No service history

[DocB]

Hi, I am currently trying to trigger my right to voluntary termination of my car finance. I meet all criteria, but the company (motonovo) are saying that I will have to pay a £300 charge for having no service history!! The car is 4 years old and obviously MOT’d. Can they force the £300 charge or are they chancing it? Thanks very much in advance.

[R0b]

They can't force you to do anything and you are only obliged to pay when a court judges you to be liable and orders you to pay up. Until then, they can huff and puff as much as they want, it's an alleged debt at best.

Is there any reason why you didn't bother to get the car serviced in the time you had it? Do you not consider the lack of having the car maintained on a regular basis to be unreasonable on your part, especially if you have had it 4 years (I assume).

[DocB]

Thanks for your reply and advise.

Ive had the car for a little under 3 of the 4 years. I bought the car with 13,000 miles on the clock and the car was serviced (allegedly by the garage (PVardy) prior to sale, but they never stamped the book and I never chased it) current mileage is 35,000 and it had its first mot in April.
Cars been kept in good condition with not a lot of mileage being added, so I didn’t see the need for servicing between mot.

[R0b]

Well, it would be a question that a judge would need to answer as to whether you have not reasonably taken car of the goods, if it ever got to that stage but for the time being you could, if you wanted to, deny liability and ask them to prove that the lack of service history caused damaged beyond reasonable wear and tear having only done 22,000 miles over 3 years.

Be aware that it is common for the manufacturers guidance booklet that comes to suggest the car should be serviced either when the car hits a certain mileage or at least every 12 months, whichever comes earlier.

So that could be Motonovo's argument at the very least.