Barclays PPI Claims
It has been a turbulent few months for UK’s banks with most reporting significant downturns in profit in the first quarter of the year. The financial woes of many have also been heightened by The High Court’s ruling that new Financial Service Authority (FSA) guidelines regarding the sale of Payment Protection Insurance must stand.
The British Banking Association requested a review of the guidelines in December 2010 stating it felt they were unfair as they would force lenders to look at old payment protection sales against new rules. The FSA rejected the notion maintaining the guidelines are, in fact, nothing new, but will just clarify existing rules. While the decision was pending Barclays PPI Claims and the claims of most other major lenders were placed on hold.
In April 2011 The High Court returned its verdict finding in favour of the FSA. The decision has forced many lenders to reconsider their handling of payment protection claims and many lenders have allocated significant funds to deal with the issue. Barclays has pledged £1 billion in addition to the £200 million already paid out for Barclays PPI claims. The lender is estimated to have sold between 1.6-2.4 million payment protection policies so, although it is unknown just how many of these may have been mis-sold, it is likely many customers are still eligible to make a PPI claim.
The good news is Barclays seems to be keen to resolve the payment protection issue as quickly and efficiently as possible and has recently pledged to settle all Barclays PPI claims registered on or before the 20th of April on a ‘no-quibble’ basis. The bank has described the decision as a ‘gesture of goodwill’ aimed particular at those customers whose claims had been placed on hold and significantly held up by the judicial review. It is thought that the move will affect tens of thousands of customers who have already submitted complaints.
The Barclays move has been applauded by many commentators who have urged other lenders to follow suit. So far, no other bank has committed to taking the Barclays route and HSBC, RBS and Lloyds have all indicated they will continue to process claims as usual in line with FSA guidelines. This is likely to mean significant delays for customers making complaints as these banks fight their backlogs and, acknowledging this, the FSA has decided to allow banks up to 16 weeks to process claims. The decision, which is only a temporary measure, sees the limit rise from the traditional 8 week allowance.
For Barclays the decision to settle older claims will mean it will be able to focus on dealing with new Barclays PPI claims more quickly. New claims will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and will not be included in the blanket settlement deal.
If you would like to make a payment protection claim or would just like more information, call us today on 0207 471 2000. Our team are on hand to answer any questions you may have regarding PPI or the claims process. Remember, there is no limit to how many Barclays PPI claims you can make and you may have been mis-sold a policy on loan, mortgage or credit card.
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