PPI Reclaiming Discussion Part 5

bishop29

hi all
hope this is the right place to post

i have finished my iva early and was able to pay off all my debt in full.
will it be ok for me to claim ppi myself of would i need a specialist claims company.

thanks:T

padav

I am helping my wife to reclaim what I believe is obviously mis-sold PPI.

We sent off for her credit report from Equifax

Armed with this info I selected the most obvious (from amongst several) cards she had previously used. My wife referred to this card in particular because she had used it quite frequently in recent years and remembered paying relativley large PPI premiums to this lender and had actually cancelled the PPI (some years back) because the cost became too onerous.

I downloaded the questionnaire recommended by this forum.

I collated my wife's claim, which consisted of;
1. A copy of the relevant page from the credit report as proof of the account's existence
2. A completed questionnaire
3. A copy of the closing statement relating to this card
4. A supporting letter setting out the reasons for the claim, which were;

• PPI premiums effectively sold as an integral part of the credit card
• True costs (of PPI) never explained
• Benefits of PPI policy never explained
• Documents accompanying the credit card application advised taking out PPI
• No assessment of my wife's employment terms and conditions undertaken to determine whether appropriate or not

We've now received, six weeks later a rejection on every single point listed above. It would take too long to go through each reason for rejection but effectively the lender (Halifax) is relying on the original small print as their defence. There was never any face to face dialogue between my wife and anyone from Halifax - my wife completed the application form (which included a leaflet detailing the aforesaid small print), sent it off and was approved, end of story - this story is probably repeated for millions of card users who ended up paying inappropriate PPI premiums.

Before I refer my wife's claim to the Ombudsman, I wanted to reassure myself about the nature of the original court case and the reasoning of Justice Ouseley (the High Court Judge who ruled against the lenders and set in train the £billions of PPI claims). Did his ruling largely set aside, ie. declare as unlawful, the myriad terms and conditions included in lender's small print, thus rendering any defence relying upon these as invalid?

There was no reference to any time limit in the Halifax's rejection of my wife's claim - this was my only fear when making the claim - that she would be out of time?

Frankly I'm disgusted, but hardly suprised, by Halifax's rejection of my wife's claim because it was obvious to me she had a very strong case - I understand that a massive percentage of claims referred to the Financial Ombudsman are successful and overule a lender's rejection of claim?

Can someone point me to a website detailing the reasoning underpinning Justice Ouseley's original ruling on PPI mis-selling?

[Deleted User]

padav wrote: »

There was never any face to face dialogue between my wife and anyone from Halifax - my wife completed the application form (which included a leaflet detailing the aforesaid small print), sent it off and was approved, end of story -

I'm afraid what you describe was a "non-advised" sale in which (as you clearly state) no Bank staff were present. Effectively this means that your wife mis-bought rather than being mis-sold.

I'm sorry, but what you deemed "obviously mis-sold PP" was in fact the very opposite. You cannot complain of mis-selling if the insurance was bought of your wife's own volition.

In addition, the legal issues with regard "small print" you bring up are irrelevant in this case as all they needed to be was clear and not misleading in order to be acceptable. PPI mis-selling is really not a legal issue.

However, another user reports personal success at FOS with a similar complaint:

courtleigh wrote: »

The FOS have (initial assessment) upheld my complaint on the basis that
Barlaycard had a duty of care to provide a separate policy for the PPI despite being a postal application,- other factors were involved INCLUDING the poor quality of the application form.

So, although the Bank paperwork is perfectly legal, if FOS deem it inadequate or failing in some other way, there is still a chance they could uphold your complaint (in around a year from now, I'm afraid).

Obviously, you should make a point of mentioning any faults you can see in the original Bank "small Print" of the leaflet you mention , although I'd say "myriad terms and conditions" are not a basis for complaint unless these were too onerous in the event of a claim on the insurance.

So there's still some hope....

-taff

bishop29 wrote: »

i have finished my iva early and was able to pay off all my debt in full.
will it be ok for me to claim ppi myself of would i need a specialist claims company

Do it yourself, because although you have finished your IVA early, it doesn't mean you don't still owe money, where your debt has been offset.
If you use a claims company, you will still have to pay them even if you don't see any money.

dunstonh

Can someone point me to a website detailing the reasoning underpinning Justice Ouseley's original ruling on PPI mis-selling?

