PPI News | Have I Got PPI?

Martin Lewis: UK PPI Adverts Are Misleading

April 18, 2018

by admin

The Financial Conduct Authority’s PPI claims commercial featuring the animatronic head on tank treads and the voice of Hollywood Star Arnold Schwarzenegger has seen great success. However, MoneySavingExpert founder Martin Lewis said the advertisements are misleading. He believes the advice provided can trap consumers into paying for their PPI claims.

The commercials featured Schwarzenegger’s disembodied head walking on tank treads telling consumers and bus passengers to “do it now” and make a claim for their mis-sold insurance policies. However, it commands consumers to search Google for “FCA PPI” instead of providing an actual URL directly to the FCA’s PPI page.

Lewis said search engine algorithms will use this keyword to display primary advertisements from claims companies who would charge a substantial fee if they can make your complaint gain success and refunds. In search engines, organic unsponsored results often appear below one or two company advertisements related to a particular keyword.

PPI is the biggest UK financial scandal in history. It has gained the bank industry over £40 billion in refunds and penalties. About £25 billion had been returned to consumers. The FCA has made its decision in March 2017 to impose a PPI claims deadline by August 29, 2019. All complaints performed after this date will not receive any support from the regulator.

PPI Advertising Campaign Includes Its Second Episode

April 13, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Arnold Scwharzenegger’s voice was used for his animatronic, tank-tread walking head urging indecisive customers in a supermarket to “do it now” and decide.

His dialogue is an allegory to the massive UK PPI scandal set to end on August 29, 2019. Recently, it had added a second episode.

The bizarre, disembodied head is seen crawling in a bus telling people to “do it now” and make a claim for their mis-sold insurance policy.

PPI is the United Kingdom’s biggest financial scandal. It has accumulated more than £40 billion in payments made by ineligible customers.

Banks had refunded over £29 billion in the last few years.

The Financial Conduct Authority continues to produce and air its M&C Saatchi-produced commercials until the PPI claims deadline.

Funding for the Schwarzenegger-backed commercials came from FCA-imposed bank levies, which amounted to £42.2 million in total.

UK’s banks continue to struggle with payment protection insurance repayments with most banks having reached a total of £5 billion repaying mis-sold consumers.

Lloyds Banking Group takes almost half the PPI scandal’s total with over £19 billion earmarked and half of the amount repaid to consumers.

According to the FCA, consumers will no longer receive its support if they attempt to make a PPI claim after the deadline.

Payment Protection Insurance is Efficient If You’re Qualified

April 2, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Payment protection insurance or PPI is the most notorious UK financial product. The problem is not because banks can’t pay for their benefits. Because of unscrupulous employee sales tactics, millions of UK citizens were mis-sold the insurance policy.

If you’re ineligible because you didn’t qualify for the policy’s requirements, then you’re likely mis-sold. However, if you did qualify, then if you get into any situation that renders you temporarily unemployed and incapable of paying your financing, then the insurance policy can definitely help you.

PPI is an efficient product in itself. However, because it is used as a profits-amassing product preying on unaware consumers’ concerns regarding a faster loan application approval or improving their credit scores to qualify, it became a negative word throughout the country.

It has accumulated over £40 billion in refunds back to rightful consumers. Daily, the refunded total increases, and each consumer is likely to receive £3,500 for a basic PPI policy inclusive of their 10% compensation for the trouble.

If you own a PPI policy that you are qualified to use, then you cannot claim for refunds. However, if you can prove through medical reports or payslips that you purchased the policy despite being ineligible, then you can make a claim to receive all your repayments.

How to Avoid Getting Mis-Sold PPI and Any Other Financial Product

March 30, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Banks have started pulling the plug on publicising their protection products especially payment protection insurance. The notorious insurance policy that had left millions trying to claim back worth £3,500 of payments continues to plague the UK’s financial industry. To avoid facing the same issues in the future with other financial products, here are three things you need to keep in mind.

Do You Really Need It?

