My brother sadly died unexpectedly at the end of May, aged 51.
He had a vehicle purchased on a lease through Volkswagen Financial Services (VWFS) and his payments were all up to date.
I contacted VWFS on June 2 to inform the firm of his death and to request it collect the vehicle as soon as possible and end the contract. I was informed someone would be in contact within 24 hours. Nothing happened.
Two weeks later, I chased and was told a third party would be in touch to collect the car, but I got nowhere.
It’s distressing for his family, especially his two young daughters, to see his car still on the driveway, expecting him to walk through the door. I am also worried they might face a bill.
J.G., Cheshire.
Stalling: VW’s finance department have been very slow to collect a leased vehicle after the keeper died, adding to the family’s distress
Sally Hamilton replies: Your family experienced an unimaginable shock that it is having to come to terms with.
Your brother was a paramedic and suffered a huge heart attack with no previous warning signs.
An air ambulance attended the scene and he was even worked on by his own paramedic colleagues who you described as ‘excellent and professional’. But sadly, they were unable to save him.
The suddenness of his death at the age of just 51 has made it all the harder to deal with the aftermath, including the financial practicalities of sorting out his estate.
You stepped in to take on some of the burden, including handling arrangements with the car that your brother purchased through the VW Financial Services lease, giving the information required, including the death certificate.
You expected VWFS to act swiftly to collect the vehicle from your brother’s drive and remove at least one of the family’s financial worries.
It should have been straightforward and speedy.
Car finance firms have procedures in place to deal with customers who die mid-lease as, unfortunately, it is not that uncommon. VWFS says it instructed its probate partners to handle your sister-in-law’s case.
But this is where things quickly stalled as this firm apparently did not receive the instruction.
You asked me to help jump-start the process. When I intervened, VWFS revved things up and arranged for a collection firm to pick up the car. This finally happened on July 3, more than a month after you first requested it.
Your next concern was escaping the lease contract, which had about 12 months left to run.
Generally, if a lease is only in the deceased’s name, it is possible for it to be switched to another person, such as a family member, if they are able to meet the terms and obligations of the contract.
However, you say your sister-in-law has her own car.
She suffers from multiple sclerosis and can only work part-time – she doesn’t need the car and cannot afford to take over her late husband’s lease.
So, as the lease was ended, this meant early termination of the contract which can in turn trigger a hefty penalty charge, which some finance firms charge to the leaseholder’s estate.
You were quoted a termination fee of more than £1,400 – representing the remaining payments due on the lease.
This was hard to stomach after all the delays and the prodding required by you to get the motor taken away.
However, I am happy to say the probate partner firm, Phillips and Cohen Associates, which steps in to help deal with issues such as these, emailed you to say it acknowledged the difficulties you experienced, including the delays in collecting the vehicle and so ‘decided to waive the termination fee of £1,462.65’.
VWFS confirmed this, apologised for the poor service and paid £150 to the Air Ambulance charity.
- Write to Sally Hamilton at Sally Sorts It, Money Mail, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT or email sally@dailymail.co.uk — include phone number, address and a note addressed to the offending organisation giving them permission to talk to Sally Hamilton. Please do not send original documents as we cannot take responsibility for them. No legal responsibility can be accepted by the Daily Mail for answers given.
