Upheld: unfair repossession, lack of forbearance, failure to make reasonable adjustments complaint against Motability Operations Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Miss L complained about Motability's unfair repossession of her vehicle in November 2025 after she fell into arrears when an eligibility component was ceased. Although the arrears were subsequently re-awarded in March 2025, the payment was made directly to Miss L rather than Motability, leaving arrears on her account. Motability repossessed the vehicle without providing specific notice of collection, despite Miss L's vulnerable circumstances and reliance on the car for transport. Miss L also complained about the lack of support in setting up a repayment plan and failure to make reasonable adjustments. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding Motability failed to provide sufficient notice given Miss L's vulnerability, did not demonstrate appropriate forbearance under CONC 7.3.5, and did not make reasonable adjustments. Motability was ordered to pay £600 in compensation and reimburse £675 in collection fees, plus 8% simple interest.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

Although Motability was entitled to repossess the vehicle due to arrears and invalid MOT status, the manner of repossession was unfair. Despite Miss L being aware collection was pending through repeated notifications, she was not given specific notice of when the vehicle would be collected, which was vital given her severe vulnerability and reliance on the car. The ombudsman found no evidence of the non-remedial default notice being issued. Additionally, Motability failed to demonstrate appropriate forbearance under CONC 7.3.5 by not offering suitable alternatives to full payment, and failed to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 given Miss L's vulnerable circumstances.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website