If you’re taking out financing, make sure to check your credit scores beforehand. A check allows you to see if the industry is confident in your ability to make repayments for a new loan or mortgage. Doing so allows you to see if you really need any PPI or insurance policy that repays your financing.

No Specific Brand

If bank employees tell you a specific insurance policy is needed for a financing and your credit scores indicate you have a below-average risk rating, then you must take out a policy. However, the bank cannot specify a policy they offer or any brand they refer to explicitly. A single insurance product cannot qualify all customers in the same way.

Read The Terms and Conditions

Lastly, before taking out a financial protection product, see if the product’s terms and conditions make you eligible to make a claim should you need it. Millions of UK consumers mis-sold PPI were ineligible upon purchasing their insurance. While majority of these cases were due to unscrupulous sales tactics, it is better to be safe than sorry by reading the terms and conditions before leaving a signature.

Three Ways To Avoid Any Hiccups Working With PPI CMCs

March 22, 2018

by admin

0 comments

There are two kinds of claims management companies (CMCs). There are helpful and informative companies that do not force you to use their services and offer useful consultation advice. Then there are others that just want to grab your money from the get-go.

Sometimes, these CMCs would even ask for their part after you successfully received your refunds through a claim you filed by yourself. Here are the steps to avoid that particular issue.

Make No Win No Fee Clear From the Start

CMCs that offer a no-win no-fee basis should make it clear to you from the start that if they are initially unsuccessful with your claim, then they have no right to receive any payment. Upon reading your contract, find these details immediately and sign only if these are present. Keep a copy for yourself as well.

Execute a No-Payment Contract After an Unsuccessful Service

Regardless whether you signed a contract that has the CMC acknowledge they have no claim to your refunds after their unsuccessful rendition of service, have them sign another contract after you officially stop using their service. Once again, make sure to keep a copy for yourself.

Ask The Bank Not To Inform Any CMCs On Your Successful Claim

Lastly, make it clear to the bank servicing your successful complaint that no CMCs should be informed about your success. It is impossible to determine whether they would respect this request. In case they do inform the CMC and the latter asks to receive payment for your successful claim, present the original no win no fee contract and your no-payment contract thereafter.

Morgan: FOS Guilty of Mishandling PPI Claims Unless It Proves Otherwise

March 16, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Treasury Select Committee Chairman Nicky Morgan said that the Financial Ombudsman Service, British Consumer’s final defence against unscrupulous financial products and sales tactics, must present evidence else it is guilty of mishandling PPI complaints in favour of banks.

A Channel 4 undercover journalist team showed that FOS employees giving into stress and huge workloads did not initiate proper detailed investigations, which led to poor decisions for mis-sold PPI claims.

The Ombudsman’s decision on lender and borrower dealings is final and cannot be reversed.

According to Morgan’s letter to FOS Chief Ombudsman Caroline Wayman, the FOS needs to reopen cases “it feels were not decided correctly.” She also asked Wayman for the number of people affected by the improper case handling.

Employees from the FOS said they did not pore over every detail as they should because of the huge number of pending claims they need to address. Most employees fear missing out on pay rises and promotion opportunities because of immense backlogs, leaving them to make half-detailed decisions on their investigations.

The FOS itself said in a statement that the programme can always be improved and a review by the non-executive board to clarify the concerns raised is encouraged.

The Ombudsman receives about 4,000 complaints on a weekly basis. In the past, it had upheld 7 out of 10 complaints in the favour of consumers.

PPI Claims: How to Address an Unfairly Rejected Claim

March 12, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Banks and financial institutions can and will reject valid PPI policies. Even if you have strived to gather enough data to support your claim, financial institutions can shoot down your complaint citing data deficiency on their end. Their claim is unfair, therefore, you can redress these abusive bank behaviours with the following.

Data Access / Credit Score Request

Banks can cite the six-year customer data clause to bypass your activity during your financing’s early days. However, a data access or credit score request can reveal all your activities and show all the repayments you’ve made for your financing.

