HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

[R0b]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

my husband and I were both told at the point of signing the agreement when I questioned the figures and payment etc, as we went to that garage because we were told by the salesman he could get the car for monthly payments for us for an affordable sum. When he then did credit check the underwriters apparently said we could have the car but the instalments and APR was significantly higher because, we had moved house too often and, there were a couple of silly 100 debt and 66 mobile phone bill to repay etc. We hadn't realised those little sums were affecting our ability to get cheap credit I nearly walked away thinking pay off all those little accounts or at least investigate what they were and if in fact owed (which they weren't because they related to a phone I no longer had and had notified the provider. Anyway the salesman assured us it wasn't a problem, this was just a short agreement because although it said 4 year term we could return in a year when we have proof of regular payments, we were both on the electoral roll etc to re do the finance with lower payments and lower APR and put our car in for part ex, We were led to believe this was a temporary solution to our circumstances at the time. Page 3 of the agreement states credit £5499,00 and total amount to pay £13526 however we were led to believe that is the figure at the end of the 4 year agreement. If we had know from the minute we left that office they had already put £7k interest charged to us therefore in that 1 years time, there would be no possibility of refinancing for a cheaper instalment. My husband made a call to them on 03/11/15 for a settlement figure and was told the balance was £5293 to pay.

We didn't pay a penny, the man said he would do the figures on the agreement to look as if we had paid a deposit of £300. I paid a holding fee of around 50 to 100 at most to the garage just to show we wanted to keep the car. That was debit card

Hi Mini,

I haven't added that into the letter to Avelo but you may wish to incorporate that if you want to, I don't think you will get very far as it was said orally and you should have had the opportunity to review the contract before signing it. So the Financial Ombudsman might not look in your favour on that one. Anyway, I have drafted something to send to Avelo below, I've also uploaded the letter in word document so you can print it straight off - if there is anything I have missed please let me know.

I will post a letter for the SRA/Shoosmiths later this evening hopefully.


---------------------------------------------------

Dear Sir / Madam,

Agreement number:

Re: Formal complaint about hire-purchase agreement

I am writing with reference to the above matter relating to your recent acquisition of hire-purchase agreements from [COMPANY]. I am concerned about the fact that you have instructed Shoosmiths solicitors to act on your behalf whom are alleging that I owe sums in arrears. They are further threatening to issue a default notice against my credit report should I fail to comply.

Firstly, it is my understanding that in order for Avelo to obtain any legal rights as the creditor under my agreement, Avelo must supply me with a notice of assignment. Since being informed that [COMPANY] had entered into administration, I have yet to receive any notice of assignment from Avelo. Therefore, before I can be satisfied that Avelo is legally entitled to the sums under the agreement, I request that you provide me with a copy of the notice of assignment as Avelo is legally required to do.

Secondly, I am unhappy with the way that Shoosmiths have been instructed pertaining to my current situation. They have sent me numerous letters implying that I should pay Avelo the monthly sums as per my agreement however it is believed that Avelo is not authorised by the FCA and so cannot accept any payment. Despite calling, emailing and leaving several messages at Shoosmith’s offices, I have received no contact from them to discuss arrangements to pay. I am currently up to date on my payments and I believe the next monthly sum is due [NOW/ON X DATE]. I have been informed by the FCA that I am not able to make payments to Avelo direct as they are not authorised to accept payments. Despite Shoosmiths threatening to issue a default noticed without the full facts and evidence to hand, I must remind you that under CONC 7.14, where a debt is disputed, a firm must suspend any steps in the recovery of debt where there are valid grounds to dispute the debt.

Finally, it has also come to my attention that my credit report does not show the previous monthly payments between [DATE 2015] and [DATE 2016] however these payments have been made. As the purported creditor of the hire-purchase agreement, I ask that you update my credit report accordingly in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998. I would expect this to be amended within the next 14 days however, if you refuse or fail to comply with my request, I shall consider reporting Avelo to the Information Commissioner due to inaccurate reporting of my information. This would also give rise to a claim for breach of data and I am entitled to claim for damages in which I reserve my rights to do so.

I expect a full response to the points raised in this letter however, if I am not satisfied with your response within 8 weeks from the date of this letter, then I shall seek further redress by forwarding my complaint to the Financial Ombudsman.

I look forward to hearing from you in due course.


