Update · 3 Nov 2026 Barclays has started making settlement offers to customers who complained before 1 October. Other lenders are expected to follow.Barclays starts settlement offers. More lenders may follow. Read more
CoreCompensation
Car finance from Apr 2007 – Nov 2024

Bought a car on finance? You could be owed compensation.

12.1 million car finance agreements are eligible for compensation, says the FCA. Check yours in 60 seconds.

Millions of PCP and HP agreements included commission that customers were never told about. The Financial Conduct Authority estimates 12.1 million agreements are eligible for compensation. Find out in 60 seconds whether yours could be one of them.

Check if I can claim See if I'm owed money
  • No win, no fee¹
  • No paperwork or reg plate needed
  • Soft search, no impact on your credit score
  • FCA regulated²FRN 836120
  • No win, no fee¹Nothing to pay if you lose
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Your choices. You do not need to use a claims management company. You can complain to your lender for free, and if you are unhappy with the response, take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service for free. You may also be able to use the FCA's motor finance compensation scheme. If you use our service and your claim succeeds, a fee applies (see fees).

Free eligibility check

See if you could claim, and roughly how much

Answer three questions. We don't ask for any personal details here.

Am I eligible?

1. When did you take out the finance?
2. What type of finance was it?
3. Did you pay interest on it?
You could be eligible to claim

PCP and HP agreements from this period fall within the FCA's compensation scheme where commission was paid to the dealer and not properly explained.

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How much could you be owed?

UK£1,658

2 agreements × £829 FCA average

*Illustration only, based on the FCA's estimated average of £829 per eligible agreement (including interest). Your compensation depends on your agreement and the scheme rules. It could be higher, lower or nothing. Around 1 in 3 payments will be capped under the scheme rules.

How it works

Three steps, and we do the legwork

You don't need your old paperwork. Most clients spend less than five minutes on it.

Step 1

We find your agreements

Answer a few questions and we run a soft search with the credit reference agencies to find car finance linked to you, including agreements you may have forgotten. A soft search does not affect your credit score.

Step 2

We complain to each lender

We check every agreement against the FCA's criteria, request your commission details and submit a complaint to each lender. We deal with them so you don't have to.

Step 3

We check the offer and get you paid

When a lender responds, we check the figure against the scheme rules before you accept. If it looks wrong, we challenge it and can take it to the Financial Ombudsman.

Ready to find your agreements?It takes about 60 seconds and won't affect your credit score.

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What the FCA found

Could you be owed money?

You may be due compensation if your agreement ran between 6 April 2007 and 1 November 2024, the lender paid the dealer commission, and you weren't told about at least one of these three arrangements.

Arrangement 1

Discretionary commission

The dealer could set your interest rate. The higher the rate, the more commission they earned. These arrangements were banned in January 2021.

Any undisclosed discretionary commission arrangement can qualify.

Arrangement 2

High commission

The commission was a large share of what you paid to borrow, which made your finance more expensive than it needed to be.

At least 39% of the total cost of credit and 10% of the loan.

Arrangement 3

Tied lender

The dealer had a deal giving one lender exclusivity or first refusal, so you weren't offered finance from across the market.

Not where the lender, manufacturer and dealer had visibly shared branding.

When agreements are not eligible
  • Commission of £120 or less (before April 2014) or £150 or less (from April 2014)
  • 0% APR deals where no interest was charged
  • Claims already settled by the lender, decided by the Ombudsman or decided in court
  • Very large loans in the top 0.5% for their year (these can still go to the lender and Ombudsman)

Not sure which arrangement applies to you?You don't need to know. We request the commission details from each lender for you.

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How compensation is worked out

The FCA's formula, explained simply

The FCA confirmed the rules in Policy Statement PS26/3 on 30 March 2026. There are two schemes: one for agreements from 6 April 2007 to 31 March 2014, and one from 1 April 2014 to 1 November 2024.

12.1meligible agreements
£829average per agreement
£7.5bnexpected compensation
3%minimum yearly interest added
HybridMost cases

You get the average of your estimated loss and the commission paid, plus interest. Estimated loss is based on an APR reduction of 17% for agreements from April 2014 and 21% for earlier ones.

Full refundAbout 90,000 cases

Where there was an undisclosed tie or discretionary commission and very high commission (at least 50% of the cost of credit and 22.5% of the loan), you get all the commission back plus interest.

