If you bought or leased a new car or van between 2006 and 2015, you could soon be entitled to compensation, even if you sold the vehicle years ago.
A £55.87 million compensation pot is set to be distributed to eligible motorists and businesses following a long-running legal action over the cost of shipping new vehicles to the UK.
You could receive at least £25 for your first qualifying vehicle, with additional payments if you bought or leased more than one. But while you can register your interest now, the claims window has not yet opened.
Why are motorists getting compensation?
The case relates to a cartel involving international vehicle shipping companies.
In 2018, the European Commission found that five shipping companies had been involved in anti-competitive behaviour affecting the transport of new vehicles. The companies had shared commercially sensitive information, coordinated prices and reduced availability in the market.
The legal action that followed argued that car manufacturers paid inflated shipping costs and that some of those extra costs were ultimately passed on to you when you bought or leased a new vehicle.
Importantly, the claim isn’t against car manufacturers or dealerships. The legal action concerns the shipping companies and the additional delivery costs consumers and businesses may have indirectly paid.
Settlements totalling £92.75 million were eventually reached with the shipping companies. In September 2026, the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) approved the plan for distributing compensation, after legal and other costs, £55.87 million is currently available for compensation payments.
Could you be eligible?
The key date to check is when you got your vehicle. You could qualify if you were based in the UK and bought, financed or leased at least one brand new car or van between 18 October 2006 and 6 September 2015 from one of the affected brands.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve since sold or returned the vehicle. Vehicles obtained through the Motability Scheme can also qualify. But there are some exceptions, second hand, pre-registered and ex-demonstrator vehicles generally don’t qualify because you weren’t the first person paying the original vehicle delivery charge.
There is also an extension for some later purchases. If you qualify because you bought or leased a new vehicle during the main 2006 – 2015 period, you may also be able to claim for further qualifying vehicles you bought or leased between 7 September 2015 and 31 December 2019. But you can’t qualify solely because you bought a vehicle during this later period, you need at least one qualifying vehicle from the earlier period.
Which car brands are included?
A wide range of manufacturers are covered, including:
BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Citroën, Corvette, Dacia, Daihatsu, Dodge, Ford, Great Wall, Honda, Hummer, Hyundai, Infiniti, Isuzu, Jeep, Kia, Lexus, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, MG, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Perodua, Peugeot, Proton, Renault, REVA, Rover, SsangYong, Subaru, Suzuki, Tata Motors, Toyota, Vauxhall and Volkswagen.
You don’t need to work out whether your individual car was actually shipped to the UK. Eligibility is based on the affected manufacturer and the other criteria, rather than where your particular vehicle was built.
You can check your vehicle brand on the official Car Delivery Charges website.
How much could you get?
The initial compensation amounts are relatively small:
You’re expected to receive:
- £25 for your first qualifying vehicle
- £5 for each additional vehicle from your second to your sixth
- £2.50 for each vehicle after that
The eventual payment could be higher if fewer people than expected submit valid claims and money remains in the compensation pot.
So, for example, if you bought or leased one qualifying car, you could receive £25. If you had three qualifying vehicles, your initial payment would be £35.
Do you need paperwork from nearly 20 years ago?
Potentially not, according to the current plan, if you’re claiming for six or fewer vehicles, you won’t need to provide supporting documentation. You should only need to provide information such as the vehicle brand and sign a legal Statement of Truth confirming that you bought or leased the vehicle.
If you’re claiming for seven or more vehicles, you’ll need additional evidence, which could include registration details or financial records. Make sure the information you provide is accurate. A Statement of Truth is a formal legal declaration, so don’t include a vehicle unless you’re satisfied that you genuinely qualify.
Can you claim now?
Not yet, but you can currently register your interest with the official Car Delivery Charges claim. This doesn’t submit your compensation claim, but it means you should receive updates when the claims process opens.
Once the claims window opens, it’s expected to remain open for six months. However, the compensation pot is limited and payments are expected to operate on a first come, first served basis, so it’s worth acting promptly when claims open.
Don’t confuse this with car finance compensation
There are currently several different compensation and legal issues involving cars, so it’s easy to mix them up. The Car Delivery Charges claim is separate from the FCA’s motor finance compensation scheme relating to commission arrangements on car finance.
This claim is specifically about increased vehicle shipping and delivery costs linked to the shipping cartel. You don’t necessarily need to have taken out PCP or another type of motor finance agreement to qualify, and having a potential car finance compensation claim doesn’t prevent you from checking whether you’re eligible for this separate scheme.
Watch out for compensation scams
Whenever a large compensation scheme makes the headlines, scammers and claims management firms can quickly follow. You don’t need to pay a company to register your interest in this claim. The official collective action is funded on behalf of the class and there is no charge to join.
Be particularly cautious if you’re contacted unexpectedly and asked to pay an upfront fee, hand over banking passwords or security codes, or give someone remote access to your phone or computer. Use the official Car Delivery Charges website to check your eligibility and register for updates.
If you’ve got another problem with a car, finance provider or dealership, Resolver can help you check your consumer rights and manage and organise your complaint in one place.
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