PPI Claims

What is PPI?

PPI means Payment Protection Insurance.

PPI is intended to cover your monthly loan repayments in the event you are unable to work due to sickness, accident or unemployment. PPI can also cover you in the event of your death, by repaying the outstanding loan amount.

You should check the terms and conditions of the PPI policy you are considering, prior to entering into the agreement, to make yourself aware of exactly what you are and are not covered for.

Mis Sold PPI

Misselling of PPI has been rife by banks and credit card providers for years.  You may have been told that taking out the insurance was compulsory for you to be eligible for the loan or credit card.  IF you were told the insurance was compulsory, then you have been mis sold PPI, and you may be able to make a PPI claim. 
Individuals with other insurance policies which covers them in a similar manner to PPI may also have been mis sold PPI, and therefore may also be entitled to make a PPI claim.

Other Things to Look Out For

The cost of the PPI policy is not included in the APR, therefore when comparing loans or credit agreements, you must also consider the cost of the PPI, since this will be in addition to the interest payable on the loan.  You may find it better to shop around for insurance rather than taking out a policy with the loan provider.
Many PPI policies only cover you for up to one year.  This means that if you take out a loan with PPI over 5 years, and you make a claim on the PPI policy in the first 2 years, once the 12 months are up, you may find yourself paying for insurance without ever being entitled to another payout, since you have already claimed the maximum 12 months.

Can I make a PPI Claim?

Before making a PPI claim, you must check whether or not you have been mis sold PPI.  A good starting point is to get hold of a copy of your policy’s terms and conditions.  If you no longer have this, then you may be able to obtain a copy from the lender.

The key to whether or not you were mis sold PPI is what was said at the time you were sold the product.

• Were you told or sold the wrong thing?
• Were you self-employed, unemployed or retired?
• Had you had medical problems in the past?
• Has the lender been fined or highlighted as misselling PPI in the past?

Note that if you have already received a payout under the PPI policy, then you will not be able to claim that you were mis sold PPI.

But you may wish to consider cancelling the PPI policy if this is the case, if you are unable to make further PPI claims in future under the terms of the policy.