Buying car from dealer - recorded as having outstanding debt
Discussion
I'm about to buy a nearly new car. I've just, for peace of mind, run it through an HPI check and it's come up as showing that it has outstanding debt / finance on it. This is not from an independent but a Mazda main dealership.
I'm lead to believe the car has only just come into stock so is it just possible that paperwork, etc has not been sorted yet - or should I demand some kind of letter from the dealer clearing me of any potential responsibility, etc for finance? Or is there some other system for this?
I've never bought from a dealer, nor a car this new before so have no idea how to handle this kind of problem and obviously want to avoid any complications down the line.
Many thanks!
I'm lead to believe the car has only just come into stock so is it just possible that paperwork, etc has not been sorted yet - or should I demand some kind of letter from the dealer clearing me of any potential responsibility, etc for finance? Or is there some other system for this?
I've never bought from a dealer, nor a car this new before so have no idea how to handle this kind of problem and obviously want to avoid any complications down the line.
Many thanks!
Chicane-UK said:
I'm lead to believe the car has only just come into stock so is it just possible that paperwork, etc has not been sorted yet - or should I demand some kind of letter from the dealer clearing me of any potential responsibility, etc for finance?
Yes that is entirely possible, the dealership will most likely have already sent the cheque to the finance company in settlement. Once they confirm it has cleared, the finance company should inform Experian that they have no further interest in the vehicle and the vehicle's record will be amended as such. At this stage, the dealer also usually gets a fax confirming no further interest for their file. This process can take a couple of weeks as there's post, cheque clearing procedures and admin to be done at HPI's end. By all means buy the car, just tell the dealer you do not wish to take delivery of it until they can show you either the statement of no further interest from the finance company, confirming settlement in full has been made and/or a clear HPI report (which they will obtain for the deal file anyway, a copy of theirs is as good as paying for your own and most dealers supply the new owner with a certificate as part of the deal paperwork of a franchised dealer's approved used scheme.
They won't have taken a car into stock without having carried out their own HPI and obtained a current settlement letter from the former owner when they PX'd it - so that they knew they wouldn't be unwittingly liable for settling a finance that was in excess of the PX allowance given. If a dealer takes a car in PX that has finance outstanding on it that the owner neglects to inform them of and they give the customer the full value of the PX against the car they are buying - the dealer is then liable for that finance balance, so they could potentially end up paying twice.
Edited by Zwoelf on Sunday 14th August 14:28
Zwoelf said:
By all means buy the car, just tell the dealer you do not wish to take delivery of it until they can show you either the statement of no further interest from the finance company, confirming settlement in full has been made and/or a clear HPI report (which they will obtain for the deal file anyway, a copy of theirs is as good as paying for your own and most dealers supply the new owner with a certificate as part of the deal paperwork of a franchised dealer's approved used scheme.
Hmm.. ok. Thanks for that information. As the car is in stock and just needs a check over and a valet, they're hoping for me to be able to pick up the car on Wednesday (having viewed and paid a deposit for it on Saturday!).I'll try and speak to them on the phone before then to try and get some kind of clarification on the outstanding finance and see if they can provide this statement of no further interest from the finance company.
Interestingly found this on the Mazda site regarding used cars:
A vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
A vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
Chicane-UK said:
Hmm.. ok. Thanks for that information. As the car is in stock and just needs a check over and a valet, they're hoping for me to be able to pick up the car on Wednesday (having viewed and paid a deposit for it on Saturday!).
I'll try and speak to them on the phone before then to try and get some kind of clarification on the outstanding finance and see if they can provide this statement of no further interest from the finance company.
The dealer should have no reservations at all about you choosing to wait for finance clearance before taking delivery (thus potentially making yourself liable for it). I'll try and speak to them on the phone before then to try and get some kind of clarification on the outstanding finance and see if they can provide this statement of no further interest from the finance company.
