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Freshfields' PPI judicial review rejected by court

We have dealt with clients in wheelchairs that have been sold sickness insurance that could never been claimed on due to obvious health issues. We have dealt with policies sold to pensioners, housewives and students who could never claim on loss of employment as they were never employed. We have dealt with Russian Builders, Indian Cooks and African Taxi Drivers who could hardly speak English and could never claim as they were self employed. We have dealt with Nurses working for the NHS, civil servants, policeman, firemen and armed forces personnel who could never claim on policies due to the fact that they were fully covered from their work sickness insurance. The banks who sold these policies had a massive incentive to sell them due to the enormous commissions involved (usually 60% of the total cost of the policy). In addition on single premium loans they not only gained the loan commission they also lent the money to purchase the policy in the first place. So that on lending £5,000 to purchase a policy at say interest of 20% pa with 60% of the cost of the policy refunded as commission they bank effectively earned 50% interest on the net cost of the loan. The banks have ignored their own regulators guidelines to refund this money. They have challenged the regulators instructions on best practice and lost in court and now there is no doubt they will appeal this judgement in the cynical knowledge that by delaying the verdict another 18 months they will save hundreds of millions of pounds in people giving up on their claim and the fact that they are able to destroy their financial records older than 6 years old thus preventing claims on their older policies

20-Apr-2011

2:43 pm