PCP car finance claim - am I tied to a claim company?

Wetgypsy

Hello,
Please could someone help me work out if I am tied to a claim company.  

Very early on in the PCP claims saga, I clicked on an advert about PCP claims.  I filled out some info and set up a "portal" / account with a claim company.  I supplied various bits of information. I have had a busy old life recently and never completed setting it up.  Including not signing the "form of authority". They have emailed me to do this a few times but I had since seen that you shouldn't sign up to these companies, so I have not signed it.

They have emailed saying that they have submitted a claim on my behalf and send me updates on the court case, referencing my claim. It is Johnson Law Group if that sheds any light.

Am I or am I not tied to them?  If I am, I might as well sign this thing and let them deal with it.  If I am not, I need to do it through the MSE method.

Just got myself a wee bit stuck.

MyRealNameToo

Wetgypsy said:

Hello,
Please could someone help me work out if I am tied to a claim company.  

Very early on in the PCP claims saga, I clicked on an advert about PCP claims.  I filled out some info and set up a "portal" / account with a claim company.  I supplied various bits of information. I have had a busy old life recently and never completed setting it up.  Including not signing the "form of authority". They have emailed me to do this a few times but I had since seen that you shouldn't sign up to these companies, so I have not signed it.

They have emailed saying that they have submitted a claim on my behalf and send me updates on the court case, referencing my claim. It is Johnson Law Group if that sheds any light.

Am I or am I not tied to them?  If I am, I might as well sign this thing and let them deal with it.  If I am not, I need to do it through the MSE method.

Just got myself a wee bit stuck.

You'd need to read what you agreed to. Often these will commit you to them up front so whilst you dont have to use them they would be entitled to their share of any award or you terminate their engagement and you pay them for the work done to date. 

What's the form of authority for? Some will also get themselves set up as your tax agent with HMRC and thats a binary thing so any rebates on taxes would go to them even if unrelated to PCP as many have found out after agreeing to this on reclaiming the tax taken from the interest on PPI claims 

Wetgypsy

My goodness, the tax thing is a worry. I was trying to find their terms but cannot find anything in the portal. I will message them to ask for a copy of anything / everything I have agreed to. 
Thank you for your reply

Wetgypsy

This is the form:
I, the above named party of the above address confirm as follows:

In respect of my claim for compensation for Vehicle Finance Mis-selling relating to overcharging and undisclosed commissions, I hereby authorise the company to whom this authority is addressed to correspond directly with, disclose documents to and discuss any and all confidential information and documentation it holds relating to any dealings with myself, to my instructed solicitors: JLG Legal Ltd t/a Johnson Law Group (“JLG”), of Chancery Place, 50 Brown Street, Manchester, England, M2 2JT. I further authorise such organisations to make any payments of compensation or refunds due to me direct to JLG.

For the avoidance of doubt, this authority includes any formal Data Subject Access Request (“DSAR”) for any personal information held about me pursuant to the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2000 (“DPA”) if so indicated by JLG.

I further authorise JLG to make a formal report to the Information Commissioners Office in respect of any non-compliance with any subject access requests made pursuant to the GDPR and DPA.