Fiat finance - car written off

[bankbustermum]

Hi All, not really sure where to post this but I need some advice asap.

My brothers vauxhall corsa was purchased on finance with fiat finance, about 6 months ago it was written off after an old codger ran into the side of it. The insurance company only paid out enough to cover half of the loan and since then the finance company have been an absolute nightmare.

My brother lost his job about 6 weeks after the accident and so was struggling to meet the payments. He contacted the finance company to tell them this and asked if the could amend his payment schedule until he was back in work. They said the would send out a form - but didn't - and the next month took the full amount from his bank (leaving him overdrawn, but that's another story) after another two phone calls ending in them assuring him that the form would be sent out the same thing happened again - twice . The finance company are now constantly on the phone (which is actually my mum's number) and when she asked them to stop calling as she felt it was harrassment they were really cheeky to her and told her it was their right to phone at least once a week. aaaarrgh

Now he is in quite a bit more debt having incurred charges from fiat finance and the bank.

I have argued the point with the finance company in that he shouldn't be getting charges as with the lump payout from the insurers he is actually ahead with his payments.

can anyone advise me on whether i am right in this and also if he is able to claim back the charges from the finance company and also if there is anything else he should know??

TIA

bankbustermum

[robuck]

The payout from the insurance company will NOT have cobverd the total amount owing on the agreement.
although the lump sum payment has put his account into Credit arrears he is STILL liable to make monthly payments.

His best bet if he is in financial difficulty ( which it sounds like he is) is to contct the company, admit he is struggling ( the hardest part sometimes) and make an offer of payment based on his income at the time.

Any company in this situation would rather have an offer of payment to show willingness to pay, rather than ignore the matter.

The form they were going to send out sounds like and Income and Expenditure form, to show how much disposable income he has left at the end of each month.

The offer may only be £5 per month or £10 per month, but at least it is an offer of payment.

If the vehicle has been written off and the insurance have paid out then there is no vehicle to recover so the company will have no alernative but to accept a reduced payment.

Honest is always the best policy, get him to work out how much he gets in ( wages, benefits etc) then how much he pays out on Rent, food, bills etc) then make an offer of payment to the finance company based on the money ( if any) left over at the end of the month.

The CAb can help with this, OR companies like Payplan or CCCS.