⚠️ Corruption in Plain Sight: How the FCA and Government Are Colluding to Protect Lenders from Paying What They Owe

In what can only be described as an increasingly shameless betrayal of public trust, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) — backed, it appears, by elements within government — is taking a series of calculated steps to shield the motor finance industry from its legal and financial obligations to UK consumers.

The UK public has witnessed scandal after scandal where financial institutions have misled, mis-sold, and manipulated the public. But what we are now seeing is something even more disturbing: a coordinated campaign to minimise rightful compensation owed to consumers following the systemic non-disclosure of motor finance commissions — a practice tantamount to bribery and deception.

This collusion is not theoretical. It is unfolding now, through a four-pronged strategy designed to insulate the guilty and obstruct justice.

🧾 1. Supreme Court Interference: The FCA Sides with the Guilty

When the issue of hidden motor finance commissions reached the UK Supreme Court, the FCA had a choice: defend consumer rights or defend industry profits. It chose the latter.

In its submission to the court, the FCA took the side of the finance providers — the very firms that enabled a system where car dealerships were incentivised with undisclosed commissions, to steer consumers into more expensive finance deals. The FCA’s argument? That a consumer victory would risk “significant financial harm” to the motor finance industry.

Let’s be clear: this was not a neutral submission. This was an attempt to influence the highest court in the land in favour of financial firms who had, for all intents and purposes, bribed salespeople to mis-sell motor finance agreements.

Even the UK Government attempted to intervene in the case — but was excluded. The FCA, however, was heard. And it chose the wrong side.

💰 2. FOS Fees for Representatives: Silencing the Vulnerable

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) — historically a last line of defence for ordinary people — has now implemented a new policy: charging fees to representatives who escalate claims.

This is a direct attack on those most in need of support — vulnerable consumers who depend on professional firms to navigate a complex system that has failed them at every turn.

Why introduce this now? Because firms have been wrongly rejecting complaints for years, historically during the PPI scandal, and now on motor finance commission cases. And instead of fixing the problem at the source, the FOS is making it harder and more expensive for victims to pursue justice.

This chilling effect on representation plays right into the hands of the same firms that created this mess — and ensures that fewer consumers will have the help they need to make successful claims.

📉 3. Reducing Statutory Interest: Helping the Guilty Pay Less

The FCA is now consulting on reducing the statutory interest rate applied to consumer compensation awards, which currently stands at 8% per annum.

This is the only meaningful financial penalty that most misbehaving firms ever face. It recognises that consumers have been deprived of the use of their money and should act as a deterrent against the unfair conduct of firms.

To reduce this now — when consumers may shortly begin to receive compensation for motor finance commission failings — is to blatantly help firms limit their liabilities. It’s not just misguided regulation. It’s collusion.

⚖️ 4. Undermining the Law on Unfair Relationships

The final and most brazen move? The FCA has launched a consultation to “modernise” the unfair relationships provisions under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 — the very law that has enabled claims for hidden commissions in motor finance.

This provision — Section 140A — is the legal backbone that consumers and their representatives rely upon to expose wrongdoing and recover compensation.

So why would the FCA seek to “reform” it now?

Because the current law is working too well. It’s forcing firms to face up to past misconduct and redress wrongs the FCA failed to prevent. Rather than own up to years of inaction and ineffective supervision, the regulator is looking to change the rules mid-game.

This is not a coincidence. This is damage control — a thinly veiled effort to protect corporate interests and bury regulatory failures.

🧨 A Pattern of Protection, Not Regulation

Let’s connect the dots:

• The FCA intervenes in court to protect lenders, not consumers.
• The FOS makes it harder for representatives to bring claims.
• The FCA consults on reducing redress interest — making justice cheaper for firms.
• The law that exposes wrongdoing is now up for reform.

This is not “modernisation.” This is a coordinated retreat from accountability.

🗣️ Our Position: Consumers Must Not Be Betrayed Again

We believe the FCA and government should be facing intense scrutiny, not allowed to quietly rewrite the rules in favour of the finance industry.

The public has been misled, overcharged, and denied the truth for decades. This latest scandal is bigger than PPI, and the attempts to limit redress reveal a regulator that is not just ineffective — but complicit.

📢 Final Word

If you’re wondering why you’re not hearing more about this from the regulators themselves — it’s because they don’t want you to. But we will not be silent.

If you’ve had motor finance between 2007 and 2024, your rights are real — and the fight for justice is far from over.

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