PCPs replaced an approach called hire purchase (HP), where consumers opting for a car loan would make regular monthly payments until the loan was fully repaid, usually after three or four years. At the end, they would own the car outright. Under PCPs, consumers only pay back around half of the value of the vehicle. The rest of the value is reserved for a “balloon payment” at the end of the contract. The vast majority of consumers don’t make the balloon payment because they can’t afford it or don’t want to incur the expense. Instead, the vast majority swap their vehicle for a new one, and a new PCP deal.
I didn’t know that they have such a complex car debt bubble.