The National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA) has held a meeting with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) as part of its ongoing engagement on motor finance commission matters.
The discussion involved senior FOS representatives and the chair and vice chair of the NFDA F&I Working Group.
Talks focused on understanding the nature of enquiries being directed at retailers, expectations around evidence and documentation, and the approach to timescales and case handling.
During the meeting, the NFDA put forward a number of practical suggestions aimed at improving consistency and operational efficiency.
These included the potential development of a standardised template for future data requests to provide greater clarity and reduce duplication, as well as the creation of clear contact channels within businesses.
As part of agreed next steps, the NFDA will gather key questions from members to share with the central Ombudsman team. These will be discussed at a follow-up meeting.
Addressing retailer concerns
Sue Robinson, chief executive of the NFDA, said: “By engaging directly with our members and the FOS, we are helping to ensure that retailers’ concerns are understood and addressed in a practical and proportionate way.”
The NFDA said it will continue to engage with the FOS, the Financial Conduct Authority and lenders as developments in motor finance commission cases progress.
The NFDA recently urged retailers to step up their planning for the imminent launch of the motor finance redress scheme.
NFDA said it is advising members to begin readiness planning ahead of any formal announcement, which is expected in the coming weeks.
The FOS has set an operational target to resolve more than 80% of complaints within six months in 2026/27, as it continues to focus on efficiency and reducing its case backlog.
The FOS plans to resolve 245,000 cases in 2026/27 as it works through existing stock levels.
Around 60,000 of these are expected to be motor finance commission complaints, with the remainder relating to areas such as insurance, banking, investments and pensions.