PPI

[martint235]

I've received a letter from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme asking if I would like to claim against a company that sold me PPI a few years ago. This has led me to look through some of my old finances and I've found another instance where I had PPI.

Now these are a few years ago and I don't remember what happened exactly at the time but I do know that I usually turn down PPI straight off. My employer pays me full pay if I'm off sick, I'm unlikely to be made redundant (I think). Even my mortgage doesn't have PPI on it (although it does have life and critical illness cover), so I think I probably have a case?

Has anyone any experience of claiming? Once I've filled all the forms I've been sent, is it a relatively straight forward exercise?

 

[Globalti]

Mrs Gti has just finished a job working for somebody who is helping people claim refunds so she knows a bit about it and has lodged a claim; we were given a year's free PPI with a policy a few years ago and when the free period expired they started charging us. It was only about 9 months before I realised and cancelled it but it's cash we wouldn't have paid so why not get it back?

As far as I can see the process is pretty straightforward so you'd be foolish not to claim. What is the Financial Services Compensation Scheme though? Is that legit or some parasite looking for a commission? You can do it on your own without using an agent.

(The irony is that the same bloke Mrs Gti was working for used to be an IFA selling..... policies with PPI attached! This is how the parasites in the financial services industry operate.)

 

[srw]

The FSCS is a legit organisation, but its remit is to pay out when financial services companies fail. It seems unlikely to me that it would offer to help you make a PPI mis-selling claim.

 

[martint235]

The FSCS is a legit organisation, but its remit is to pay out when financial services companies fail. It seems unlikely to me that it would offer to help you make a PPI mis-selling claim.

Apparently, according to SWMBO who has been reading up on this, the onus is now on the company to approach you rather than you chasing. Anyway one of the companies involved, Freedom Finance, is now classed as in default hence the interest from FSCS I believe. It all seems legit, the person on the letter also appears on their website which you can link to from the Financial Ombudsman website (ie not just taking FSCS word for the website)

Thanks for the responses. There may be an n+1 after all.

 

[Wobblers]

The FSCS certainly is legitimate: I got compensation off them when IceSave went tits up. In the case that the finance company goes under / into default it'll be FSCS that contacts you as they'll get a list of present and former victims customers. It all seems perfectly above board to me. Good luck on that N+1!

 

[Alexvs]

I used to work for a PPI claims company which was charging 29% of the claim value, believe it or not this was one of the cheapest around. You don't need to use any of these 3rd parties as all they're doing is sitting on the phone waiting to speak to the bank for you and writing a letter or two when they don't get a response, then forwarding their letters to the ombudsman, it's not worth the money you lose.

If you write to the bank/finance provider and get no response you just need to forward that to the ombudsman who will contact them and apply the necessary pressure. All the big banks lost their case in court earlier in the year so they now are obliged to pay this money back and have set aside the necessary funds to do so. Unfortunately this doesn't stop them trying to put you off but does mean they will eventually pay.

As said above the providers should now be contacting customers but they're not all doing so. A friend of mine who was with Barclays received a call about a year or so ago and was told she was owed back over £2,000 including the interest that she would've received on that balance. Make sure you fight for not only what was paid out but also what you could've earned in interest if it was in a savings account.

If the company you've mentioned are offering you this service free then use them, if not you'll be fine going it alone. Good luck

 

[swee'pea99]

I didn't claim for ages because I couldn't remember the exact details, or swear to anything. But on the basis 'what have I got to lose?', I wrote to the company stating the basic facts as clearly and concisely as I could - no more than half a page - and they pretty much straight away offered me a large amount to sign here ('in full and final settlement'). I don't know why, or whether it would work for you, but it worked for me.

 

[martint235]

Well thanks for the advice everyone. On the basis that Freedom Finance is no more, I've completed the FSCS forms and sent them off. Like Swee'pea I can't remember everything, these are conversations that took place over 5 years ago. While I was trawling through my financial records I found another one, so I've filled in a questionnaire they provided on their website and sent it off.

Now just wait 10 weeks and see what happens.

 

[calibanzwei]

TSB have a form on their website - http://www.lloydstsb.com/payment_protection_insurance_complaints.asp
I don't expect much, maybe a few hundred, but this way I avoid these companies.

 

[Alexvs]

As long as it was within the last 6 years I believe your claim is still valid. At least that was the blurb that used to be thrown about.

It's a long wait but at least at the end of it you may get a nice suprise