BMWFS VT Process (Aug '16)

[R0b]

Re: BMWFS VT Process (Aug '16)

evening . I need to find a good solicitor first . open to offers if anyone knows of a good one ?

You could try these guys, they did provide a blog post on excess mileage charges claiming they are unenforceable but they've revamped their website so its no longer on there. They might be able to do a fixed price for you.

https://www.stephensons.co.uk/site/i...se_agreements/

[xs2man]

Re: BMWFS VT Process (Aug '16)

You could try these guys, they did provide a blog post on excess mileage charges claiming they are unenforceable but they've revamped their website so its no longer on there. They might be able to do a fixed price for you.

https://www.stephensons.co.uk/site/i...se_agreements/

They do still mention it...

It is important to note that you do not need to pay any excess mileage charges a creditor requests in order to voluntarily terminate the agreement. If you think you have paid charges in respect of this in the last 6 years call us on xxxxxxxxxxx to speak to a member of our team to see if you can claim this money paid back.

[R0b]

Re: BMWFS VT Process (Aug '16)

I didn't see that, though they did a proper post on excess mileage that seems to be a shortened version of it. Nevertheless they may be helpful to assist in removing the default notice, and perhaps some compensation.

[AlfonsoBellacroft]

Re: BMWFS VT Process (Aug '16)

I'm in a similar boat, but not yet filed the VT letter. I've nearly doubled the mileage excess and expect a bill of over £3K. I changed jobs after the 1st year in turn ended up doing loads of miles. I don't really want to VT my agreement until I can see a result on this example.

[xs2man]

Well, I guess a little update on this, after many years.

I have pretty much just ignored this. I don't need credit much, my mortgage has been fine, I've been able to get finance on other motors without any seeming extra charges or anything. I have been stopped from going the slightly cheaper route of a bank loan for car financing, but overall, it hasn't affected me too much. I have survived.

BMW have continued to mark my credit file as a missed payment. This month being the last month of the 6 years. So I guess they have a fortnight to take me to court over this. My credit rating is trash, but that's ok mostly. I am curious about what happens from next month though. Do I contact them to get them to cease and dessist marking my credit file since the money can no longer be claimed via court action?

[R0b]

Frankly, I'm surprised you have just allowed it to roll on like this but each to their own I guess.

The 6 year expiry period starts from the date of the breach occurred or in this case, the date when they first demanded payment so that may not necessarily be from the date the late payment marker has been applied, it could be earlier than that or later.

You should also bear in mind that your right to bring a claim against them for damage to your credit file will expire too. However, just because any claim for the sums demanded by BMW might be time-barred, that does not prevent them from continuing to tarnish your credit file with late payments and I suspect they will continue to do so until such time you choose to take legal action. Whilst the last 6 years of late payments would be something you cannot claim against, it's possible in my view to bring a claim for each late payment thereafter as I would view each marker as a distinct and separate cause of action rather than continuous.

I guess one benefit of taking them to court after the limitation period is expired is that there's no way for them to counterclaim for the damages they demanded previously and therefore the question will be about whether or not what they have reported is accurate. That leads me to think that there could be several lines of argument BMW could make. For example, they might argue that because you have refused to take any kind of action in the last 6 years for all the previous late payment markers they reported, you have effectively accepted that the markers are true and accurate and therefore prevented from denying that they are now not accurate - the legal term for this is called estoppel. If the court accepted that kind of argument it would mean BMW are free to continue damaging your credit file until you have satisfied the payment. Note: making a payment against a debt that is time barred would reset the time again to 6 years from the date of payment.

I have doubts about how well that argument would work but if I was BMW, I would be running with it nonetheless.

Long and short, you can request them to cease reporting the late payments on your credit file but I expect them to tell you where to go as they have no reason to stop and so you are effectively in the same position as before. If you're happy with them tarnishing your creditworthiness potentially for the rest of your life and you're happy to risk not being accepted for credit or ruining any chances of a mortgage or preferable rates, then do nothing.

[xs2man]

I have been really busy with my career to be honest, and my work dictates that I cannot book time off in advance, so getting a court date would have been difficult. I will shortly be in a position where this will change, however, and I will be able to do something about this.

I do not want this to go on in perpetuity though. I was hoping that after 6 years it would simply stop. But it appears you are saying that is not the case.

I would have thought it would have stregned my case that BMW did not take me to court for the sums they considered owed, as they voluntarily let it expire beyond the date upon which they could no longer recover. Meaning they knew they could not legally recover it, yet continued to falsley report on my credit file regardless as a scare tactic. But, of course, I could be wrong here.

[R0b]

You can't predict how a court hearing will pan out because it depends on how it goes on the day but in my opinion, I don't think you have helped your case by sitting on your hands. Even if your work commitments made it impossible to get time off, you could have issued a claim and asked for it to be heard on the papers by making written submissions instead of attending a court hearing. Having a case heard on the papers is never ideal but it is an alternative option that sounds like you could have selected.

The late payment markers should come off your credit file after 6 years but I will caveat that because it may depend how the account is being reported. Those markers would be removed assuming the account is marked as closed but if the account is still open, it will be 6 years from the date the account is closed. This goes back to your point about it going on in perpetuity until you choose to take action to remedy the issue.

The fact that BMW have chosen not to pursue a claim, does not automatically mean their case is/was a hopeless one. It's very easy for a business to say that they believed they had a valid claim for the alleged debt, but it wasn't financially viable to pursue it and instead they chose to put pressure on you by alternative means such as recording late payments on your credit file.

At the end of the day, if or when you are in a position to pursue this via legal proceedings, there is nothing stopping you from claiming that all late payment markers should be removed and ensure the account is marked as closed, and you will just have to see what BMW come up with as a defence. Even though they are prevented from counterclaiming for damages once the 6 year period expires, they can still rely on the same arguments as a basis for their defence to deny liability.

As an aside, you should also be mindful of the fact that BMW might have a retention policy on data and it's common for most businesses to retain data for around 6 years. You may want to consider making a subject access request to preserve all evidence you may want to rely on in the future.

[xs2man]

It's a strange one with regards to how this account is sitting. On Credit Karma, it states it is currently open, but then it also states the status as Paid and Closed. So I am unsure which one it really is.

I have just submitted a subject access request however, so will see what they come back with.

[R0b]

Well it can't be both, either the account is open or it is closed. I may have said it in earlier posts but that seems to me that BMW are exercising some kind of loophole by suggesting the account is closed and paid but continuing to report late payments as a means to cause you problems - an absolute abuse of position and power in my eyes.

[xs2man]

That is what I am thinking. It is a strange situation for sure. And does seem like an abuse of power simply to wreck my credit report. I do receive 6 monthly "statements" from BMW FS though, so maybe it's an anomoly with Credit Karma?

Are there any other free ways of getting this information on my credit report?