Direct Auto Finance and Direct Legal & Co debt

[Ms-Pacman]

Hi, I have been advised after putting this on a PPI thread to post it here.

Background is bought car from Yes Car Credit / Direct Auto Finance about 5 years ago - no credit rating so this seemed to be the best offer could get. We did sign the PPI - as we were told it was a good idea to protect payments but no other advice was given to us.

3 years later - payments crippling £270 monthly on top of expensive car to fuel and Yes Car Credit agreed we could trade it for something cheaper. They then stopped trading and Direct Auto Finance advised us this was no longer an option.

After speaking to a few other car finance companies including DAF we decided best option would be to voluntary surrender the car back to Direct Auto Finance (DAF) as we had then paid off more that a 3rd of the balance. DAF were happy with this and we had many conversations in which we have names, dates, etc of who we spoke to. They kept telling us that we would not owe any further balance AT ALL and we did ask about the PP insurance at the time.
So car given up, new car got from another company and all seemed well.

Nearly a year later we started to get letters from a debt collecting agency on behalf of DAF stating there was an outstanding balance for approx £1.7K. We queried this and although it took many months finally managed to get the details which showed it was for unpaid PPI. we were told by this company that although we surrended the car we would not have been able to cancel the insurance and that it was still owing. We have tried and failed to speak to DAF themselves and have now been told by this company that DAF ceased to trade in Dec 07 (Is this true?).

Its hit and miss with this debt recovery agency with phone calls made and received - most are really unpleasant and threatening - but occasionally we get to speak to someone decent who at least tries to help and provide details. We have just been told all our conversations were recorded even though we never knew this or gave permission - this would be interesting to get taped copies as some of the nasty calls we got are very revealing about the tactics of this company.

So basically we are stuck, because DAF have gone we can't prove we don't owe the money although on one document we received it said vehicle repossessed which is totally untrue - we have another document which contradicts this as well so we can show we are telling the truth. but as for the PPI balance what can we do? After being told we didn't owe anything this influenced us to surrender it.

We had other choices at the time - 1 was to struggle on and keep paying as we owed only about £3k at the time - or 2 - the new finance we got with another company had offered to pay the remaining debt and take our car as a trade and put remaining difference on our current finance agreement so we weren't out of options totally.

Any advise would be really gratefully received as we are going nowhere with this and it is really stressing us out. Thanks

[John Atkinson]

The experts on YCC are our friends over at Car Credit Complaints

Good luck!

[repoman]

Two things spring to mind.

Firstly - you did not "voluntarily surrender" the agreement! You "voluntarily terminated" the agreement - that is what limits your liability to half the total amount payable less what you have already paid (complicated slightly if you were in arrears at the time). I would adopt the approach that you may have been missold the ppi, and challenge DLC's claims on that basis. Any probs give me a shout.

[Ms-Pacman]

ok well things are getting interesting for my case against YCC/DAF/DLC
I am now speaking to a solictor to try and get this resolved. DLC still continue to ring but most calls now end up with them getting cross and advsiing to end the conversation as I keep catching them out in lies. The best one was when lady said DAF don't exist so I took her name, called DAF then called her back - it was brilliant - she then said they had changed her name and when I asked what to she couldn't answer.

Anyway I have found out a few more things about my case and this might help others in same situation.

1) the company who YCC bought the PPI from is giving a much lower balance then what YCC charged me for. I have asked DLC for a copy of the PPI insurance document and schedule - so far not provided.

2) the initial deposit was put on the insurance side instead of the car credit side which I have now found out is very wrong

3) DLC are saying it was a repossesion not a VT! - as the account defaulted - yes it did default but we caught up iin order to VT. I have asked for a copy of the court order for the reposession - so far not provided and not surprising since there wasn't one.

4)DLC said in a phone conversation that the VT didn't get processed as was a repossesion and the company that collected the car did not retun it to DAF. The statement I was given of recent transactions shows a credit which I always presumed was from the car selling at auction . DLC can't tell me or won't tell me what this is for.

Is there anyway to trace a car to find out what happened to it whether it got resold. It was in lovely condition when we gave it back and was about 6 years old so not that an old car.

[debt4get]

have you been onto saynotoyescarcredit there are loads of problems same as yours it would appear that you were missold ppi also there are problems with the original contract with deposits taken put onto insurances instead of off car balance, you have a good case good luck