The Mercedes-Benz Citan was commonly sold on
personal contract purchase (PCP) and
hire purchase (HP) finance agreements during the FCA investigation period, which spans from 6 April 2007 to 1 November 2024. During this time, many drivers of the Mercedes-Benz Citan may have entered into motor finance agreements that were mis-sold by dealerships and lenders due to
discretionary commission arrangements.
How the Mercedes-Benz Citan was Typically Financed
The Mercedes-Benz Citan is a popular commercial van available in various configurations to suit different business needs. When purchasing this vehicle on finance, typical PCP terms ranged from £20,000 to £45,000 over 36 to 60 months. Common lenders for the Citan include
Black Horse,
Lombard,
Close Brothers Motor Finance, and Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions. Balloon payments were often a feature of these agreements, requiring drivers to either pay off or refinance this lump sum at the end of their contract.
The FCA Motor Finance Investigation
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched an investigation into discretionary commission arrangements used by motor finance lenders during the period from 6 April 2007 to 1 November 2024. These arrangements allowed dealerships to earn additional commissions based on the type of agreement chosen, which may have influenced them to recommend more expensive or less suitable financial products. The investigation found that these practices affected 12.1 million eligible agreements (FCA, March 2026), resulting in a total compensation amount of £7.5 billion (FCA, March 2026) with an FCA-estimated scheme average of £829 per eligible agreement per case (FCA estimate).
How to Check Your Agreement Look for any indication that a discretionary commission arrangement may have influenced the type of finance offered. Key dates to consider are from 6 April 2007 through 1 November 2024, as these fall within the FCA’s investigation period. If you find references to "Discretionary Commission Arrangements" (DCA) or similar terms in your agreement, it may be worth investigating further.
If you suspect that your Mercedes-Benz Citan finance agreement was mis-sold due to discretionary commission arrangements, the first step is to contact your lender directly. Common lenders for the Citan include Black Horse, Lombard, Close Brothers Motor Finance, and Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions. You do not need a
claims management company; instead, you can submit a complaint directly to your lender at no cost.
When lodging your complaint, provide detailed information about why you believe the agreement was mis-sold and any evidence you have gathered from reviewing your finance documents. Your lender is required by law to respond within 30 days with an initial acknowledgment and up to eight weeks to fully investigate your case. If you are unsatisfied with their response or if they fail to address your concerns adequately, you can escalate the matter to the
Financial Ombudsman Service (
FOS) for free.
Sources and References
- Financial Conduct Authority (2024)
- Mercedes-Benz Official Website
Based on 375,769 MOT tests conducted in 2024 (source: DVSA anonymised test data), the Mercedes-Benz C has a pass rate of 81.1%. This is close to the national average of 79.6%, meaning the C performs about average in MOT testing.
The C pass rate is in line with the overall Mercedes-Benz average of 82.3%. The average mileage at MOT for this model is 86,936 miles.
- MOT pass rate: 81.1%
- MOT failure rate: 18.9%
- Tests analysed: 375,769 (2024 DVSA data)
- Average mileage at test: 86,936 miles
- Mercedes-Benz average pass rate: 82.3%
- National average pass rate: 79.6%
Data source: DVSA anonymised MOT test results 2024, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.