A Successful Claim for Credit Hire

Guidance on making a successful credit hire claim was laid out in Clark v Ardington, Lagden v O'Conner.

1. Establish there is a valid, enforceable credit hire agreement that complies with the Consumer Credit (Exempt Agreements) Order 1989 (requiring the debt to be paid in no more than four installments in less than 12 months from the date of the agreement).
2. Show the Claimant was impecuniose (that he had no choice but to use a credit hire). The test being whether the Claimant had sufficient funds available without exposing himself and his family to greater loss or an unreasonable burden.
3. Mitigate their losses: it is paramount that a Claimant must take reasonable steps to mitigate their loss. There had to be a genuine NEED for a replacement vehicle and no offer of a courtesy car was made by the insurer. Although a claimant is not obliged to use their own insurance to benefit the claimant.