Days 1-14: contact your lender
Most UK lenders won't formally record a missed payment until 14+ days late. If you know now you can't make this month's payment, call them today. Almost all will offer a payment plan or defer that month to the end of the term. Silence, not the missed payment itself, is what triggers escalation.
Day 30: first credit-file mark
At 30 days late a formal missed-payment marker appears on your credit file. It stays for 6 years. Impact on your score: 40-100 points, depending on your starting position.
Days 60-90: default warning
By 60-90 days late, most lenders issue a Default Notice under the Consumer Credit Act. You have 14 days to remedy the breach (usually by paying the arrears in full).
Beyond 90 days: default and repossession
If the notice expires unpaid, the account defaults. The lender has legal rights to repossess the vehicle if it's on HP or PCP. You'll still owe any shortfall between what the car sells for and what you owed.
The one thing to do
Call. Almost every scenario above is preventable by picking up the phone in the first two weeks. UK lenders are legally required to treat customers in financial difficulty fairly.
