to Transport Minister, John Hayes to turn off traffic lights on certain junctions at non busy times.

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

I understand where he is coming from as I’m sure you do having spent what seems like ages stuck at a set of traffic lights with no other traffic about at all waiting for the lights to turn green. Apparently this isn’t as daft an idea as it might initially sound as it is fairly common in Europe. It saves electricity, it also saves fuel as drivers aren’t kept waiting at lights on tickover waiting for the lights to change.

I saw on our local news a few days ago that they were trialling such an idea in Reading town centre in order to keep busses flowing. The traffic lights were causing busses to bunch up so by the time the busses got out of the town passengers would see 2 or 3 busses all turn up together. By turning the traffic lights off at certain times it was found that busses were spread more evenly.

Whilst it might seem like a good idea Hayes has said that there are no immediate plans to switch off the traffic lights. So another good idea bites the dust! By Graham Hill

As most of my customers are aware you can now have your car serviced at any service or repair centre without the loss of the car’s warranty provided the work is in line with the conditions stipulated by the manufacturer.

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

Since this European rule, known as Block Exemption, was introduced in 2003 it has meant that anyone who buys a new car carrying a manufacturer’s warranty can have their car serviced and maintained at a non-franchised dealer, thereby saving a substantial amount of money.

However, when you lease a car and you are responsible for the servicing of the vehicle, can the leasing company insist that you only have the car serviced at a main dealer as this would be a contradiction of the regulations? Again, regular readers will know that most leasing companies are happy for you to have the car serviced at non franchised dealers provided the work is carried out in line with the manufacturer’s instructions using original or compatible parts.

But you need to check your contract as these things have a habit of changing without notice. Mercedes-Benz changed their rules a few years ago so that if you return a lease car (including PCP) and the service work has been carried out by a non authorised service/repair centre they will impose an end of lease charge, in some cases, over £1,000, even though the car has been serviced on time and even using Mercedes original parts.

I took some legal advice on this and was advised that whilst the car is owned by the finance company they can include terms relating to the service and maintenance of the car. So whilst they may be out of line with the rest of the leasing industry they are not acting, on the face of it, illegally, albeit that they are acting outside the spirit of the law.

But there are two issues on which they could justify their stance. The first is the quality of the work which Mercedes could argue would be of a lower standard if carried out by a service centre. I would argue this every day of the week having received some of the worst services ever when I have had a Mercedes serviced by a main dealer in the past.

On the other side of the coin a judge might argue that a customer should be free, in an open market, and given the Block Exemption law, to choose where the car is serviced – it is the whole point of the law to make it competitive and stop the protectionist approach that most manufacturers had used when insisting that their cars are serviced at a main dealer or lose your warranty before it changed in 2003.

The other argument could relate to resale value of the car when it is returned which they could argue would be less than if the car had not been serviced by a main dealer. However, they list a scale of charges which could suggest a penalty, which in these circumstances could be considered illegal.

If, through breach of contract, you were to cause the other party a loss they can not charge anything above their losses incurred. Having spoken to many trade buyers over the years most would not draw a distinction between a car that has ‘Full Service History’ and ‘Full Mercedes Benz Service History’ so it might be difficult to prove their case against a customer in front of a judge.

If you have been charged a ‘penalty’ by MB Finance and you are unhappy about it you could take out a complaint through the Financial Ombudsman Service if you are a ‘consumer’. Putting MB Finance to one side the point of all this is that Halfords are about to launch an aggressive new campaign to take away a larger share of the £10 billion a year after care market from main dealers.

This comes on the back of the Auto Express Driver Power Survey in which a large number of dealer networks were criticised by drivers. Traditionally the Halfords target market has been 3 – 5 year old cars but the new approach will attract new to 3 year old car drivers looking to save up to 40% of the labour cost. They will be introducing new receptions that will look more like the pods you will see in an Apple store and they will offer a collect and return service.

The receptions will also have Wi-Fi facilities and you will even be able to watch your car being serviced on an iPad that they will provide for your use. So it may be worth considering Halfords for your next service but don’t forget to check your lease agreement first and don’t forget you can always negotiate with the main dealer before booking your car in for a service. By Graham Hill

You are about to read one of the best pieces of advice you will ever receive. If you are a regular reader of my rantings you will know that there is one expression that seriously pisses me off, can you recall? You can’t? Let me remind you, it is – ‘a goodwill gesture.’

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

In the car industry I would suggest that 95 times out of a 100 the ‘goodwill gesture’ is a legal bloody entitlement but in order to cover up a major con or failure the dealer/funder/manufacturer will make good any damage – as a gesture of goodwill! Typically the car part that fails two days after the warranty has run out that is repaired free – as a ‘gesture of good faith.’

Sod off, there is such a thing as the Sale Of Goods Act which takes precedent over a warranty and if a defective part, expected to last for the life of the car, fails, it is a legal obligation, on the part of the dealer who sold you the car, to replace it or repair it. But here is another interesting example. A lady bought a brand new Nissan Qashqai that developed a gearbox fault shortly after she took delivery.

It was agreed that the gearbox was faulty and needed to be replaced but two months down the line the lady, Jill Alexander, was still without her nice new Nissan. Whilst the car was awaiting the replacement gearbox the dealer loaned her a Nissan Micra as a courtesy car whilst Jill was still paying the finance and insurance on her Qashqai.

