Looking to claim PPI on cc from 1997

tel3563

Hmm, where do I begin

Got a First Direct CC in 1997, definitely never ticked the box saying I wanted PPI, of that I'm sure and afaia this was common back in the day.

Long story short, I'm not the best keeper of accounts etc, don't really look at my bills (yes I know I'm stupid) but basically one day about 18 months ago I noticed this charge, yes, after years and years:(

It probably amounts to 1000's and there is a twist.
I was self employed for most of the time I've had the card and only really became employed from when my business went bust in 2008, I have also been out of work for large chunks of the time (only from 2008) and never claimed because I had no idea I had the cover.

I rang them and asked if I could claim and they said it was unlikely I'd be paid out as it was over a year on the various claims??

At this point I heard about claiming back ppi, however I've dragged my heels to such a degree I'm now unsure what to do, I do work a massive amount of hours (always have) and rarely have time to speak to my Mrs, let alone start proceeding against a bank.

Any advice ??

:beer:

misschicken

Being self-employed is only relevant if you were self-employed when you took out the PPI cover - it's the time of the sale that matters.

If you feel you were mis-sold you only have to find the time to send one letter to get the claim going, there are templates on here, it's very easy. Alternatively on the First Direct website there a link to the Financial Ombudsman's PPI complaint form. You can just download that, fill it out and send it back to First Direct. It's very straightforward. Once they've received your complaint First Direct will send you at least one letter saying they're investigating and then will send you a Final Response saying that your complaint has been upheld or not. They currently have 12 weeks to issue their Final Response. If they haven't responded or you disagree with the outcome you can then refer it to the Financial Ombudsman, which just involves filling out the same form again - and a long wait!

tel3563

misschicken wrote: »

Being self-employed is only relevant if you were self-employed when you took out the PPI cover - it's the time of the sale that matters.

If you feel you were mis-sold you only have to find the time to send one letter to get the claim going, there are templates on here, it's very easy. Alternatively on the First Direct website there a link to the Financial Ombudsman's PPI complaint form. You can just download that, fill it out and send it back to First Direct. It's very straightforward. Once they've received your complaint First Direct will send you at least one letter saying they're investigating and then will send you a Final Response saying that your complaint has been upheld or not. They currently have 12 weeks to issue their Final Response. If they haven't responded or you disagree with the outcome you can then refer it to the Financial Ombudsman, which just involves filling out the same form again - and a long wait!

Thanks for the info, just to clarify some other things.

I understand being self employed at the time would be more relevant, as it happens I wasn't, only going self employed in 2001, but surely there is a point that I didn't know I had the PPI anyway, or I would of relinquished it on becoming self employed, plus there's the times I was unemployed and luckily signed on the dole (didn't actually recieve any money though) so this is further proof I didn't know about my own PPI.
If I don't get the refund then the next step would be to claim for being unemployed, there must be some way of me doing this as its a genuine grievance and I actually spent 18 months unemployed out of a 2 year stretch of time.
This alone would come to a sizeable amount, maybe even more than I would get from PPI return.

ATEOTD I was simply mis sold PPI and should get a refund, there seems ample proof to me, do you agree?

misschicken

Trouble is you did know you were being charged for PPI because it was on your statements. When you rang them about it it was because you'd seen it on your statements. It's not their fault that you didn't notice it earlier, it was there all along. They didn't prevent you from canceling it or claiming on it at any time. You only say you didn't know you had it, you haven't said you didn't know what it was.

It really is the point of sale that everything hinges on eg. if you were told you had to take it out and that was untrue or if you didn't fulfill the eligibility criteria or you didn't request it and it was added anyway. You say you didn't tick the box - have you got, or have you sent in an SAR (request for your records) to prove that? If it was added without your consent and you can prove it, then go for it.

Otherwise I'm not trying to deter you, just being honest. Some banks are rolling over quite easily when it comes to PPI complaints, often due to the sheer volume of complaints they're now receiving, but First Direct really isn't one of them.

With regards to paying out on a claim I don't know what the rules are over timescale for putting in a claim - do you have policy documents? It should say in there - if it doesn't then they'll have some explaining to do if they turn your insurance claim down on timescale. Also do remember that many PPI CC policies only paid the minimum monthly credit card payment for the period you were unemployed to a maximum of 12 months. Again it'll say in the policy documents what you would have been entitled to.

dunstonh

I was simply mis sold PPI and should get a refund, there seems ample proof to me, do you agree?

How were you mis-sold? You actually havent said so far.

I understand being self employed at the time would be more relevant

It is key. The seller, if there was one, has to look at your current circumstances. They do not require a crystal ball to see unknown future events.

It also only matters if the PPI in question didnt cover the self employed. Many do.

tel3563

dunstonh wrote: »

How were you mis-sold? You actually havent said so far.

I was mis sold as in never ticked the box and was asked and said I didn't want it

dunstonh

tel3563 wrote: »

I was mis sold as in never ticked the box and was asked and said I didn't want it

OK, that is a allegation that is hard to prove. How would you counter that it would be unsual for someone to pay something they didnt want for 13 years. Over 150 statements showing it were missed.

The card company may roll over and give in without a fight. However, they may ask further questions to decide if you have a genuine complaint or are trying it on. So, you need to be prepared for tough questions.