Regards,

[NAME]

[R0b]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

I also noticed on your agreement that the HP agreement can be assigned providing it is on the same terms, therefore they can't change the terms of the agreement without your consent.

[minimetty]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

I also noticed on your agreement that the HP agreement can be assigned providing it is on the same terms, therefore they can't change the terms of the agreement without your consent.

This is fantastic news thanks.
i will now go and take a look at the letter you so very kindly prepared for me.

I have spoken to FCA today as shoosmiths when i called them today I got no joy about response to my email, the girl didnt have a clue and said, all i can say is this is the account you need to continue making your payments to etc etc - and gave me the same bank account sort code and account number of AVELO LTD. Like I am going to pay a company still that cant show me that what i have paid has come off my account.

I really do appreciate your support rob

[Medusa68]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

I'm new to this so bare with me!
I purchased my car through credit4cars end of 2013. I had to go to Leeds to pick it up, I'd never even seen any pictures of it so was hoping for at least a test drive on the day.
Arrived to the 'meeting point', (which was a rented office), to be met by a fella with the car on the back of his trailor. He told me he was there to take my deposit, sign all the necessary paperwork then give me the keys. I asked for a test drive, which was refused because he apparently wasn't insured or authorised by C4C to do it & when I said I wouldn't be happy taking the vehicle he told me I would have to pay his delivery fee PLUS a return fee, there & then for him having to take the car back to wherever it came from? As I'd travelled some 150 miles by train to collect the car (at my own expense), and had no money to get the train home, I had no option but to take it. I did however, point out the state it was in & spoke to C4C about it before I drove it away. It looked like it had been stored under a tree for some time & all the windows were clogged up with moss, there was damp inside the car on the floor & upholstery & cigarette butts everywhere. The car was in a right state. C4C told me to pay for a proffessional valet & they would reimburse me - which never happened!
Driving home I found that the air con didn't work & it had an awful droning sound coming from the engine if I went over 60mph. I told C4C about this when I got home & they said it had gone through an MOT & was fine when it left the compound so at MY own expense I had to get a mechanic to look it over. It was found to have extremely worn brakes, bad tyres, a break in the air con pipe & the bearings had gone on the drivers front side. Although I had the work done & sent them reciepts - NO PAYMENT was ever reimbursed.
I tried ringing them every day for about 3 weeks with no answer or told 'someone would call me back', it never happened. At the time the first payment came out of my bank I was told by C4C I'd past the 14 day period 'of no return', so I was stuck with the car!
Fast forward to March 2016 - with only couple of previously late payments on my file, I got contacted by Shoosmiths to tell me they had taken over the accounts for C4C as they had gone into administration. I told them about the issues I'd had with C4C from the beginning & they said a 'complaint handler' from Avelo would call me to discuss the issues. I got a call a few days later from a really rude girl called 'Gemma' from Avelo who was extremely horrible & unhelpful on the phone & wasn't interested in my complaints at all, she just kept harping on about the account being in arrears - slightly! I gave up with her & went back to Shoosmiths.
(In between all this I'd gone to a new dealership to look at cars & they offerred to do a vehicle check on mine for me to see if there were any issues, including a credit check for myself. The car came back as having a STOLEN tag attached to it that was put on it 6 months BEFORE i purchased it & there was NO Finance registered on the car at all - no HP marker, NOTHING! After a lot of investigation, I found out the cars original insurers BEFORE me, had paid out to its owner at the time for the THEFT of the car & it was listed as NEVER RECOVERED. After weeks & weeks of investigations & phone calls, all at my own expense, it turns out the car was NEVER reported as stolen & that the owner had made a fraudelant claim on his insurance for a car he'd sold on to a dealer in Liverpool - apparently it's a common criminal activity? Anyhoo, both Shoosmiths AND Avelo knew of the problems i'd had but failed to do anything. It was the Insurers who paid out on the claim that removed the stolen tag for me - it had nothing to do with Shoosmiths or Avelo).
Back to the phone calls with the rude girl at Avelo - I got an apology from Shoosmiths about her, not Avelo! Now I'd sorted out all the issues with the stolen tag etc, Shoosmiths decided to come down heavy on me over the arrears on the account!! They kept threatening this immobiliser thingy that they said C4C had fitted on the vehicle at the beginning, but there isn't nor has there ever been one on it! Then they threatened to come & pick the vehicle up - leaving me with no transport & NOTHING to show for the car I'd been paying for for well over 2 years!! I took advice from The Financial Ombudsman who assured me that I OWN vehicle as I'd paid well over a 3rd of the finance on it and that they'd have to apply to the courts to get a court order to collect it anyway - which they haven't done. They'd also need to prove THEY own the vehicle via the finance agreement but - there's no finance registered on the vehicle or myself! Anyway, to bring you all up to date - The cars resale value was £500 and Avelo tried to get a further £2500 off me for it - via the original contract! Seeings as they had NO HP registered on the car, I sold it to a mechanic for spares! I used the money as a deposit on a new vehicle! I've literally heard nothing from Shoosmiths or Avelo for a few weeks now, no letters, no phone calls, no emails - nothing! In my opinion, they realised they were acting illegally & knew the car had a minimal resale value so it would have cost them a lot more to A, Persue it through the courts & B, arrange to have it picked up! There are NO defaults or CC Judgements about it on my credit file - which of course there won't be because THEY NEVER registered the sale with the proper authorities (hence no HP marker), or myself. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's had this & it'd be interesting to find out how many others there are. I'd especially like to know how many, if any, have had their vehicles checked for finance markers - i.e HP? It would usually show up if for example, you tried to trade it in or even tried to get a loan against it?
Thanks for taking the time to read ALL this! :judgey:

