The FCA and its partner regulators have stepped up their crackdown on misleading car finance claims advertising. In June alone, 170 misleading adverts by claims management companies were removed or amended, taking the total to around 1,200 since January 2024.
What has happened
The FCA, the Advertising Standards Authority, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Information Commissioner’s Office are working together as a joint taskforce on poor practice in motor finance claims marketing, and on 16 July 2026 they reported their latest results.
The problems they found are familiar ones:
- adverts disguised as ordinary consumers posting on social media;
- adverts using the FCA’s motor finance redress scheme in a way that could suggest an affiliation with the regulator;
- adverts failing to make the redress scheme and the free routes clear; and
- firms promoting claims management services without authorisation.
The FCA also agreed voluntary requirements with two firms to stop or change their marketing.
What this means for car finance customers
Millions of people are potentially in scope of the motor finance redress scheme, and where there is a pool of claimants that large, there will always be some who try to take advantage of it. The regulators’ message is simple: be careful who you engage with and what you are told.
We think that scrutiny is a good thing. Honest, clearly explained representation matters, and firms that mislead people about fees, timescales or their connection to the regulator damage trust for everyone. If your car finance agreement involved a discretionary commission arrangement, your lender should be in touch under the redress scheme. And if you disagree with an outcome, the Financial Ombudsman can consider a complaint about a firm that is still trading.
What should you do next?
If you would like an honest view on where your car finance claim stands, have a free, no obligation consultation with us. We will tell you plainly what your options are, including the ones that do not involve us. No outcome is ever guaranteed, and anyone who tells you otherwise is not being straight with you. Call 0800 041 8359 or make an enquiry.
Source: FCA press release, 16 July 2026
