Complaints Procedure

Any oral or written expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, from, or on behalf of, a person about the provision of, or failure to provide, a financial service, which:

• a) Alleges that the complainant has suffered (or may suffer) financial loss, material distress or material inconvenience; and
• b) Relates to an activity of our firm, or of any other firm with whom we have some connection in marketing or providing financial services or products, which comes under the jurisdiction of the Financial Ombudsman Service.

We can only handle complaints about the work, staff and levels of service provided by our company. We can’t deal with:

• Complaints regarding the conduct or service of a specific finance company
• Complaints regarding equipment you have purchased.

In the event your complaint relates to one of the above we will, where possible provide you with details of how to contact them directly.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on the 11 January 2024 brought in temporary amendment to the motor finance complaint handling rules.

As such for “Relevant Motor Finance Complaints”, the 8 week period to provide a final response referred to on our website information page has been temporarily paused by the FCA until 21 November 2024.

Customers are referred to www.fca.org.uk/car-finance-complaints, which explains the reason for the pause.

Any of our customers that are affected by any change in the rules, will be notified individually.

In the first place, talk to the person who handled your transaction: that’s usually the quickest way to resolve a problem. If you’re still not satisfied, speak to our head office on 01254 958 777 (lines are open from 9:00am to 5:00pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays). If that doesn’t solve the problem, you can make a formal complaint to our Complaints Manager.

You can make a formal complaint by post, online or by phone.

Write to:

AFS Group, Complaints Manager, Compliance Department,
Greenbank Court, Challenge Way,
Greenbank Business Park, Blackburn BB1 5QB

Email: complaints@afsuk.com

• 1) We aim to resolve a complaint by close of business the following business day of its receipt. This will still be investigated competently, diligently and impartially; be assessed fairly, consistently and promptly; and all relevant factors will be taken into account
• 2) If we are unable to resolve your complaint the following business day, we will send you a written acknowledgement within five working days of receiving your complaint. The acknowledgement letter will outline the result of the investigation if this has been completed
• 3) If the investigation has not been completed, the acknowledgement letter will confirm that we will:-
  • a) Provide you with regular updates on our progress. You may contact us at any stage
  • b) Advise you that if our investigation has not been completed within 8 weeks of our receipt of the complaint, we will write to you informing you why we are not yet in a position to resolve your complaint. If you are not satisfied with our progress, you may refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service. A copy of the Financial Ombudsman Services standard explanatory leaflet will be issued with the week 8 response letter.
  • c) Advise you that on completion of our review, we will write to you informing you of the outcome.
• 4) Following the completion of the investigation, we will issue a written Final Response letter to you. The Final Response letter will be fair, clear and not misleading and will provide you with:
  • Details of the investigation;
  • The outcome of the investigation;
  • If relevant, any offer of remedial action(s) or the appropriate level of redress (or both), and the basis of calculation;

The investigation will include, as a minimum:

• A review of the relevant client file;
• Take into account any information and /or documents submitted by you.
• If necessary, a request for any additional information; and
• Contact with the relevant provider(s), if relevant

If you are not satisfied with our decision and you are a private individual, firm, charity, or organisation with less than a £6,500,000 turnover, you can refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service at: The Financial Ombudsman Service South Quay Plaza 183 Marsh Wall London E14 9SR If you refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman, this should be referred as soon as possible after our final response and within six months. Before you refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman, you may contact them to discuss whether your complaint is within their jurisdiction on 0845 080 1800 or you can visit their website https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk Asset Finance Solutions (UK) Ltd is an Appointed Representative of AFS Compliance Ltd, which is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under number 625035.