Partially upheld: unfair pricing of lease extension and poor customer service complaint against ZenAuto Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs B complained about ZenAuto's administration of her car lease, specifically the high cost of extending the lease after the initial three-year term ended. The extension quote of £647 per month was significantly higher than her current £280.45 monthly payment, forcing her to end the lease and incur costs associated with starting a new lease elsewhere. While the ombudsman found the pricing itself to be within ZenAuto's commercial judgment and not unfair, it upheld the complaint regarding poor customer service. ZenAuto took over a month to provide the extension quote and then gave Mrs B only six days to respond, followed by just two days for a revised quotation, despite knowing she was a vulnerable customer with mental health difficulties. The ombudsman ordered £100 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by these delays and poor communication.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman determined that lease pricing is a matter of commercial judgment for the business and Mrs B was not obligated to accept the extension terms. The broad reasons provided for the price increase were not unreasonable, and there was no contractual guarantee of extension at any particular price. However, ZenAuto's communication was poor and unfair, particularly given its knowledge of Mrs B's vulnerability. The delay of over a month in providing quotes, followed by unreasonably short response periods of six days and two days, limited Mrs B's ability to consider options and caused distress.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website