Martin Lewis car finance refund warning as key moment arrives this week

The Financial Conduct Authority is looking into the use of discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) by brokers up to 2021 and drivers could be owed thousands

Martin Lewis has issued a warning that the "clock is ticking" for drivers to claim money back - and time is running out. Drivers could be in line for thousands if they are among the millions believed to have been unknowingly charged hidden fees on their car loans.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is currently investigating the use of discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) by brokers up until 2021.

The watchdog is set to release its report this week - September 25, but according to Martin, there's plenty to do before then.

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The Money Saving Expert has outlined the necessary next steps.

In his weekly newsletter, he disclosed that a staggering 74% of people who used the free tool on his website to help draft their complaint were informed by their broker that they had been affected by a DCA.

Some complainants have only received a response acknowledging their query and not informing them either way about a DCA.

In this situation, Martin advised following up to try and get answers but added: "Crucially it means your complaint is logged."

The only exception is when firms respond to say that you were subject to a DCA but that your complaint has been rejected.

Martin clarified: "This is rare, but does happen. In fact most important is your provider's confirmed you've had a DCA and has logged your complaint."

"The rest is just a fob-off, as until 25 Sept when the FCA reports, no one knows exactly what'll count as mis-selling."

"If yours then does, it'll almost certainly have to reopen it."

"As an aside, the Financial Ombudsman has now effectively suspended dealing with these DCA complaints until after 25 Sept."

"Yet that's no issue as for all those who complained via the tool, you've 15 months to decide whether to go to it, so it's a wait and see."

This follows an exclusive interview with SunMotors where the lawyer who initiated the FCA investigation referred to the scandal as the "next PPI", estimating that the total compensation payout will reach into the "billions".