2012 was a bumper year
for PPI repayments which saw claims rocket to a staggering £13 billion. Yet a
report this week revealed that over the past 16 years consumers spent
around £50bn on PPI repayments so far is a mere drop in the ocean. It also
means that there are still millions
of people who haven’t made a claim. If you’re one of those people who have had
PPI but are unsure if you should start a claim, here are five reasons why you
should.
- You’re entitled to it
The most important
thing to remember when it comes to PPI repayments is that you are entitled to
it – you are simply claiming back what was yours in the first place. Some
people even think it’s dishonest but the only ones being dishonest were the
banks who actively mis-sold PPI to customers despite knowing they’d never be
able to make a claim, such as the self-employed and people with long-term
illnesses. Sales staff earned huge commissions on the product and even went as
far as adding to customer’s loan and credit cards without their knowledge. Last
year, in a bid to stem growing complaints, the Chief Executive of Lloyds
Banking Group claimed that 50% of claims are fraudulent. Don’t let that fool
you, the Financial Ombudsman, who deals with cases turned down by the banks,
takes 1,500 complaints per day and upholds 8 out of 10 of them.
2.
There’s no time limit
A very common reason why people don’t make a claim is because they think it’s too late. This is because some claim
companies look for accounts that were only active in the past six years. The
reason for this is that banks destroy account information after six years. You
can ask your bank to look up accounts during this period or, if you’re not
comfortable with that, you can find your account information on your credit
report using a company like Experian or Equifax that offer free 30-day trials. If you
have an older account but still have the details you can still make start a
claim no matter how old it is. The only time the ‘six-year-rule’ applies is if
you don’t have your account details as the files will no longer exist.
3.
You won’t be penalised by your bank
It’s understandable
that customers are wary about making a claim as they are worried that their
bank will penalise them by revoking or cancelling their loan or credit cards if
they make a claim. As a customer you are protected by guidelines set by the FSA
(Financial Services Authority) to stop banks from disadvantaging customers if
they make a complaint.
4.
It can help you get back on your feet financially
The average PPI
repayment is around £3,000 though many are higher and have been as much as
£142,000 which came from a customer reclaiming PPI repayments on several
accounts. This alone is reason enough to claim.
5.
It’s quicker and easier than you think
Finally many people haven’t started a claim because
they feel like it’s a daunting task. Luckily this is no longer the case. For a
long time it was quite complicated to make a PPI claim because the banks used
many delay tactics to put off claimants. This changed in 2010 when banks were
ordered to repay customers by the High Court. Now it’s much quicker and easier
– from starting a claim
to receiving a repayment takes 8-12 weeks. All you need is the account numbers
and to answer some simple questions about how the policy was sold to you.
Author bio-
Author bio-
This post was written by a claims handler at PPI claims company Gladstone Brookes.
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