Claiming for deceased father 11 August 2019 at 8:57PM in Reclaiming mortgage fees, council tax, etc 3 replies 2.3K views

CGORST

Hello all!

My dad had a mortgage with the Halifax which was taken out in the 70s. When my dad died in 1999 my mum paid off the remainder of the mortgage. Unfortunately my mum disposed of any letters relating to the mortgage but I did manage to find the account number in the deeds for the house.

My dad was self employed and we were really strapped for cash almost all of the time. My mum told me that he used to complain about having to pay extra for insurance that would never pay out for someone like him so I'm almost certain that he had PPI. Unfortunately my mum has died too so I have no concrete information. However I did put a claim in to the building society including the account number but they say there is no evidence my dad had PPI and they have closed the case.

Is it worth complaining to the ombudsman given that I have no paperwork? Also how would I go about this - can I use the tool on this site or is that only for personal claims, not for relatives of deceased customers?

[Deleted User]

If neither you nor they have any evidence of PPI, there's no point in going to FOS. They won't have anything.

[Deleted User]

CGORST wrote: »

My dad had a mortgage with the Halifax which was taken out in the 70s.

PPI was very rare in the 1970's

CGORST wrote: »

When my dad died in 1999my mum paid off the remainder of the mortgage.

So even in the unlikely event there was PPI on this mortgage, it's two decades since the account was closed. Banks don't keep records of the finances of deceased people for twenty years.

CGORST wrote: »

Unfortunately my mum disposed of any letters relating to the mortgage

So you have no evidence that the mortgage had any insurance at all.

CGORST wrote: »

My mum told me that he used to complain about having to pay extra for insurance that would never pay out for someone like him

The only likely insurance 40 years ago would have been life assurance. I'm certain that, self employed or not, his executors would not have been precluded from claiming on that. Did your Mother perhaps claim in order to pay off the mortgage?

CGORST wrote: »

I did put a claim in to the building society including the account number but they say there is no evidence my dad had PPI and they have closed the case.

Not completely surprising given the circumstance you describe.

CGORST wrote: »

Is it worth complaining to the ombudsman

The Ombudsman will not be able to find records long destroyed that would likely only show that your father had no PPI in any case.

Don't be too despondent, though, the majority of mortgage PPI complaints are rejected anyway. Certainly MPPI covers the self-employed and it is still being retailed today.

CGORST

Thanks all! That's put my mind at rest - if the likelihood is that he didn't have it, I can relax now and leave it be!