Which has nothing to do with any reasons for complaint. It was to do with the banks wanting to bar groups of people from making a complaint.

B

efore I refer my wife's claim to the Ombudsman, I wanted to reassure myself about the nature of the original court case and the reasoning of Justice Ouseley (the High Court Judge who ruled against the lenders and set in train the £billions of PPI claims). Did his ruling largely set aside, ie. declare as unlawful, the myriad terms and conditions included in lender's small print, thus rendering any defence relying upon these as invalid?

No such rulings were made on the complaints as that wasn't what the case was about.

Frankly I'm disgusted, but hardly suprised, by Halifax's rejection of my wife's claim because it was obvious to me she had a very strong case - I understand that a massive percentage of claims referred to the Financial Ombudsman are successful and overule a lender's rejection of claim?

I actually think your wife has a weak case. No advice was sought or given. It was not an advised case. So, those areas dont apply. It was not even a sold case as it was bought direct. No-one from the bank was involved.

It is still possible to get an upheld complaint on a direct application but you are reliant on a technical failing taking place (failure in wording on website or form for example). The odds of success are low and you can see why Halifax rejected it.

I understand that a massive percentage of claims referred to the Financial Ombudsman are successful and overule a lender's rejection of claim?

The ratio where the FOS overrule the firm has been dropping. It used to be massive. For most providers it is still above average but some have very low overrule rates. Some of these will be because of incorrect rejections. Some of these are because the firm doesnt respond to the FOS and there is an overturn for that reason rather than the actual complaint reasons. Lloyds has an abysmal reputation but Halifax handles the complaints differently.

Lauren32

Still waiting to hear from the fscs with regards to our claim against picture apparantly its been down in the department where calculations are made for nearly 2 weeks, we are still none the wiser hopefully we will get a nice cheque before christmas.

smilypoppy

I was wondering if someone could give me some advice. I have tried to claim back PPI myself since March 2012. The bank finally sent a letter saying they have no records of the account. It was a mortgage which I redeeemed in 2003. I didn't have the originally paper work so had to make serveral calls to get the account details. The mortgage was with Natwest but I had to deal with RBS who are a nightmare. Would it be worth to the ombudsman or a specialist company now? Thank you smilypoppy.

Winterwarmer

HELP - i have been rejected on claiming PPI on a Natwest C/Card! i took the card out in 1997 & closed the account in 2011. When i had trouble paying the min payment i contacted them in 2008 & was told that they could only help if i went into arrears, which i declined. i was then told i could cancel my PPI which i duly did but this was the first time i was made aware that i could cancel it. Recently after being successful in claiming back PPI on a loan, i decided to look through my old statements & noted i'd paid thousands so i made a claim for C/card ppi back on the basis i was not informed that it was optional & that it could be cancelled. RBS have declined saying that the Certificate of insurace clearly states that there is a 14 day cooling off period & that the PPi was on statements. THey also say their records state the PPI was applied at applciation so this suggests that i was asked to select cover & by signing i have confirmed agreement to take PPI. Included in my rejection letters they sent back copies of statements & a copy of the Certification of insurance although that doesn't actually have my name etc on it but interestingly no copy of original application. Do i have any options here? Is this the point i should go to Ombudsman?

dunstonh

smilypoppy wrote: »

I was wondering if someone could give me some advice. I have tried to claim back PPI myself since March 2012. The bank finally sent a letter saying they have no records of the account. It was a mortgage which I redeeemed in 2003. I didn't have the originally paper work so had to make serveral calls to get the account details. The mortgage was with Natwest but I had to deal with RBS who are a nightmare. Would it be worth to the ombudsman or a specialist company now? Thank you smilypoppy.

Claims comapnies are not specialist companies. They require you to supply them the details. If you cant supply the details then they cant find out.

It is quite possible they hold no details on you any more. 6 years is the norm for data retention. So, you are outside that. You could spend £10 a do a data subject access request to be sure though.

amersall

stu1960 wrote: »

Amersall i,ve sent you a pm.

Thank you, got it and replied, much appreciated.