My SO is considering this, but there keying damage on the door and we are in two minds whether to repair this first or take the chance that it will not be picked up on. Has anyone handed a back a car and been charged retrospectively for damage? or is anyone in the motor trade that could comment?

Will it polish out?

Does it matter? It only would if it was a leaser non?

Bear in mind i have never ever had a car on HP so know little of what you speak of.

Nah too deep, its through the colour but not down to the metal. Touched up but still apparent.

It may matter as termination documentation states that you may be billed for any unrepaired damage.

Colour polish to fill it?

Might try that Goan, hoping the winter salt may have a masking effect too 😕

Or take photos of it and use the repair brush in photoshop. 😉

Which type of car out of curiosity?

Suzuki Swift Sport

Done this twice both times with audi,1st time finance was with black horse,2nd was with audi finance. Black horse just asked me to drop the car of at auction. The second time audi finance sent out someone to check the car, which was scratched btw, the said nothing both times.
Hope this helps.

Cheers seanodav, have dropped one off at auction before but the finance company want to send out someone to pick up the car this time. This was more of a worry as I thought it would be inspected a little closer.

the finance company will use an agent to inspect the car and charge for
repairs at main dealer prices . have the work done at a local body shop when you take the car to the appointed dealer make sure its dirty so the fresh paint blends in with the rest of the car . have it painted before you write to the company or you might not have enough time .

ps 20 years motor trade sales and finance
[ yes i should be on the B Ark ]

Yeah we were the same,just make sure car is very tidy elswehere, im sure scratches are just general wear and tear. Car will be sold at auction to a dealer most likely who will repair stuff like that quite easily, im sure it will be fine. How big is the scratch?

About 20"

sister sent a car back 1/2 way through a hp term. told her they'd send out an "inspector" to collect the car.
turned out he was just a driver who was taking it straight to auction!! he wasn't bothered about condition, just wanted to make sure there was enough petrol in it to get him to the auction site. big arsed dent in one of the doors aswell, he never even looked!

Get your initial finance agreement out and have a look through the clauses on the back, typically although not always it'll be clause 11 and it will state at what point and what conditions are attached to returning a car within a hire purchase/finance agreement.

Simplez

Just handed back wife's audi in November, had some scratches done at paint shop cost £60 for both bumpers, however they picked out some door dings and scratches but didn't ask for any money as long as they where under 1.5 inches. Did have to pay £128 for damaged alloys as this was considered beyond reasonable wear & tear. Hope this helps!

Sorry for hijack, but how does this work, do they sell it & charge you the difference of the outstanding balance or what?

Nope – the clue is in the name – Hire Purchase.

I believe if you've paid more than 50% of the money you can hand it back and walk away (assuming you've kept within any agreed mileage limits).

Its done under the regulated agreement law of halfs & thrids.

Basically as an individual you are not supposed to be able to look after yourself and make an informed decision. They brought out halfs and thirds to protect us. If you have paid at least third of the invoice amount then they cannot recover the vehicle without going to court to reposses it if you get into money trouble. If you have paid 50% then you are quite within your rights to hand the vehicle back and walk away. The only wording on this is 'appropriate mileage and condition'. There are NEVER any mileage restrictions on an HP agreement, only lease agreements have them.

So you pay a deposit and you pay monthly payments till you get to 50%. 9 times out of ten the car is worth more than the remianing 50% unless its a mondeo/vectra type vehicle or its been purchased with a low deposit over too long a period. I refuse to sell vehicles on this basis as its basically negative equity the customer is trying to get away from.

Anyhow, you hand it back and as some have stated above you get a delivery driver collect it. Chances are you hear nothing further. Do you want to risk a bill though? You get a coompany that are switched on (They are all having to watch costs) and you could get a bill for treble the amount you expected. I would call a chips away type person and see if they can do anything.

Oh and if you think this doesnt count against you on finance records think again. I have seen records showing this and although it doesnt come up as a black mark, it is recorded so the finance companies in future will be able to take it into account.

Just for the record are we talking about a car you dont need anymore or one you cant afford? Why not just sell it, or is it in negative equity?