[minimetty]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

[QUOTE=R0b;640462]

The question is whether you really want to VT, pay the remaining half and get rid of the car potentially leaving you in a difficult spot moneywise. Alternatively you could maintain the payments until you have reached the halfway point or VT closer to the time when you might be able to better afford the payoff.

I would be wary of entering into a new HP agreement that Shoosmiths are handing out, so be very cautious before you sign something if you go down that route. As I have said in my last post, Shoosmiths cannot just default you, they would need to sent a notice of arrears first before they can apply a default or terminate the agreement. If they have not done this then they are not entitled to do either. I've tagged @nemesis45 as he may be able to give some better advice on this point.

[minimetty]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

Hi Again Rob

Well I took your advice, things settled down a bit, I stopped paying instalments for 6 months until shoesmiths could get a statement of account right to us showing all payments made since the start of the agreement.
Upon receipt and assurances my payments once made were tracked and proven at shoesmths etc, i reinstated the payments and agreed additional amounts on top to pay towards the arrears.
At that point in time all the payments we had made to date were not showing on shoesmiths account and they were taking action against us, I knew I had paid and, the stress was the threat of Avelo turning on the tracking/device to immobilise the car etc.

So, now I have paid past the halfway point. I read last year about companies charging for wear and tear etc once VT. I want to hand the car back and cut my losses.
I have kept up with the service, up until last week the roof was broken, and a few other issues. I have paid £300 to have wheel bearing done, the roof fixed and all the error codes cleared on the tech thing (sorry i am no mechanic ha ha) - the car is in full working order. I was thinking about getting an AA inspection done to protect our interests. The reason I am considering this is down to the fact there is a FB page set up where others have shared their nightmares about the history and dealings with Credit 4 cars/avelo & shoesmiths etc, feedback on the site shows many others have handed their cars back to be then sent rediculous bills for balancing paymet, one person got £115 sale at auction for a 2k car££ charges of £75 for screen wash etc.
Before I even contact shoesmiths to tell them my intentions to VT, I need to be armed with as much info on the process, ensure I am informed of what to avoid etc, Avelo & Shoesmiths are not trustworthy and, the sooner I break ties the better.

when I spoke to shoesmiths last year about VT they said even if I had paid half of the agreement I would still need to clear the arrears for the 6 months i witheld payment off before they could allow me to VT?? what is the difference between Voluntary surrender & voluntary termination? They said I needed to drive the car to the auction place approx 45 mins away and just leave it there - I am so dubious, have no clue what to do

Can you help to keep me right?

Thanks

[matthaze1977]

Re: HP cars4credit in administration help needed on VT of agreement

Hi, I am having extreme problems with Avelo/Shoosmiths

recently had a crash in the car I had on finance with Credit 4 Cars no records have been made on my credit file about all the payments i have made and i have paid £5600 to them before they went bust and as far as i am concerned it was clear now my insurance company say they still have a registered financial interest and the money from my claim will go straight to them they are still saying I owe £4100 that would make my interest rate of of over 50% when it was originally 29.9% also i was charged 400 for a stronghold device which i am told was illegal and subsequently found out it wasn't installed can anybody help