After a while, and complaints from Jill, the dealer provided a replacement Qashqai so that she could get her mother’s wheelchair in the back. It wasn’t the same spec as her car and there was still no sign of the replacement gearbox. Nissan explained that due to huge demand for their new Qashqai they had no stock of spare gearboxes but they would pay the two months of Jill’s finance as – you guessed it ‘a goodwill gesture’.

They are also looking to replace the Qashqai with an X Trail to provide a better spec car and more space. Now here’s the thing. First of all every car manufacturer has a legal obligation to stock sufficient parts for repairs of new cars sold. Clearly they have failed to do this being more interested in building more new cars than supplying spare parts for customers who have already bought.

Whether the car is on HP, PCP or leased it is the property of the finance company so you first need to involve the funder who can bring more pressure on the dealer or manufacturer than you. But here is the best piece of advice. Make sure that when you take out your car insurance that you take out legal cover that can be as little as £20 per annum.

When you find yourself in this situation get in touch and get a barrister on the case. It’s amazing how quickly dealers and manufacturers act when a lawyer is on the case. In this case Jill has a case to claim compensation for finance payments and any other out of pocket expenses. So Nissan should not only be paying the two months they have agreed to they should be paying for all the finance payments whilst the car is off the road. And not as a goodwill gesture!

Oh and one final thing on legal cover, make sure you also take it out with your contents insurance. If you make a genuine claim and the insurer doesn’t pay out you can call on your insurance for legal advice and get them to act against the insurance company – I kid you not, well worth the few extra pounds. By Graham Hill

It was 2 years ago when I announced that the Government was to instigate a detailed report into the cost of insurance. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) were to carry out the investigation and over the subsequent 2 years it seemed as though the results and recommendations would be hugely beneficial to motorists as information leaked out.

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

The two areas of major concern were (and still are) the cost of replacement vehicles and the cost of repairs, both of which were completely out of control and adding fortunes to drivers’ premiums. But sadly common sense has flown out of the window and the CMA has made a U turn on both of these critical issues.

The original proposal was to place a cap on replacement car costs and a cap on repair charges, both of which the CMA supported and seemed were working on them. However, it now seems that neither are to be implemented because ‘any changes would require full-scale law alterations and savings would be minimal.’ I would add that this report has cost the Treasury £millions and for what?

I am confused as to how a cap on repair costs and a cap on charging for replacement cars would result in ‘full-scale law alterations.’ I could write the bloody changes myself in an afternoon and who would resist the proposals. This must surely call into question the integrity of those carrying out the investigation. And why did it take two years and several millions of pounds to come to that conclusion?

Even the Association of British Insurers (ABI), whom one would assume would defend the way in which its industry works has criticised the report for failing to tackle the excessive cost of replacement cars, saying that this failure would be ‘a bitter pill to swallow for honest motorists.’ This has simply handed those who provide replacement vehicles, such as accident management companies, an open chequebook to continue charging extortionate hire charges.

The ABI appear not to have commented on the capping of repair costs, which may be a more difficult problem to be solved, but it clearly costs more than it should and was another major issue to be addressed that was avoided. Unbelievably, I was not aware that agreements existed between the insurance comparison sites and their advertisers that the advertisers would not advertise cheaper rates elsewhere.

The fact is that I have found the cheapest rate in the past on a comparison site then approached the insurance company direct and achieved a better rate. So this move is hardly likely to make a lot of difference to premiums as many people stay on the comparison site once they have found the most suitable product. Consumers will now receive more information with regard to no claims bonus protection and the CMA has asked the Financial Conduct Authority to look into the way that insurers inform customers of policy add ons (smacks of PI).

Janet Conner, MD of AA Insurance suggested that the changes should save motorists about £20 a year but she questioned the way that the investigation was carried out and if it could have been better approached from a different angle.

Alasdair Smith, CMA deputy panel chairman defended the meagre proposals by saying, ‘These changes will benefit motorists who are currently paying higher premiums as a result of the problems we have found.’ You may have found them my friend but it would seem that you have done precious little to resolve them. Yet another example of jobs for the boys. By Graham Hill

UKIP’s Nigel Farage may believe that he is onto a winner by fighting the general election on immigration policy, Labour think the same about the Health Service and Cameron on the Economy whilst Nick Clegg will no doubt fight on the first thing that comes to mind!

Thinking of a change but unsure as to the best way to finance your car? Then you need a copy of my car finance book, Car Finance – A Simple Guide by Graham Hill. Click on the link below to buy the best car finance book on the market, available as a Kindle Book and Paper Back.

But according to a latest survey they are all off beam. It seems that when Auto Express polled over 1,000 drivers they felt the most important two things that had to be addressed by the various parties, vying for your vote, were reduced fuel prices (55%) and increased speed limits (9%).

It’s true, if any of the parties are to succeed in their efforts to entice motorist voters, they should have clear policies on the aforementioned. Unfortunately, when Auto Express contacted the 4 main parties none had a specific policy for addressing these vote winning issues. For a long time now Governments have attempted to entice people onto public transport but with few exceptions they have generally failed.

We still love our cars and for many the car is essential in order to get to work or get the kids to school. So whichever party can solve the problem of continually spiralling motoring costs and added taxes to make motoring more affordable would certainly notice a swing in their favour (ooer missus). In the words of Andy Sylvester of the Tax Payers Alliance, ‘…it’s not acceptable for the Treasury to use people picking up their children or heading to work as cash cows.’

It did not surprise the Auto Express that drivers would want lower fuel costs but it came as a bit of a surprise to see that drivers wanted speed limits on certain roads increased. What do you think? Answers on a post card to Nigel Farage. By Graham Hill