PPI – time’s almost up!
Haven’t claimed for mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance? Do it now
Every month the banks give away £350 million to their customers. Over the last eight years they have paid out £35 billion in compensation to millions of people for the worst mis-selling scandal we have seen.
But in two months’ time – on 29 August 2019 – the tap will be turned off. No new claims will be accepted, so get your skates on. The average payout is £1,700, but some are a great deal more. Barely half of all the people who could claim have done so, and in two months they will have missed the boat.
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From the 1990s to the early 2000s banks and credit card companies persuaded, cajoled, or tricked millions of customers to buy insurance to “protect” them if they could not meet the repayments on loans.
It was called Payment Protection Insurance, or PPI. It was so profitable to the banks – profit margins were 70 per cent or more – that they sold it without considering if it was the right product for customers, many of whom, because of their age or employment status, would never be able to make a claim.
Many who tried to claim found the payment was refused for other reasons. Even where PPI did pay out, it was discovered that it just covered the interest due, and only for a year.
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So are you due a PPI redress payment? If you took out a loan or started a credit card in the 1990s up to the mid-2000s then the answer is probably yes.
However, if the loan or card ended more than six years ago it will be difficult to claim unless you have kept some paperwork.
You can make the claim using the excellent information and templates at which.co.uk/ppi or moneysavingexpert.com/ppi. If you are less confident about doing it yourself, use the free service at resolver.co.uk/ppi.
You could try a commercial claims management firm, which are now regulated, but they keep around a third of what you get paid.
Never use one that demands money up front or which will charge you if the claim fails. Whatever you choose, act soon. The last day for claims to be accepted is just two months away – 29 August 2019.