Frequently asked questions
What is hire purchase?
Hire purchase is a popular type of car finance. It is sometimes shortened to HP and proves popular with young drivers and families alike.
At the start of a hire purchase agreement, you will usually pay a small deposit towards the vehicle. The bigger the deposit you can put down for the vehicle, the less you will need to borrow and the less your monthly payments will be.
Then, your monthly payments are calculated. An agreement can be anywhere between one and five years long, depending on what you are looking for. The payments are fixed so there will be no nasty surprises. Although, do note that should you miss a payment, the car can be taken away.
When you’ve made all the payments due under the agreement, you will own the vehicle. Sometimes there is a small option-to-purchase fee which is usually the cost of one month’s finance. This will be set out in the agreement that you see before you commit to anything.
There are plenty of benefits of hire purchase, with the main one being you get to drive the car away at the start of the agreement, instead of saving and waiting until you have the value in full. Another benefit is that you own the car at the end, so you have been working to pay for something that is yours. Due to the nature of finance, it often means you can afford a nicer, or a newer can, than you could if you were paying outright too.
How much can I borrow?
It depends on your personal circumstance; the things we look at include your income, the affordability for you of the credit, and your credit score. Finance is subject to status and, although an approval can’t be guaranteed, all circumstances can be considered.
Do I need to pay a deposit?
We offer a no deposit finance option.
It is completely up to you whether you pay a deposit or not. If you do choose to pay a deposit, you will be reducing the amount you would like to borrow, which will bring your monthly payments down. This may increase the chances of securing your loan, particularly if you don’t have a great credit history, or lots of disposable income.
Can I part-exchange another vehicle?
Of course!
As with a deposit, it is completely up to you whether you part-exchange another vehicle or not. If you do choose to part-exchange another vehicle, you will be reducing the amount you would like to borrow, which will bring your monthly payments down. This may increase the chances of securing your loan, particularly if you don’t have a great credit history or lots of disposable income.
Can I apply if I have bad credit?
Absolutely!
We know that there are so many reasons why you could have bad credit. From arrears to a lack of credit history, we know that what has happened in the past doesn’t always reflect where you are now. Finance is subject to status and, although an approval can’t be guaranteed, all circumstances can be considered.
Do you charge any fees?
Yes.
Your hire purchase agreement is subject to the following fees:
- A document fee – payable with your first monthly instalment; and
- An option to purchase fee – payable with your final instalment if you choose to purchase the vehicle.
We may also make additional charges for some breaches of your contract, such as a bounced payment or if we have to issue you with a default notice.
Full details of all of our charges can be found on your hire purchase agreement. Any charges we apply will be proportionate to the actual costs to ourselves.
What commission will you pay if I take finance with you?
Like all hire purchase lenders, we pay businesses for the work they do when introducing customers like you to us. It is important to note that the interest rate applying to your hire purchase agreement, and any associated fees, is determined solely by us.
If you apply to us directly, we will not pay any commission.
If you apply to us through a credit broker, commission will be paid by us.
Where a commission is paid by us, the amount of commission we are paying in respect of your agreement is set out in the section of the agreement headed “Commission”.
The Financial Conduct Authority is investigating so-called “discretionary commission arrangements” in the motor finance market. For more information about that, please look here.
What is the customer portal?
With our customer portal, you can easily view details of your agreement, including transactions and important documents, as well as request a settlement figure and make online payments.
You can register for our customer portal very simply at: https://automoney.redline.co.uk/customerportal/.
To register, you’ll need an email address, your date of birth and your agreement number.
If you have any questions about our customer portal, or your hire purchase agreement, or if you have any difficulty in making your payments at any time, then please do not hesitate to contact our friendly Customer Support Team by:
-phone 0800 197 9090
Lines open 8am-7pm Monday-Friday, and 9am-3pm Saturday.
Calls are free of charge to this number.
-email support@ammf.co.uk
-live chat https://www.ammf.co.uk/contact-us/
-post Customer Support Team, AutoMoney Limited, Unit 3 Brooklands, Moons Moat Drive, Redditch, Worcestershire, B98 9DW
Do you use automated decision-making?
Yes, the way we analyse personal data relating to our services may involve automated processing, including profiling. This means that we may process your personal data (including sensitive personal data) using software that can evaluate your personal circumstances and other factors to predict risks or outcomes.
We may also use profiling, or other automated methods, to make decisions about you that relate to the following:
- credit and affordability checks to see whether your application will be accepted;
- anti-money laundering and sanctions checks;
- identity and address checks;
- monitoring your account for fraud and other financial crime, either to prevent you committing fraud, or to prevent you becoming a victim of fraud;
- screening people who may be classed as ‘politically exposed’ (for example, if you are a government minister);
- assessments required by our regulators and appropriate authorities to make sure we meet our regulatory obligations (for example, making decisions about those at risk of becoming financially vulnerable).
This is known as ‘automated decision-making’ and is only allowed when we have a legal reason for this type of decision-making. We may make automated decisions about you in the following circumstances:
- if automated decisions are necessary for us to enter into a contract. For example, we may decide not to offer our services to you, or we may decide how much to charge you for our products, based on your credit history and other financial information we have collected about you;
- if automated decisions are required or authorised by law (for example, to prevent fraud); and
- if it is a reasonable way of keeping to government regulation or guidance, such as our obligation to treat customers fairly.
You have the right:
- not to be subject to a decision that is based solely on automated processing if the decision affects your legal rights or other equally important matters, including automatic refusal of a credit application;
- to understand the reasons behind decisions made about you by automated processing and possible consequences of the decisions; and
- to object to profiling in certain situations, including direct marketing.
You can contact us to ask for a person to review an automated decision:
by post Unit 3 Brooklands, Moons Moat Drive, Redditch, B98 9DW
by email complaints@ammf.co.uk