Also - on the HPI report itself that you have should be the name of the finance company, the agreement number and a contact telephone number. Owing to DPA restrictions, they are not at liberty to tell you how much the balance is or discuss any of the former owner's finance details - but they can confirm whether or not they still have a financial interest in the vehicle. If not, they should be able to provide you with written confirmation of that by e-mail, fax or post.
Chicane-UK said:
Interestingly found this on the Mazda site regarding used cars:
A vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
That's precisely the certificate to which I referred above that they should provide you with at handover. A vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
Zwoelf said:
Also - on the HPI report itself that you have should be the name of the finance company, the agreement number and a contact telephone number.
Hm.. seems I did a bit of a cheap / crap HPI check then with these folks:http://www.mycarcheck.com/
Doesn't list which company the finance is outstanding with.. just says that there is outstanding debt..
Chicane-UK said:
Zwoelf said:
Also - on the HPI report itself that you have should be the name of the finance company, the agreement number and a contact telephone number.
Hm.. seems I did a bit of a cheap / crap HPI check then with these folks:http://www.mycarcheck.com/
Doesn't list which company the finance is outstanding with.. just says that there is outstanding debt..
Chicane-UK said:
Interestingly found this on the Mazda site regarding used cars:
A vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
get it before money changes hands as once they have your cash most dealers don't give even the slightest fA vehicle history check is carried out on every Mazda Approved Used Car to ensure that the car has not been stolen or written-off, and is not subject to any outstanding finance agreement. The check produces an extensive online report and covers information such as; plate history, finance data, stolen data, condition check, registration date and year of manufacture, full vehicle description, number of keepers and dates of change, cross reference between the Vehicle Identification Number and the Vehicle Registration Mark, import/export data, scrapped indicator, high-risk data, previous searches and enquiry audit trail, colour changes and CO2 emissions. A certificate confirming that these checks have been made is supplied with each vehicle.
I'll be sure to ask to see that certificate when I come to collect!
k about keeping you happythinfourth2 said:
get it before money changes hands as once they have your cash most dealers don't give even the slightest fk about keeping you happy
Yep.. most definitely will seek for clarification that all outstanding finance has been settled before I pay for the car! Make no mistake! k about keeping you happy
Chicane-UK said:
Doesn't list which company the finance is outstanding with.. just says that there is outstanding debt..
I did a check with mycarcheck.com for a car and it came back saying it was stolen/recovered.Did a full HPI check, no mention of it being stolen/recovered at all.
Some people think that the cheaper ones put info like that into it to make you call their premium rate helpline only to be told that "there's no outstanding debt and that it's just a mistake, sorry about the mix-up."
Dunno myself, but I'd only trust a full HPI myself now.
So do you guys think it's worth now running a proper HPI check, or waiting for a response to the email I fired off to the dealer earlier...
Hi Nick,
I'm due to collect my Fiat 500 (which I placed the deposit down on
Saturday - registration number **** ***) this coming Wednesday however
as a matter of routine I ran the car through a HPI check today and
discovered that it is still recorded as having outstanding debt owing.
I'm not overly concerned yet, and am just assuming that, based on what
you told me about how well they were selling, the high speed of
turnaround of these cars means the paperwork has not caught up yet.
But I just wanted to be sure that, come Wednesday, this will have been
taken care of and you will be able to provide me either a refreshed
HPI check which shows all finance has been settled, or some other
proof that the finance outstanding on this car has been cleared.
Kind regards
Hi Nick,
I'm due to collect my Fiat 500 (which I placed the deposit down on
Saturday - registration number **** ***) this coming Wednesday however
as a matter of routine I ran the car through a HPI check today and
discovered that it is still recorded as having outstanding debt owing.
I'm not overly concerned yet, and am just assuming that, based on what
you told me about how well they were selling, the high speed of
turnaround of these cars means the paperwork has not caught up yet.
But I just wanted to be sure that, come Wednesday, this will have been
taken care of and you will be able to provide me either a refreshed
HPI check which shows all finance has been settled, or some other
proof that the finance outstanding on this car has been cleared.
Kind regards
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