The Jeep Cherokee was commonly sold on
Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) and
Hire Purchase (HP) finance agreements during the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) investigation period, which ran from 6 April 2007 to 1 November 2024. The FCA found that these financing arrangements were often affected by
discretionary commission practices that led to potential mis-selling. This article aims to provide an overview of how Jeep Cherokee finance agreements were typically structured and what steps owners can take if they suspect their agreement may have been affected.
How the Jeep Cherokee was Typically Financed
Jeep Cherokees sold between 6 April 2007 and 1 November 2024 were often financed through Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) or Hire Purchase (HP) agreements. For a typical Jeep Cherokee, buyers would usually enter into finance arrangements ranging from £15,000 to £30,000 for the vehicle.
In PCP agreements, customers typically pay monthly instalments over terms of 36 to 48 months and may have an option at the end of the agreement to return the car or make a final payment (the balloon payment) to own it outright. For Hire Purchase, buyers usually commit to fixed-term payments with no option for returning the vehicle at the end.
Common finance lenders for Jeep Cherokee include
Black Horse, Barclays Partner Finance,
Close Brothers Motor Finance,
MotoNovo Finance, and
Santander Consumer Finance. These lenders were instrumental in providing financing options that made purchasing a Jeep Cherokee more accessible but also potentially exposed customers to the risks associated with discretionary commission arrangements during this period.
The FCA Motor Finance Investigation
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched an investigation into motor finance agreements to address concerns over discretionary commission practices, which are commissions paid by lenders to dealers based on how many deals they could secure. These practices raised issues of transparency and fairness in the way customers were informed about their financing options.
During this period, it was found that 12.1 million eligible agreements (FCA estimate) across various car brands, including Jeep Cherokee, were potentially affected by these discretionary commission arrangements. The total amount involved in such agreements is estimated to be around £7.5 billion (FCA, March 2026), with the FCA-estimated average overpayment of £829 per eligible agreement.
The FCA's investigation highlighted that many customers may have been given insufficient information or misled regarding the true cost of their finance deals, leading them to enter into agreements they might not have otherwise chosen.
- Review Your Agreement: Check for any clauses mentioning "Discretionary Commission Arrangements" (DCA). DCAs were a key feature of agreements suspected of mis-selling.
- Relevant Dates: Ensure that your finance agreement falls within the period from 6 April 2007 to 1 November 2024, when these practices were most prevalent.
- Common Lenders: Consider if you obtained financing through one of the commonly involved lenders: Black Horse, Barclays Partner Finance, Close Brothers Motor Finance, MotoNovo Finance, or Santander Consumer Finance. These institutions have been known to use DCA arrangements during this time frame.
If you believe your Jeep Cherokee finance agreement was affected by discretionary commission practices and you wish to take action, the first step is to contact your lender directly. Common lenders for Jeep Cherokee include:
- Black Horse
- Barclays Partner Finance
- Close Brothers Motor Finance
- MotoNovo Finance
- Santander Consumer Finance
You can complain directly to any of these lenders without incurring additional costs or needing a
claims management company. Your lender will be able to review your agreement and provide guidance on the next steps.
you do not need a claims management company; most complaints can be handled by contacting the finance provider directly. If you are unsure about how to proceed, your lender's customer service team should have resources or guidance available to assist you in understanding your rights and options.
Sources and References
- Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). "Motor Finance Market Study: Provisional Findings" [2024]
- Office for National Statistics (ONS) Census 2021
- Motor Finance Association Reports [2023]
Based on 6,067 MOT tests conducted in 2024 (source: DVSA anonymised test data), the Jeep Cherokee has a pass rate of 80.6%. This is close to the national average of 79.6%, meaning the Cherokee performs about average in MOT testing.
The Cherokee pass rate is in line with the overall Jeep average of 80.6%. The average mileage at MOT for this model is 75,580 miles.
- MOT pass rate: 80.6%
- MOT failure rate: 19.4%
- Tests analysed: 6,067 (2024 DVSA data)
- Average mileage at test: 75,580 miles
- Jeep average pass rate: 80.6%
- National average pass rate: 79.6%
Data source: DVSA anonymised MOT test results 2024, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.