Contesting excess Mileage with Audi Finance

[AlRi]

Hi there Legal Beagles community, I have recently VT’d my Audi A3 and therefore ended the agreement. After doing some research I have contested the annual mileage charge with the email below and this is VWFS response. Can anyone advise what I should do next? Many thanks

Dear whom this may concern,

I have recently voluntarily terminated my Audi A3- and have paid half the total amount payable on the agreement.

I have recently received a letter stating I need to pay for “excess mileage charges”

To confirm: I will not be paying these charges for the following reasons.

Voluntary termination is my right under the consumer credit act 1974 once half the total amount payable on the finance agreement has been paid.

The contract at this point is terminated and therefore conditions within the agreement cannot legally be enforced.

There is no provision for excess mileage charges within the law.

I have received no further charges as to fair wear and tear and the car being in reasonable condition and confirm the agreement is now terminated and the case for excess mileage being charged is now closed.

Kind Regards,

*THEIR REPLY*

Thank you for contacting Audi Financial Services.

I can confirm that the excess mileage is due
as the charge does not form part of the total value of the agreement, rather this is a charge added due to usage of the vehicle in excess of what was agreed for the time that you kept the car. The rate this is charged at is stated in your signed contract, and your annual mileage allowance was agreed at the point of sale.

If you would like to dispute the charges, we are able to log a complaint and have this escalated to our customer resolutions team, who can look into this for you and will provide a full and final response within 8 weeks, however please note that the charge for excess mileage is part of the terms and conditions of your agreement, which contains provisions for the mileage allowance should you decide to end the contract early.

[R0b]

There isn't much more I can add.

You can make the formal complaint, expect them to reject it and then complain to the Financial Ombudsman, then expect that to take forever - I'm sure someone posted recently they were still waiting after 18 months which is completely unacceptable but they can't do anything until that complaint has been resolved, or they will be in breach of their statutory duties.

Alternatively, tell them to stick it and invite them to take legal proceedings. Last, you could simply pay up.

There's always the risk that they could do something to affect your credit file and then the ball is back in your court as to whether you take any legal action or simply have a moan and a whine but do nothing about it, and let it sit on your credit file for the next 6 years.

Link below has everything you need to know your position, but the choice is ultimately yours.

A guide to voluntary termination: Your rights

[AlRi]

Hey Rob, Thanks for your post.

It seems like you’re pretty in the fence about what I should do?

I was of the understanding that lots of people have successfully appealed and not paid but has this recently changed as I’m surprised paying up was one of the options you gave?

Last thing I want is my credit score being effected but I genuinely didn’t think they could legally charge excess mileage charges with VT’ing.

Shall check the link!

Thanks again.

[R0b]

I'm not on the fence, I know what I would do personally but that view might not be the same view as others. There seems to be a lot of people pumped up to fight things like excess mileage or vehicle damage charges but when things start getting serious it seems like that fight is no longer there and the excuses like, not wanting to go to court or it's too stressful start appearing hence giving the option of paying up to avoid hassle.

I very much take the view that they can't charge you for excess mileage and that remains until such time there is a legal precedent that says otherwise. That doesn't stop lenders from marking your credit file, using debt collectors to chase you for the alleged debt or even sell the debt to a third party. Until you either decide to have a court or regulatory body such as the Financial Ombudsman to adjudicate on the matter, it's fair game.

Prime example is BMW who are notorious for marking credit files and unfortunately I see reams of posts complaining but doing nothing about it. They are doing it to put pressure on those who they believe to be in debt to pay up, knowing that the majority of consumers won't bother to challenge them in court and will probably pay up at that point - it's all about risk versus reward.

You have to ask yourself, if they do something that is harmful to you or affects your credit in a negative way, are you prepared to go all the way and take it to court? If the answer is no, then you might want to reconsider paying up or take the risk in the hope that they don't do something and it fizzles out.

[jonevns1990]

I'm not on the fence, I know what I would do personally but that view might not be the same view as others. There seems to be a lot of people pumped up to fight things like excess mileage or vehicle damage charges but when things start getting serious it seems like that fight is no longer there and the excuses like, not wanting to go to court or it's too stressful start appearing hence giving the option of paying up to avoid hassle.

I very much take the view that they can't charge you for excess mileage and that remains until such time there is a legal precedent that says otherwise. That doesn't stop lenders from marking your credit file, using debt collectors to chase you for the alleged debt or even sell the debt to a third party. Until you either decide to have a court or regulatory body such as the Financial Ombudsman to adjudicate on the matter, it's fair game.

Prime example is BMW who are notorious for marking credit files and unfortunately I see reams of posts complaining but doing nothing about it. They are doing it to put pressure on those who they believe to be in debt to pay up, knowing that the majority of consumers won't bother to challenge them in court and will probably pay up at that point - it's all about risk versus reward.

You have to ask yourself, if they do something that is harmful to you or affects your credit in a negative way, are you prepared to go all the way and take it to court? If the answer is no, then you might want to reconsider paying up or take the risk in the hope that they don't do something and it fizzles out.

R0b Hi, apologies if this is in the wrong thread but this thread is relevant to the message I sent to you the other day..

I’'ve been successful in clearing my negative credit rating and outstanding charges following a VT with BMW in the past. However, I am now trying to do the same with my girlfriends VT with MINI FS (BMW). This time around they are completely ignoring my letters and just coming back with generic templates, consistently ignoring my references to the CCA and ICO guidelines.

Where do you suggest I could go from here? They’re clearly not willing to listen to my valid points and I’m at a bit of a loss on how to get through to them. Would you recommend commencing court proceedings to gain their attention or an intention to prosecute letter?
Alternatively, how successful would you deem calling them up armed with statutory law (that I know the advisors sat at a desk typing out letters won't be able to respond to off the cuff) and suggesting a resolution such as clearing the negative credit markers in return for paying a certain amount/total amount. Ultimately we have been told we can't get a mortgage today due to the negative credit rating - so simply paying off the amount is out of the question.

Thanks for you continued help.

[Amandaj101]

I am also fighting VWFS over excess mileage on a Q3. I sent them the letter template from this site and have had their response, which unsurprisingly says I must still pay. They quote the following as proof that I am liable, can someone tell me what this means please?

"You refer to section 100 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (the “Act”) but have failed to note that section 99 (2) explicitly states that “Termination of an agreement under subsection 1 [the right to terminate] does not affect any liability under the agreement which has accrued before the termination”."

They claim this means the excess mileage charges are enforceable.

Before I challenge them further and refer to the Ombudsman, can anyone explain what this clause actually means please? Thanks.