PCP's have become popular as they seem to offer the car buyer with a cheaper way to buy a car, but is this actually true? The NACFB say buyers can end up paying much more interest than on hire-purchase deals – even if the APR (annual percentage rate) appears to be the same.
This is due to the fact that part of the PCP deal relates to the balloon payment and is effectively an interest-only loan, which is not paid down during the term of the deal. As a result, interest charges mount up more quickly, and anyone who uses PCP and then decides to buy the car outright will face a much higher interest bill than if they had gone down the hire-purchase route. The NACFB believes that some dealerships do not always make this clear when promoting PCP's over traditional hire purchase agreements, and this could potentially provide a basis for mis-selling claims.
If you think you may have been mis-sold a car loan then please register your details for a free audit of your car finance. We will be back in touch with the information we require.