Covid-19

If you find you are experiencing temporary financial difficulty as a result of coronavirus and are concerned about making payments on your loan because of this we can help. We will look to offer the best payment solution for you.

This is when you temporarily stop making some or all of your contractual loan payments. After these payment deferrals, your monthly payments will start again as before. We will be in touch with you to reach the best solution for you to make up the payments you have missed. Your loan is a fixed term agreement so no additional interest will be applied providing the loan is completed before the original end date. Any amounts outstanding after this date will be subject to interest from that date as per the terms and conditions of the Hire Purchase Agreement. The last available deferral was for July 2021, if you are still experiencing problems you must call us on 01244 200793.

If you pay by Direct Debit we will stop collecting your payments when the payment deferral begins, and contact you to remind you when we will start collecting payments again. Please do not cancel your Direct Debit. The last available deferral was for July 2021, if you are still experiencing problems you must call us on 01244 200 793.

A payment deferral will not be recorded as a worsening status on your credit file. However, lenders may take into account other information when making future lending decisions, for example information you provide in your application or bank account information. If your account falls into arrears following a deferral, these arrears will be reported and may have a detrimental effect on your credit file.

Your loan is a fixed term agreement so no additional interest will be applied providing the loan is completed before the original end date. Any amounts outstanding after this date will be subject to interest from that date as per the terms and conditions of the Hire Purchase Agreement.

We will ask you to get in touch when your payment deferral ends to discuss what your new monthly payment amount will be and the date payments will begin again. We will ensure that any arrangement for payment is suitable for your needs.

If you want to end your payment deferral and restart payments sooner, or if you still have a question about your payment deferral, you can contact us by clicking on the “Contact” tab at the top of this page or alternatively you can call our payments team directly on 01244 200793.

We are able to collect your vehicle but must maintain social distancing, so there are some things you have to do:

• You must complete the G3 ‘Go-appraise’ app – find at the App Store for IOS or Android on Google – Voluntary Termination – Self appraisal information
  • The collection agent will call you to advise they have arrived rather than approach your door
  • Both the customer and the agent will be required to hand wash / sanitise
  • The agent will expect you to place the keys and all paperwork (service history, V5 etc.) in the vehicle (preferably in an envelope) only when the collection agent has arrived
  • You will not be asked to sign anything, but it might be possible for an agent to record (on body worn cameras or a telephone) the consent of the customer to take the vehicle or to acknowledge any damage

Your agreement will be placed on hold until the vehicle is sold. We will also ensure that there is no negative impact on your credit file, however, if your vehicle is not in ‘retail’ condition, you may be charged for the equivalent cost of repairs to return the vehicle to ‘retail’ condition.

If you have advised us of your intention to terminate your contract, and we have confirmed acceptance, you must stop using the vehicle immediately.

You will need to keep the vehicle safe and in your possession until we collect it.

You may declare your vehicle as SORN – not use and store in a secure place, off the public highway, do not change the owner as this affects the re-sale value.

If you are unable to do this you must continue to insure the vehicle.

When you told us that you wanted to terminate your agreement we wrote to you explaining how this works. In this letter we explained if any further payments would need to be made. If you were told that you would need to pay further sums you will still need to pay this. We will contact you about this AFTER the vehicle has been collected and sold.

If you have any questions please email adept.agent@smfmotor.com

When we granted a payment deferral we did not change the terms of your contract, we provided a concession which enabled you to defer payments to a later date. As this was not a change to the contract we still need to send you certain notices. A Notice of Sums in Arrears is legally required under Section 86B of the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

A Notice of Sums in Arrears is a statement sent to you to let you know that you have missed contractually due payments under the agreement. It is issued when an account is the sum of two contractual payments in arrears. Commonly, this would mean two monthly payments having been missed. A Notice of Sums in Arrears will tell you how much you need to pay to bring your account back in order.

If we’ve already granted you a payment holiday, and you were up to date with your payments before we granted it, please call 01244 200793 to discuss possible options for bringing your account up to date within your original agreement term to avoid additional interest accruing following the original end date of your agreement.

Additionally, if you had missed payments before we granted you a payment holiday and we’ve not discussed how you should repay these please get in touch with us on 01244 200793 to discuss bespoke payment options.

While we will agree something specific with you, taking into account your circumstances and affordability, we are asking customers to consider these options as potential solutions. If you repay your deferred payments by the original end date of the loan we will not charge you any additional interest.

Option 1
Short Term Solution
If you have less than 12 months to go on your agreement we suggest you consider adding the missed payments onto the end of the term, but you can make additional payments at any time. You will pay interest on the extended payments from the original end date.

Option 2
Medium Term Solution
If you have longer than 12 months to the end of your agreement you may wish to increase the monthly payments to repay the deferred payments within the original term of the loan. To calculate this you take the total of the missed payments and divide by the number of remaining payments and add that to your regular payment. We only want you to take this option if you are confident you can afford the additional payments. No additional interest or related fees will be charged during the original term of the loan and you can make additional payments at any time.

Alternatively, you could make additional payments of what you can afford on top of your monthly payment amount to reduce how much is left after the original term and in turn reduce the amount of interest you are charged.

We may ask you to complete an income and expenditure form to assess whether the arrangement is affordable for you.

Option 3
Default Solution
If you don’t want or can’t afford to take Option 2 then we will extend the agreement by the number of monthly payments you have missed. You will pay interest on the extended payments from the original end date. You can make additional payments at any time.

Whatever option is best for you, we will do everything we can to make the process as straight forward as possible. We will also let you know what’s happening so you know where you stand with us.
Please contact us straight away to discuss your options on 01244 200793.