Plevin PPI Explained

You may remember there being quite a stir around mis-sold PPI during the 1990’s and early into the 2000’s. It became known that many companies had mis-sold insurance, labelled as protection against falling ill or losing your job and falling behind on repayments for credit cards, loans and even mortgage repayments. Many consumers did not realise they had signed up for this extra layer of ‘protection,’ or even know what it was.

This payment protection Insurance was charging a small fee for the insurance itself, but a sizeable proportion of the fee was a commission being paid to the company. Millions of consumers became eligible for repayments of the mis-sold PPI through their bank or Financial Ombudsman Service. They had a deadline of August 2019 to do so before the service was stopped. Now we have Plevin PPI to replace this.

What is Payment Protection Insurance?

PPI was banned from 2009, but it was a type of insurance attached to several types of loan and made to sound appealing as it protected you from falling behind on repayments in the event of an accident, unemployment or had fallen ill. Why would you not want to protect yourself? If you were no longer able to work, you could make a claim on your insurance.

What you were not told, is that a substantial part of the fee you paid either monthly or as a lump sum was being paid as a commission that you would not see, meaning you would be eligible for far less than you may have thought when making a claim. As you can imagine, this put many people in a tricky situation.

PPI was sold under many different umbrellas. We have listed just some of them below:

• Loan Protection Insurance
• Protection Plan
• Accident, sickness, and unemployment insurance
• Loan repayment insurance
• Credit protection insurance
• Payment protection insurance
• Mortgage payment protection insurance

What is Plevin PPI?

Back in 2006, a woman called Mrs Plevin was sold a PPI policy for almost £6,000. Over 70% of this sum was found out to have been taken in commission and she was not notified of this when she took it out. As such, Mrs Plevin was awarded the full commission amount alongside interest to compensate her for what she had lost. This was a great result for her and future consumers.

The success of her case inspired the Plevin rule, where you can make a Plevin PPI claim if more than 50% of your PPI fees have gone towards commission and not been declared to you. Calls are recorded, which makes it easier to make a Plevin PPI claim and prove that you were not made aware of where your money would be going.

How is Plevin PPI Different to Mis-sold PPI?

A Plevin PPI claim, and mis-sold PPI claim is similar in the sense that they both relate to PPI premium policies. This is the only place where Plevin PPI and mis-sold PPI claims are similar. Instead of the focus being about proving whether you were mis-sold PPI, Plevin PPI only looks at the commission that lenders did not declare to the consumer.

This means that even if PPI was explained to you, but the commission information was not, you may still be eligible for Plevin PPI, even if you have been rejected for a mis-sold PPI claim previously. It is all about the commission, or rather if at least 50% of the fee you paid went to commission.

How Much Will I Get from My Plevin PPI Claim?

As with any claim, the amount you receive will depend on what you paid into the pot. Plevin PPI looks at how much the commission amount only. If the commission you paid was above 50%, you are entitled to a percentage of the difference back. You may also be eligible for interest on top of this amount, but you will of course pay a fee to your representative, which will reduce your final figure.

As an example, if you paid £10,000 over five years, you could get £500 back on your Plevin PPI claim. Your legal representative will make a judgement on this and only take on cases that they know are likely to fall in your favour, especially if they operate under a ‘no-win-no-fee' basis. Make sure you find out exactly how much you will lose in fees before accepting help.

Is There a Deadline on Plevin PPI?

Currently, there is no deadline on Plevin PPI. You can make a Plevin PPI claim at any point and there is no sign that a deadline will be introduced in the future. This is because the Consumer Credit Act 1974 is what underpins Plevin PPI, ensuring consumers are treated fairly.

Whilst there is no deadline for making a claim, we would always advise you to do so sooner rather than later. Not only will the information be fresh in your mind, but you will get your money back sooner. It is a solution where you are sure to benefit.

How Do I Make a Plevin PPI Claim?

Before you start a legal Plevin PPI claim, you could first try complaining with your bank. In some cases, you may be successful after an investigation but not always. If they are not helpful, you could make a complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service.

If you would rather go directly to a claims management company to claim Plevin PPI, there is plenty to choose from. It is especially important to make sure that the company you choose is FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) regulated. You do not want to fall victim of further scams.

You can also check your eligibility by answering a few questions on this page.

How Long Does a Plevin PPI Claim Take to Complete?

Depending on the method you choose to complain, you could be looking at anywhere between 8 weeks and 12 months. The fastest method is to complain directly to your bank, who will usually respond within 8 weeks. If this is rejected and you complain with the Financial Ombudsman Service, they can take up to 90 days to respond.

The longest and most stressful method is to take legal action, which can take six to twelve months in entirety, and be quite costly. If your case is rejected, you could end up having to pay court fees for the other party. Make sure you discuss your case thoroughly, before going ahead.

Summary

Now you have read this article, you should have a better idea of what Plevin PPI is and where you can go to make a claim if you think you have been mis-sold PPI. There is no reason for you not to reclaim money you have lost from being misled. Especially with costs rising faster than ever.

If you have any questions or need further assistance, please contact us and we will get right back to you with expert advice when you need it most.