Voluntary Termination - Insurance Liability payment and Wet Signature

[Dawsonfield]

Hi All

Looking to get some help on my current VT process.

Long story short, due to the challenging times we find ourselves in today I have been made redundant. However thankfully I am halfway through my HP agreement and able to pursue Voluntary Termination with Blackhorse Finance.

I am unfortunately running into two issues that I'd love to get some advice on;

1. Blackhorse Finance have not accepted my e-mail with printed name and they are demanding a wet signature. They have stated that they will not proceed unless I sign their paperwork they have sent out, and upon reading the great advice on this forum already, this is something I will obviously not do. I sent my initial e-mail on the 26th of November and they responded by e-mail and telephone with their stance above, so my question is how long should I wait before I follow up with the template regarding a repudiatory breach?

2. Blackhorse Finance are also demanding that I pay my insurance liability - along with the agreement for goods I also took our GAP, tyre, cosmetic and other (never know what that is) insurance. On my contract, goods and insurance are broken down into separate payments and then combined to a single direct debit. My question here is am I liable to pay this or does it feed into the overall 50%? Blackhorse have stated they will not continue the VT process unless this is settled.

Your help is greatly appreciated and I thank you in advance for the support you give myself and the others on this forum

Many thanks
Rob

p.s. (apologies if this duplicates)

[R0b]

Hi,

1. You can send that repudiatory breach letter whenever you want but I would caution against doing so unless you have clear evidence that BHF are refusing to accept your letter, preferably in writing. If you are confident that the email amounts to a refusal then you can go ahead and use the letter and either terminate immediately or allow them a further period of time to accept.

2. I'm sure this is mentioned in the VT Guide somewhere (possibly the FAQs) but the reality is that this contract is either one agreement or two separate agreements rolled into one document. If you consider the former, then your liability is limited to one half but if its the latter, you can argue that you are merely terminating the hire purchase element and the contract allows for you to pay any additional products over the same period has the hire purchase.

Either way, you might have a fight on your hands so it depends how much you want to push back and pursue this or if you want an easy life.

[Dawsonfield]

Hi Rob

Thank you for your response R0b

1. I have it in writing clearly stating they are unable to accept my letter as it is unsigned. For now I've gone back again stating this is not a requirement for giving notice and will give them more time to change their mind. Thank you for clarifying and I will leave the repudiatory template for now unless needed later.

2. Yes I saw it in the VT Guide but needed clarification. The agreement is technically one but split into goods and insurance each with their own value combined to one direct debit. It does say under termination you will still have to pay outstanding insurance, so I am not sure whether to accept liability and pay the rest of the insurance off or fight it. I have paid half the insurance though so will go back with that and see what they say.

3. They have also now declared that they need to charge me to pick the car up, Is this true and should I fight this?

4. Blackhorse finance have also said they cannot discuss liability costs via email because its not secure and need to chat on the phone. Not sure if this is even the case, any ideas as to why they would want this?

I will note down here for others what happens next.

Thank you again for your help
Rob

[ostell]

Talking on the phone so nothing in writing and and hoping you won't be recording. If you do phone see if can get a recorder on the line and tell them you are recording anyway.

[des8]

Regarding insurance premium the finance house will have paid the total premium upfront.
You could cancel the policy directly and collect any return of premium yourself.
Perhaps easier than arm wrestling with a dark horse.

I'd tell them they can pay top pick up THEIR car themselves

IMO always doubtful policy to discuss matters on the phone as there is always a possibility of misunderstanding.
If you do, besides recording, confirm your understanding in writing and tell them that in the absence of contradiction your understanding is correct

[seduraed]

If they are refusing to accept by email I would go for a two or three pronged approach . Write a letter and send it to the address given. If you speak to them on the phone use a recorder. There are apps which work on you mobile but you will have to pay. When you have finished and made notes as you go read back the notes to customer service person. Get their name and agreement to what has be said. Type up and print out the notes, send a copy to the finance company.

[Dawsonfield]

Thanks all

So after sending another e-mail referring to the consumer credit act and not needing to provide a wet signature, they have now changed their tune slightly.

The response from Blackhorse finance was as follows;

"If you do not want to sign your own voluntary termination letter then that is entirely up to you (email is not a secure medium that is why we ask that you sign it) However in your letter you need to state the liability that you owe and that you are aware that if you have the car picked up there is a charge for the pick up (there is no charge to take the car to your nearest British car auction site)

Please call the office for these figures as email is not secure so we cannot confirm figures over email"

As you've all stated above I will not call the office and continue all dialogue over email.

I will speak to the Gap, tyre and alloy cover to see if I can cancel this directly. They are pushing for me to pay the £635 insurance costs or I risk having it default on my credit file. Can they do this?

I will respond that their car is ready for collection but I will not be paying the pick up fee

I will let you know how they respond.

Many thanks
Rob

[Dawsonfield]

R0b Can I confirm that in your previous post regarding GAP, tyre and alloy insurance being covered in the VT guide you were referring to the below FAQ?

The lender has told me that I am required to continue paying for tax or vehicle
insurance, the monthly instalments or a pro-rated instalment until the car has been
collected. Is this correct?

Absolutely not and you should resist doing so, irrespective of what the lender might say. The
Consumer Credit Act 1974 is clear as to your liability, which is one-half of the total price plus
compensation where you have failed to take reasonable care of the vehicle. You had an
obligation under the contract to maintain tax and insurance and pay the monthly instalments
but once the contract has ended, your obligations fall away. In any event, Section 173 prohibits
lenders from imposing contractual obligations that go beyond the scope of the protection
afforded by the Consumer Credit Act and is deemed null and void. Therefore, the lender has
no legal right to force you to keep up with these payments until the vehicle has been collected.
Some finance companies will try this on and if they threaten to report a late payment or default
on your credit file, I would suggest you immediately make a formal complaint and followed by
a further complaint to the Financial Ombudsman should your complaint not be upheld.
Of course, strictly speaking, you could cancel the tax and insurance immediately after the
contract has been terminated but, in my view, I think you need to take a reasonable approach
and allow the lender a reasonable period of time to collect the car i.e. 14 days.

[Dawsonfield]

Hi All

Just to update everyone who might be looking or needing help with what to follow up with.

1. Blackhorse finance have accepted termination letter and email.

2. After taking the advice of des8 and reinforcing the fact it is now THEIR car to collect, they have waived the collection fee and the BCA will be in touch. I will take the advice and not sign any report and will take my own photos/videos of interior, exterior and accessories of the car. I believe it to be in a very good condition.

3. As for the liability issue, they have passed this onto their Cardiff complaints handling unit and I've been told someone will be in contact to discuss further. I've also been in touch with all insurance providers and they will refund premium to me once I give them the date the BCA pick the car up. If I indeed would prefer to have an easier life I'll use the refunds from the insurance providers to pay the liability but will continue to fight this.

I will update on how this goes.

Thanks again for the advice

Rob