InterestOn top

Simple interest at the Bank of England base rate plus 1% a year, never less than 3% a year, from when you overpaid to when you're paid.

CapsAbout 1 in 3

Payments are capped so nobody ends up better off than if they had been treated fairly. This includes a cap of 90% of commission plus interest.

See what your agreements could be worthEach car you've had on finance since April 2007 is assessed separately.

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Where things stand

Car finance compensation timeline

The process has moved through the courts and the regulator. These are the dates that matter.

  1. Supreme Court judgment

    In Johnson v FirstRand, the Supreme Court found a car finance relationship unfair because of undisclosed high commission and a hidden tie.

  2. FCA consults on a compensation scheme

    The FCA proposed an industry-wide scheme and received more than 1,000 responses.

  3. Scheme rules confirmed

    The FCA published final rules covering 12.1 million agreements, with £7.5bn in expected compensation.

  4. Legal challenge lodged

    Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, Crédit Agricole Auto Finance and Consumer Voice challenged the scheme. The FCA said it will defend it robustly.

  5. Complaint-handling pause ends

    Lenders must deal with car finance complaints again, including those outside the scheme.

  6. Scheme partly suspended

    The Upper Tribunal paused the parts of the scheme that require lenders to calculate and pay compensation on a set timetable. Lenders must still identify complaints and gather commission data.

  7. Some lenders considering settlement offers

    The SRA has told firms that some lenders are considering issuing settlement offers later this month, and the industry is agreeing how to handle customers represented by more than one firm. Read what to do if you get one.

  8. Hearing date confirmed

    The legal challenges will be heard from 16 February to 3 March 2027. Volkswagen Financial Services has set aside £725m for expected compensation.

  9. Barclays starts settlement offers Latest

    Barclays Partner Finance will make early full and final settlement offers to some customers whose commission complaints were acknowledged by 1 October 2026, worked out using the FCA scheme formula. The FCA has backed offers that pay no less than the scheme would, and will publish a list of lenders making them. Read what to do if you get one.

Sources: FCA, Motor finance redress scheme and FCA, Scheme partially suspended. Dates may change as the legal process continues.

Latest update · 3 November 2026

Barclays starts settlement offers. Other lenders are expected to follow.

Barclays Partner Finance has confirmed it will make early settlement offers to some customers who complained about commission on their car finance and whose complaint was acknowledged on or before 1 October 2026. Offers are worked out using the FCA's compensation scheme formula, and Barclays says not every customer in that group will get one. If you haven't complained to Barclays yet, you are not in this round.

The FCA has backed lenders making settlement offers while the legal challenge continues, as long as customers are offered no less than they would get under the scheme. It will publish a list of lenders making offers so you can check an offer is genuine. Not every lender will make offers, but Barclays is the first major lender to do so, and others are expected to follow.

An offer is full and final. You keep the money even if the legal challenge means you would have got less, but you can't claim more if it means you would have got more. You get at least a month to decide, you can turn it down and wait for the scheme instead, and you can't refer the offer to the Financial Ombudsman. If you're a Core Compensation client, send any offer to us before you reply and we'll check the figure against the scheme rules.

Sources: Barclays, 3 November 2026; FCA, 3 November 2026; FCA settlement offers factsheet (PDF)

13 October 2026

Legal challenge hearing confirmed for February 2027

The Upper Tribunal will hear the legal challenges to the FCA's compensation scheme between 16 February and 3 March 2027, replacing the earlier option of a December hearing. The challenges were brought by Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, Crédit Agricole Auto Finance and the consumer group Consumer Voice. A judgment is expected in the months after the hearing.

Lenders are already preparing to pay. Volkswagen Financial Services has set aside £725m in its latest accounts to cover expected compensation costs.

Source: City AM, 13 October 2026
FCA schemePartly suspended since 2 July 2026
Barclays offersComplaints acknowledged by 1 Oct 2026
Tribunal hearing16 Feb – 3 Mar 2027
Deadline to complain31 August 2027
Who you can claim against

Is your lender on the list?

We handle claims against all major UK car finance lenders. If yours isn't listed, you may still be able to claim.

    Found your lender?Start your claim now and we'll contact them for you.

