Car Finance Complaints: 719 Trading Names, Just 106 Real Lenders

The FCA's official list of car finance lenders, used to help consumers find the right firm to complain to under the motor finance redress scheme, contains 719 separate trading names. We counted every row directly from the FCA's own published table, cross-checking the "Lender" column entry by entry rather than estimating. Behind those 719 names sit just 106 actual regulated lenders, meaning the average lender in this market operates under roughly seven different consumer-facing brands.

Methodology: every trading name and its corresponding lender was taken verbatim from the FCA's published car finance list of lenders (fca.org.uk, last updated 2 July 2026). The unique lender count and per-lender totals were calculated by grouping every trading name row by its stated regulated entity. No figures in this section are estimated, modelled, or sourced from any secondary aggregator.

That gap between what a customer sees on their paperwork and who is actually legally responsible is exactly why the FCA built the list in the first place, and why its own advice is to check a trading name against the table rather than assume a phone number or contact address is genuine.

The legal basis for the whole scheme

The redress scheme this list supports did not originate with the FCA acting alone. It follows directly from the Supreme Court's ruling in the conjoined cases of Hopcraft v Close Brothers Limited and Johnson and Wrench v FirstRand Bank Limited [2025] UKSC 33, handed down on 1 August 2025. That judgment found that one of the three claims before the court, Mr Johnson's, amounted to an unfair relationship under section 140A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, because the commission paid to the dealer, £1,650.95, represented 55% of the total charge for credit and was not disclosed. The FCA's subsequent policy statement, PS26/3, and the lender list examined here both sit downstream of that specific court finding, not of a general FCA policy preference.

Which lenders actually sit behind the most names

The concentration is sharper than the headline number suggests. Ten lenders account for 469 of the 719 trading names, around 65% of the entire list.

These 10 lenders account for 469 of the 719 trading names in the FCA's list, roughly 65%. Counts verified directly from the FCA's own published table (last updated 2 July 2026), not estimated.

The lender with the most trading names is not the one most people would guess. CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, the UK financing arm of the French bank Credit Agricole, operates under 83 different trading names, more than Black Horse (61), despite Black Horse having by far the larger redress provision at around £2 billion, roughly 20% of the entire market by lending volume. CA Auto Finance's trading names include most Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, Chrysler, Maserati and Lancia finance products, along with several Jaguar and Land Rover finance and insurance products.

That detail matters beyond curiosity. Credit Agricole Auto Finance, trading in the UK as CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, is one of the four parties that formally challenged the FCA's redress scheme at the Upper Tribunal, alongside Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and the consumer group Consumer Voice. The lender with the widest consumer-facing footprint in the entire market is also one of the four fighting the compensation scheme in court.

The same brand, two different lenders

The most useful finding for anyone trying to identify their own lender is that trading name wording matters more than most people would expect. Several near-identical names for the same car brand route to entirely different lenders.

Volvo Car Finance routes to FCE Bank PLC, better known as Ford Credit, not to a Volvo-branded entity as most customers would assume. Land Rover Finance routes to CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, while the near-identical Land Rover Financial Services routes to Black Horse Limited entirely separately. Yamaha Finance routes to Black Horse, while Yamaha Motor Finance, one word different, routes to Santander Consumer (UK) Plc. In each case, a customer relying on memory rather than checking the exact wording against the FCA's table could easily end up contacting, or being contacted by, the wrong company.

Why this matters for spotting a scam

The FCA has repeatedly warned that scammers are exploiting confusion around this scheme, contacting people and claiming to represent a car finance lender. Given that even genuine trading names for the same brand can route to two different real lenders, checking a name against the FCA's list is not optional caution, it is close to the only reliable way to confirm who you are actually dealing with. The FCA also operates a direct phone verification line on 0300 124 8899, which will connect a caller through to the genuine lender if the trading name is known but a phone number looks uncertain.

What the concentration means for the redress scheme

The 106-lender reality is smaller and more concentrated than the 719-name list makes it look, which has a practical upside for consumers: most car finance agreements sold under a recognisable manufacturer or dealership brand ultimately trace back to one of a relatively small number of large, well-resourced lenders with dedicated commission complaint teams, rather than to hundreds of genuinely separate small firms. The trading name sprawl is a product of decades of manufacturer-branded finance partnerships and company acquisitions, not evidence of an unmanageably fragmented market.

Frequently asked questions

How many lenders are actually behind the FCA's car finance trading names list?

The FCA's list contains 719 trading names, but these trace back to just 106 actual regulated lenders.

Which lender has the most trading names?

CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, the UK arm of Credit Agricole, has 83 trading names, more than any other lender including Black Horse (61).

Can the same car brand route to two different lenders?

Yes. Land Rover Finance and Land Rover Financial Services route to two different lenders, as do Yamaha Finance and Yamaha Motor Finance. Exact wording matters.

How do I check who my actual car finance lender is?

Search your exact trading name on the FCA's car finance list of lenders. If you know the name but are unsure a phone number is genuine, the FCA's verification line is 0300 124 8899.