Skip to main content

Discretionary Commission Arrangements

If you borrowed money to finance a motor vehicle before 28 January 2021, there may have been a Discretionary Commission Arrangement (DCA) between your broker or dealer and finance provider.

Following concerns about how this type of arrangement could affect customers, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) put a stop to them. This came into effect on 28 January 2021 and led to a high number of enquiries from customers worried they could have paid too much because of a DCA. 

On 11 January 2024, the FCA announced they’re looking at this in detail to see if DCAs have led to poor practices resulting in customers losing out. In the meantime, they’ve made some changes in relation to complaints which mean:

  • If you make a complaint about a DCA, we don’t need to respond to you within the usual 8 week time limit. The earliest you could hear back from us with a final response is 25 September 2024.
  • If you’re not happy with our response, you’ll have longer to take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

You can find out about making a complaint or enquiry in the Frequently Asked Questions below. You can also visit the FCA’s website for more information by clicking here.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Can I make a DCA complaint?
  • How do I make a DCA complaint or enquiry?
  • What information do I need to give you?
  • Why have you asked for more information?
  • Should I use a Claims Management Company (CMC)?
  • I’ve already made a complaint, when will I hear back?
  • What can I do if I’m not happy with your response?

Can I make a DCA complaint?

The FCA have advised that:

You could be impacted if:

  • You borrowed money to finance a motor vehicle (for example a car, van, campervan or motorbike) before 28 January 2021. This includes Hire Purchase agreements such as Personal Contract Purchases. 
  • You used a broker or dealer to arrange the finance.

You wouldn’t be impacted if:

  • You borrowed money to finance a motor vehicle on or after 28 January 2021 
  • You used a hire agreement, such as a Personal Contract Hire
  • You used a Northridge unsecured personal loan. This where we paid the money you borrowed into your bank account rather than to a dealer or broker.

As not all Northridge accounts had a DCA we need to check each agreement individually. If you’re not sure whether you’re impacted, call us free on 0800 917 0931 and we can help.

How do I make a DCA complaint or enquiry?

  • Call us free on 0800 917 0931. We’re open from 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday.  
  • Write to us at:

Complaints Department
Northridge Finance
5th Floor, Bank of Ireland
1 Donegall Square South

Belfast
BT1 5LR

We’ll reply to you within 5 working days. You may not hear back from us with a final response, however, until after 25 September 2024.

What information do I need to give you?

To help us find and check your account, we need the following information. 

  • Your full name
  • Your agreement number
  • Number plate of the motor vehicle we financed
  • Your current address & postcode
  • Your date of birth
  • Your address and postcode at the time you had the finance with us (if different)
  • Your name at the time you had the finance with us (if different)

Don’t worry if you don’t have it all. Just give us as much as you can. If we need anything more, we’ll email or write to you.

Why have you asked for more information?

If we haven’t been able to find or verify your account, we’ll need more information to help us. This may be because the information you’ve given us is different to what our records say. For example, if you’ve moved house or changed your name since taking out your agreement.

If we ask for more information, the easiest way for you to give it to us is by completing our online form.  Alternatively you can call us or write to us. Remember, we can’t do anything more until we get this. 

Should I use a Claims Management Company (CMC)?

A Claims Management Company (CMC) can make a claim for you, but you’ll have to pay a fee or part of any reward you may get. Click here to find out what to expect.

You, or your Claims Management Company (CMC), should only contact us once. If we’re contacted more than once we’ll need to check who to respond to. This could mean it’ll take longer for us to deal with your enquiry or complaint.

I’ve already made a complaint or enquiry, when will I hear back?

Since the FCA’s announcement on 11th January 2024, we’ve been getting a higher than usual number of enquiries and complaints. We’re working through these as quickly as we can.

You, or your Claims Management Company (CMC), should only contact us once.  If we’re contacted more than once we’ll need to check who to respond to. This could mean it’ll take longer for us to deal with your enquiry or complaint.

What can I do if I’m not happy with your response?

You can ask the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) to look at your complaint. You would normally have to do this within 6 months of getting our final response, but for DCA complaints, you’ll have longer. 

This means if we sent you a final response between 12 July 2023 and 10 November 2024 you’ll have 15 months to take it to FOS.

You can find out more about how to do this clicking here.