    Claim against my lender
    Fees, in plain numbers

    No win, no fee. Here's exactly what we charge if you win.

    Our fee is a percentage of the compensation you receive, on a sliding scale capped by the FCA. You'll see your fee in writing before you sign anything.

    Maximum fees per claim. The "Maximum fee" column includes VAT.
    Compensation bandFee + VATIncl. VATMaximum fee
    £1 – £1,49930%36%£504
    £1,500 – £9,99928%33.6%£3,000
    £10,000 – £24,99925%30%£6,000
    £25,000 – £49,99920%24%£9,000
    £50,000 or more15%18%£12,000

    Example: if you receive £1,658, the most we could charge is 33.6%, which is £557.09, and you would keep £1,100.91. You can cancel without charge within 14 days of instructing us. If you cancel after 14 days, we may charge for our reasonable costs.

    You can also claim for free

    Doing it yourself? Have this information ready

    You'll need to complain to each lender separately, so gather these details for every agreement first:

    • The lender's name, and the dealer who arranged the finance
    • Your agreement or account number
    • The start and end dates of the agreement
    • The vehicle registration, make and model
    • Your address at the time, plus any previous addresses and names
    • The amount borrowed, deposit, monthly payment and APR, if you have them

    You'll also need to keep copies of what you send, track each lender's response and deadlines, and refer the complaint to the Ombudsman yourself if you're not happy with the answer.

    Complain to your lender

    The FCA publishes a list of lender contact details.

    Go to the Financial Ombudsman

    If you're unhappy with your lender's answer, the Ombudsman will review it at no cost.

    Use the FCA scheme

    Lenders must contact customers who may be owed money under the scheme. Read the FCA's consumer guide.

    Using us won't necessarily get you more compensation than claiming yourself. People choose us because we find agreements they'd forgotten, deal with every lender and check each offer.

    Good to know

    Frequently asked questions

    Are lenders really making settlement offers?

    Yes. On 3 November 2026 Barclays Partner Finance confirmed it will make early settlement offers to some customers whose commission complaints were acknowledged by 1 October 2026, worked out using the FCA scheme formula. The FCA has backed offers that pay no less than the scheme would and will list the lenders making them. Not every lender will, and the scheme itself is partly suspended until the Upper Tribunal decides the legal challenge, so many customers will still wait until 2027.

    If you're a client and receive an offer, forward it to us before you reply.

    Do I need my old finance paperwork?

    No. We find your agreements using a soft credit search and then ask each lender for the commission details. If you do have paperwork, keep it safe in case it helps.

    Will checking affect my credit score?

    No. We use a soft search, which other lenders can't see and which doesn't affect your credit score.

    What if I've already paid off the finance or sold the car?

    You can still claim. What matters is whether the agreement started between 6 April 2007 and 1 November 2024 and included undisclosed commission.

    Can I claim for more than one car?

    Yes. Each finance agreement is assessed separately, so if you've had several cars on finance you could be owed money on each one.

    What happens to my claim while the scheme is suspended?

    Your complaint stays in place. Lenders must still identify complaints, collect commission data and tell people who aren't owed money. They don't have to calculate or pay compensation on the scheme timetable until the legal challenge ends. We keep pursuing your claim and update you at every stage.

    What if the legal challenge succeeds?

    The FCA has said that if the scheme is overturned, it may tell lenders to deal with complaints individually under the normal process. Lenders would then have 8 weeks to respond, and you could go to the Financial Ombudsman if you disagree. Your complaint would still count.

    I've already signed up with another company. Can I switch?

    Don't sign up with more than one firm for the same agreement, as you could be charged twice. The industry is agreeing a common approach for customers with more than one representative, so tell us straight away if this applies to you. If you want to leave your current firm, check your agreement. Any cancellation fee must be reasonable and reflect the work done.

    How long will it take?

    It depends on the lender and the outcome of the legal challenge. Barclays has started making settlement offers to customers who complained before 1 October 2026, and other lenders are expected to follow. The legal challenge to the FCA scheme will be heard from 16 February to 3 March 2027, and if the scheme goes ahead, most remaining payments are expected in 2027.

    Still have questions?Start your free check and our team will talk you through it.

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    Find out if you're owed money

    It takes about 60 seconds. No paperwork, no reg plate, and no effect on your credit score.

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