PPI Companies

jsdp123

they are worse than the banks because they have claimed alomost 42% of money that was already mine they didn't tell me the fee until i received the bill so how is that fair?

dunstonh

they didn't tell me the fee until i received the bill

So, you signed up to a service without knowing in advance how much it was going to cost? No wonder you keep getting ripped off.

dilus

dunstonh wrote: »

But after realising you could have DIY, did you try and get out of paying your bill?

It is that bit which lends itself to my opinion.

I haven't used an ambulance chaser, I did it myself. If I had used a CC I certainly wouldn't be trying to worm out of paying them like some, that's unethical.
1st mistake..... getting roped into PPI, myself included
2nd mistake.....using a claims company, not me thankfully
3rd mistake.....Trying not to pay for a service provided :mad:

magpiecottage

jsdp123 wrote: »

they didn't tell me the fee until i received the bill

Did they not provide you with full details of how the fees would be calculated before you signed up?

panchenlama

The whole thing is amazing (and I don't mean just this individual case).

The banks have agreed that they should not have sold the product and they have converted the payments into a savings product paying a very good sum of interest. Each customer of PPI now has a pot of their money sat ready for collection.

Along come these 'claims companies' write one letter on your behalf and then take almost have of your pot.

Where is the public protest from consumer protection groups against these businesses. They may well have got their customers to sign T&Cs but so did the banks. This rip off is much worse than the PPI itself. At least that product had some inherent value.

dunstonh

Along come these 'claims companies' write one letter on your behalf and then take almost have of your pot.

Even worse is that most seem to use the same letter for every single complaint they send in. It is not personalised and they even use PPI complaint letters for products other than PPI. It probably takes them about 30 seconds using an MS Word template. That is the extent of their work in most cases.

Where is the public protest from consumer protection groups against these businesses.

It is surprising that MSE is very quiet on this subject given the amount of evidence that claims companies are scamming people or are not adding value. The media do run the odd article every now and then but havent really gone to town on it in the same way they have against the banks.

They may well have got their customers to sign T&Cs but so did the banks.

The difference is that the banks have been partly shafted by the FSA into paying out. For 30 odd years PPI was set up this way and the regulator had no issue with it. Whilst some people were mis-sold and should get refunded, it does allow more or less anyone to take advantage of it and tell porkies in their complaint knowing that the banks are unlikely to have anything to prove otherwise. Hence why claims companies see it as an easy target.

panchenlama

dunstonh wrote: »

Even worse is that most seem to use the same letter for every single complaint they send in. It is not personalised and they even use PPI complaint letters for products other than PPI. It probably takes them about 30 seconds using an MS Word template. That is the extent of their work in most cases.



It is surprising that MSE is very quiet on this subject given the amount of evidence that claims companies are scamming people or are not adding value. The media do run the odd article every now and then but havent really gone to town on it in the same way they have against the banks.



The difference is that the banks have been partly shafted by the FSA into paying out. For 30 odd years PPI was set up this way and the regulator had no issue with it. Whilst some people were mis-sold and should get refunded, it does allow more or less anyone to take advantage of it and tell porkies in their complaint knowing that the banks are unlikely to have anything to prove otherwise. Hence why claims companies see it as an easy target.

You and I are in complete agreement!
It's an amazing situation...

jsdp123

thanks folks for your thoughs and yes i may have been a fool twice over lol but i will pay for a service that i have signed up to, although i'm not best pleased about it but then again i also believe that these very companies will be paying back the consumers in a few years anyhow when the powers that be decide that they have been out of order, anyhow i'll spend the rest on something fun

dunstonh

i also believe that these very companies will be paying back the consumers in a few years anyhow when the powers that be decide that they have been out of order

I woudlnt count on it.

Unlike Financial services, claims companies are very lightly regulated. There is also no fund to cover closed companies as there is with financial services. So, all the claims companies need to do is close their doors and they wont have to pay back a penny. They can then phoenix up under a new name with none of the past liabilities.

Even the worst companies that have been obvious scams take years to get shut down by the MoJ and there is no action taken against them beyond loosing their licence.

tifo

panchenlama wrote: »

They may well have got their customers to sign T&Cs but so did the banks.

I think any 'service charge' cannot be assessed for unfairness under the regulations, just like bank charges on a personal current account. The OP agreed to pay a fee in return for a service, which was received.