Not upheld: payment processing and refusal of third party payments complaint against MI Vehicle Finance Limited (Mann Island)

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs T complained that Mann Island failed to allow her to make payments on her hire purchase agreement by refusing third party payments and failing to provide clear payment methods, leading to arrears and repossession risk. Mann Island maintained that payments must come from an account in Mrs T's own name due to internal policies and regulatory obligations. The ombudsman found Mann Island's requirement reasonable for a personal finance agreement and was not persuaded the arrears arose solely from the firm's actions, as Mrs T had not demonstrated why she could not use the payment methods Mann Island confirmed it would accept. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while there was some inconsistency in Mann Island's handling of payments, it was reasonable for the firm to require payments from an account in Mrs T's own name due to risk and regulatory obligations on a personal finance agreement. The ombudsman was not persuaded that the arrears arose solely from Mann Island's actions or communication failures, as Mrs T had not demonstrated why payments could not be maintained through the methods Mann Island confirmed it would accept.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website