Speak to the Financial Ombudsman

The Financial Ombudsman can conduct a complaint review and make a final decision on your complaint. However, the complaints processing might be slow because you will resubmit to the FOS your complaint and wait a few more weeks for the results.

Make a Petition

If the bank rejects your complaint despite your evidence that they had mis-sold your policy, then you can make a petition to take the financial institution to court. However, this process may take some time. Therefore, it is advisable that you only use this in dire circumstances or if you have multiple mis-sold PPI policies.

Claims Tips: Can You Claim PPI Refunds on Mistaken Insurance Purchases?

February 26, 2018

by admin

0 comments

You can claim PPI refunds if the attending bank employee, insurance agent, or financial adviser told you a specific brand of policy is compulsory for the financing. However, you cannot make a mis-sold PPI claim if you consciously made a mistake purchasing the policy.

For example, if you purchased an insurance policy without realizing that it would cancel the PPI you already owned, then you cannot make a claim on both insurance policies unless you are eligible or fulfilled its requirements.

If you purchased two PPI policies and you are eligible for both, clarify with your provider if you can receive the benefits despite the existence of another policy. Some companies allow for the shared claim liability between two policies if you purchased them from the same company.

However, cancelling and receiving any possible refunds are the only course of action should the company not recognise the second insurance policy or provide its benefits.

If you are ineligible for the first policy but are eligible for the second, then by all means you are owed refunds and compensation for the mis-sold policy, as per the PPI claims process.

It is important to make a PPI claim as soon as you possibly can because by August 29, 2018, the FCA will impose its PPI deadline. Any claims made after this date will not be honoured by any bank in the United Kingdom.

PPI Claims Tips: Identifying Instances of Mis-Seling

February 23, 2018

by admin

0 comments

The Financial Conduct Authority has made August 29, 2019 the final date to claim for mis-sold PPI. The insurance policy made headlines after millions purchased the insurance under the impression it was a financing requirement. If you wish to make a claim soon, take note of the commonly accepted arguments that consider your insurance as mis-sold.

A Specific Brand Was Forwarded

Lenders can require borrowers to have payment protection before approving their financing. However, lenders cannot require the purchase of a specific insurance brand.

Every borrower lives in different circumstances. Therefore, no single insurance policy can render them eligible. As a result, millions of consumers mislead by their lenders purchased PPI.

It Boosted One’s Credit Score

Credit scores rise and fall depending on your payment attitude. If you pay on time and in full, then you have excellent credit scores. Therefore, having an insurance policy does not increase your score to qualify you for higher-value financing. If the argument of increased credit scores through PPI purchases was set before you, then if you purchased the insurance, you can make a claim.

‘High-End Deals Require Protection’

If lenders told you PPI is required to have higher financing, then it is a legitimate claim. Meanwhile, if they asked you to purchase a top-rank PPI policy that you have no use for, then you can make a claim for it. No specific PPI policy can be forwarded as a requirement.

PPI Claim Tips: Can Banks Forward PPI As a Loan Condition?

February 15, 2018

by admin

0 comments

Yes. Your financial institution can require a payment protection insurance before your loan application is approved.

However, they cannot make a specific PPI brand the only policy that can grant application approval.

Consumers have a right to choose the insurance policy that will fulfill the lender’s PPI requirement because no single PPI will fit the unique circumstances of a borrower’s life.

Therefore, if you were urged to purchase a specific PPI policy during the time, then you have the right to earn refunds and compensation. However, if your bank required that you get a third-party PPI policy and the latter’s conditions make you an eligible beneficiary, then you do not have a mis-sold PPI.

However, make sure to read the fine print properly. Even with third-party providers, mis-selling can happen especially if consumers fail to read the policy’s conditions. Unfortunately, consumers cannot make a claim in this case because the provider had presented the terms and conditions.

Most bank employees in the years of PPI mis-selling confused customers by presenting the legitimate borrower’s requirement and forwarding a specific-brand policy that acts as a “quick solution” to the consumer’s current dilemma, which urges the latter to make the purchase immediately. This led to the huge number of mis-sold PPI policies in the last decades.