How To Claim
If you have taken out a mortgage, personal loan, store or a credit card in the last ten years then you have probably also been offered a PPI policy by your lender. PPI stands for Payment Protection Insurance which is a type of insurance cover sold alongside financial products. The cover is designed to protect the borrower by covering repayments in the event they cannot work due to accident, sickness or redundancy. The cover has become the subject of controversy; however, as it has been frequently mis-sold. Read on to find out whether your PPI was mis-sold and how to claim your money back.
In 2006 The Office of Fair Trading and The Financial Services Authority investigated the payment protection insurance market and found many failings. Several firms were handed larges fines and all lenders were issued with a stark warning that standards must improve. Although most lenders have now changed their processes it is feared millions of customers were mis-sold policies over a period of almost thirty years.
We have already helped more than 60,000 victims of mis-selling and claimed back more than £50 million. If you believe your policy was mis-sold you have a right to make a complaint. If you are unsure whether your policy was mis-sold, take a look at our check list below and see details of how to claim your money back.
Mis-selling can be divided into roughly two types:
- Were you not given adequate information or given information that was incorrect?
- Were you sold the policy even though your circumstances made you unsuitable?
Were you given inadequate information or information that was incorrect?
In many cases lenders failed to adequately train staff selling Payment Protection Insurance policy. As a consequence, customers were frequently given incorrect or incomplete information. If you were not given all the information regarding your policy then you could not make an informed decision as to whether it was right for you.
-Cost
Many people were sold policies without the full costs being explained to them. Payment Protection Insurance can cost anywhere between 13-56% of the original loan value. On a £10,000 loan this could be an addition £1,300-£5,600 plus interest. On a store or credit card PPI is added on a monthly basis depending on the outstanding balance.
Typically PPI costs around £1.50 for every £100. On a balance of £10,000 this equates to £150 per month, that's £1800 a year.
If you feel the cost of your policy was not clearly explained you should make a complaint. Read the 'How to Claim' section at the bottom of the page to find out what to do next.
-Length of Cover
Many people were sold single premium PPI policies. These type of policies generally only last for a fixed period of time, usually around five years. If your loan was for longer than five years this could mean you would be without cover for part of the repayment period. Unfortunately, many people were not advised that the premium wouldn't cover the life of their loan. If this happened to you, read our 'How to claim' section to find out what to do next.
-Degree of Cover
Most PPI policies only cover the bare minimum of repayments for a maximum of one year. Most policies also do not cover common ailments such as back pain, stress and depression. Your lender should have made the terms of your policy clear to you prior to sale. If you do not feel the terms and conditions of your policy were adequately explained you can register your complaint today. Read our 'How to claim' section to find out how to start reclaiming your money.
Were you sold the policy even though your circumstances made you unsuitable?
PPI cover is not for everyone and there are many personal circumstances that could make someone unsuitable for the cover. For example, most PPI policies do not cover pre-existing medical conditions or people over the age of 65. Unfortunately many people over the age of 65 or with an existing medical condition were sold this type of cover. Many people contact us keen to find out how to claim back their money after realising they have been sold a policy that they cannot use or is unsuitable for their needs. Another common example is people who are unemployed, retired or in full time education who were sold policies. The primary purpose of PPI is to take over repayments if the policyholder is unable to work for a short period of time - if a customer is not in employment they clearly have no need for this type of cover!
How to Claim
If you believe your policy was mis-sold and you would like to make a claim, complete our quick claim form above. We will send you out a pack in the post to complete and return. Once we have your completed pack we guarantee to start your claim in 24 hours. We will negotiate with your bank and in many cases can claim your money back in just 8 weeks. If you have any questions call our team on 0207 471 2000.
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