Upheld: irresponsible lending / goods not of satisfactory quality / breach of Consumer Rights Act 2015 complaint against BMW Financial Services (GB) Limited trading as Alphera Financial Services

Decision detail

Summary

Mr K purchased a used car via hire purchase agreement with Alphera in September 2024. Within two months, the car developed faults requiring a timing chain replacement despite only 300 miles of use. After repair, the car broke down again in December 2024. Alphera rejected Mr K's complaint and requested he provide independent evidence of faults at point of supply. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding that under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, Alphera bore the burden of proving the car was of satisfactory quality within the first six months, which they failed to do. The ombudsman ordered Alphera to end the agreement, collect the car, refund the deposit and repair costs, and pay compensation.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which implies that goods supplied under a hire purchase agreement must be of satisfactory quality at point of supply. The six-month presumption means Alphera must prove the car was satisfactory, not Mr K. The timing chain replacement requirement within two months and 300 miles of supply indicates the fault was present or developing at supply. Alphera failed to investigate whether repairs brought the car back into conformity and instead improperly shifted the burden of proof to Mr K. The car subsequently broke down again, demonstrating non-conformity persisted after the repair attempt.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website