Not upheld: service failure and administrative delays in hire agreement management complaint against RCI Financial Services Limited trading as Nissan Financial Services (NFS)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr B complained to the FOS about his hire agreement with NFS for an electric car battery, claiming he should have been informed earlier that he could purchase the battery rather than continue paying £69.98 monthly. The original 2019 agreement contained no purchase option. NFS changed its internal policy in early 2025 to allow discretionary battery purchases, but did not proactively notify Mr B. When Mr B enquired in April 2025, NFS initially provided incorrect information directing him to the manufacturer, but corrected this and offered the battery for £1.20 on 28 April 2025. Mr B also complained about delays in processing his formal complaint and DSAR. The ombudsman found NFS had no contractual obligation to offer a purchase option or proactively notify Mr B of the policy change, and that the refund of one rental payment plus £100 compensation was fair and reasonable redress for the service failures.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that the hire agreement contained no contractual right for Mr B to purchase the battery at any point. NFS's decision to change its internal policy in early 2025 to allow discretionary battery purchases was a business decision within NFS's remit, and the ombudsman has no authority to dictate how NFS structures its internal processes. While Mr B felt NFS should have proactively contacted him when the policy changed, there was no contractual obligation to do so. Although NFS provided incorrect information in April 2025 which delayed the purchase by about a month, and there were delays in processing the DSAR, the refund of one hire payment and the £100 compensation offered were deemed fair and reasonable to compensate for these service failures.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website