Unemployment/PPI claim rejected

martyp

Hi all,

I lost my last job in July and thought I would be safe having my PPI to claim on for my mortgage. I had claimed twice before (period of 6 months then 1-2 months last year) and it all went through fine. This time they rejected my claim as it wasn't a case of involuntary redundancy. The employer told them I lost it for not meeting performance requirements for the role. I was meeting the targets set for the work and was assured of this but had difficulty understanding the job (very different to what I'd done before) and required extra training and asked for assistance more than others apparently and lost the job for that reason. The final nail in the coffin they claimed was asking what was deemed to be a silly question (it was an easy mistake I realised seconds afterwards).
I'm going through a complaints procedure as I didn't want to lose the job at all, it certainly wasn't voluntary.
Do I stand a chance or is there anything else I could do? Very worrying as I won't be able to afford my mortgage payments without it.

InsideInsurance

How long was the employment?

You need to read the exact terms of the policy, the PPI/ASU products my ex used to deal with simply excluded any voluntary leaving or sacked for gross misconduct. Yours may have a stricter set of terms if they only cover involuntary redundancy which would in effect mean that it excludes lose of your job in the first 2 year unless you have a "generous" employer

dunstonh

I'm going through a complaints procedure as I didn't want to lose the job at all, it certainly wasn't voluntary.

When you say complaints, do you mean complaining to the insurer or taking action against the employer for unfair dismissal?

Do I stand a chance or is there anything else I could do?

If you have been dismissed/sacked then the insurance would not pay out. So, based on what you have said, you would not expect the claim (or complaint) to succeed. If you feel the employer dismissed you unfairly then you should seek legal advice.

martyp

InsideInsurance wrote: »

How long was the employment?

You need to read the exact terms of the policy, the PPI/ASU products my ex used to deal with simply excluded any voluntary leaving or sacked for gross misconduct. Yours may have a stricter set of terms if they only cover involuntary redundancy which would in effect mean that it excludes lose of your job in the first 2 year unless you have a "generous" employer

That's what I was hoping that it would cover loss of job assuming it wasn't voluntary or gross misconduct. It certainly wasn't either of those cases. The insurer merely stated that if the job loss was performance related it wouldn't be accepted. I'll have to try and find the terms and conditions. The role was temporary and expected to last until March next year. They gave me a bit of a warning about something I was doing wrong in the role (asking for help too much) and then just called me up one day after work (agency) and said not to go back in the next day. A friend of mine suffered the same fate. They were there for less than 2 weeks and got a call after work and told they were 'too slow'. Without any warning or indication they were doing anything wrong at all, they just had praise for their work!

martyp

dunstonh wrote: »

When you say complaints, do you mean complaining to the insurer or taking action against the employer for unfair dismissal?

Against the insurer. I don't think there's anything else I can do really with regards to the employer. It was a temp job through an agency and the terms state they can get rid of you at short notice. I had that once many years ago where an agency called me after I finished work and said not to go back the next day. I don't think there's any potential to claim for unfair dismissal? I was there from March to July so more than 3 months but I don't think there's anything there.

If you have been dismissed/sacked then the insurance would not pay out. So, based on what you have said, you would not expect the claim (or complaint) to succeed. If you feel the employer dismissed you unfairly then you should seek legal advice.

I was thinking it could have been down to the way it was worded. It certainly wasn't anything in the form of gross misconduct they just considered I wasn't the right person for the job as I had difficulty picking it up. They had very high expectations in the job (it paid very well) and due to managerial pressure were due to have a high turnover. Wasn't a nice place in that sense. I did meet the targets they set so was annoyed the agency suggested that was the reason I lost the job. I just asked too many questions and one in particular was a silly one (via e-mail) which according to them I should have known the answer to. Surely everyone has an off moment?

ACG

You were not made redundant by the sounds of it.

Im just going to apologise in advance for the wording of this, I do not mean it the way it will probably read...
It sounds like the company decided to get rid of you and not the actual job.

Which effectively means you/the position has not been made redundant you have been fired/dismissed/asked not to return - however you wish to word it. So the job is still there to be had by someone by the sounds of it?

Unemployment cover would never pay out for this.

martyp

ACG wrote: »

So the job is still there to be had by someone by the sounds of it?

Yes - they had a big turnover, sacking people all the time and constantly interviewing replacements every week. It was like a production line pretty much. I should have got out there by finding another job as there was obviously little stability and security there. Well, it was a temporary job...

ACG

Your never going to get a payout on unemployment cover then.
Youve not been there long enough to go to an unfair dismissal tribunal either.

rs65

martyp wrote: »

and then just called me up one day after work (agency) and said not to go back in the next day

Were you actually employed by the agency?

InsideInsurance

ACG wrote: »

Your never going to get a payout on unemployment cover then.
Youve not been there long enough to go to an unfair dismissal tribunal either.

Some will, you need to look at the actual wording. Was badged PPI rather than ASU but many of the old Natwest/ RBS policies only excluded being fired for gross misconduct, resignation and voluntary redundancy. If the employer didnt count the sacking as gross misconduct the unemployment section still paid out