Not upheld: mis-selling of hire purchase agreement complaint against Advantage Finance Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr H complained that a hire purchase agreement with Advantage Finance Limited for a used car was mis-sold, claiming he was told the car price was reduced by £1,000 and the agreement would run for three years rather than five years. The agreement required 59 repayments of around £360 plus a final payment of around £560, totalling approximately £21,900. The ombudsman found that the agreement terms were clearly set out in pre-contractual information, Mr H had digitally signed acknowledging receipt of adequate explanation, and he had a 14-day withdrawal period. Finding no compelling evidence of misrepresentation and noting Mr H should have been aware of any discrepancy from the clear written terms, the ombudsman did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that the terms of the hire purchase agreement were clearly set out in pre-contractual information and the hire purchase agreement itself, with the cash price, term, interest rate, and total amount repayable all prominently displayed. Mr H had the opportunity to review the agreement before signing and had a 14-day withdrawal period. Although Mr H testified that he was told the car price was reduced to £9,000 and the term was three years, he was presented with clear information showing a £10,000 cash price and a five-year term. The ombudsman found no compelling evidence that Mr H was told one thing and received something different, and noted he should have been aware of any discrepancy before signing or during the 14-day withdrawal period. No misrepresentation was found.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website