Payment Protection Insurance
Background
In October 2010, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) sought a Judicial Review against the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) in relation to the way the UK's banks handle complaints about Payment Protection Insurance (PPI).
The BBA decided to seek the Judicial Review as it was concerned about the powers the FSA and FOS had to apply new standards to old sales. The FSA was effectively creating a precedent of applying new rules to previous sales - even where those sales were regulated by other FSA rules.
On 20 April 2011, the High Court dismissed the BBA's Judicial Review application in its entirety. In effect this meant the banks accepted the new rules and guidelines that the FSA and FOS apply to PPI complaints and agreed to abide by them.
Complaints
On the 15th June 2011, HFC Bank were granted a temporary extension by the FSA for handling of some PPI Complaints.
To ensure a quality approach is taken and in the spirit of Treating Customers Fairly, we are aiming to respond to all customers whose complaints were placed on hold during the Judicial Review by the end of August at the latest.
The FSA has agreed that for PPI complaints received between 21 April and 31 August 2011 the time limit within which we must respond in writing to complaints is extended to a maximum of 16 weeks from the normal 8 week period. For complaints we receive between 1 September and 31 December 2011 the period will be a maximum of 12 weeks.
If you made a complaint before 21st April 2011, you will already have been issued with a letter confirming our final decision to you. If we have upheld your complaint, you will receive a letter detailing a full breakdown of the redress offer. These letters are currently being issued . This will be complete by the 4th September 2011. If you have not received full details shortly after this date or if you have any further questions, please contact us on the telephone number quoted on your acknowledgement letter.
If you made a complaint on or after 21st April 2011,we will deal with your complaint and communicate our final decision to you within the revised time limit agreed with the FSA. These timelines were confirmed to you when we acknowledged your complaint in writing.
We are also working closely with the FOS to ensure that any PPI complaints that have been referred to them are resolved as quickly as possible.
These timescales are in line with the specific requirements the FSA has published for the handling of complaints relating to PPI, these are available on the FSA’s website at http://www.fsa.gov.uk/.
If you wish to make a complaint
We're sorry that you have a concern about Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) and we promise to do our best to investigate your complaint as swiftly as we can.
If you have already made a complaint, there's no need to do anything further. We will review it as soon as possible and then write to you confirming the outcome of our investigation.
If you have a complaint, we would like to stress that there is no need to use a claims management company to do so . While you are of course free to do so, the claims management companies (CMC) usually take a fee or percentage of any compensation you are paid.
If you contact us direct we will assess your complaint in exactly the same way that we treat complaints sent in by a CMC and you won't have to pay them a fee or any percentage if we do end up compensating you.
You should write to us at:
HFC Bank Limited, PO Box 5207, Coventry, CV3 9FB
Please provide full details of why you believe you were mis-sold PPI. You may find it helpful to complete and send us the questionnaire available on the Financial Ombudsman Service website. Sending us this form should ensure we have all the information we need to process your complaint efficiently and as quickly as possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make the whole process as straightforward as we can, we've listed below some frequently asked questions about PPI and further independent sources of information for you if you have any further questions.
What was the outcome of the Judicial Review?
In April the High Court announced that it had dismissed the British Bankers Association's (BBA) Judicial Review application, which challenged the way the Financial Ombudsman Service and Financial Services Authority said banks should handle complaints about the sale of Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). The Court dismissed the Judicial Review application in its entirety.
What is HFC’s position with the High Court judgment?
HFC accept the High Court's decision and we will work closely with the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Financial Services Authority to ensure we handle all Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) complaints in accordance with the policy statement.
Why has HFC taken so long to respond to the outcome of the Judicial Review?
Following the High Court's decision we spent some time reviewing the judgment thoroughly to make sure we understood the details, and that we properly considered what this means for HFC and our customers.
I hear that you will now be paying compensation to anyone who was sold PPI?
We will be implementing the FSA's policy statement in full and we are now reviewing both new complaints and any we put 'on hold' pending the outcome of the legal proceedings. Complaints will be measured against the standards set out by the FSA and, where appropriate, we will be paying compensation.
A claims management company has offered to handle my complaint for me. What should I do?
We will assess complaints sent directly to us in exactly the same way and in the same timescale as complaints sent in by a CMC, so there is no need to use their services. For independent guidance on how CMCs work visit the Which? website.
What else do I need to know about the process?
If you need more information you might find it helpful to consult the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which provides an independent source of information. Visit it at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.
I would like to complain about a PPI policy that was sold to me in the past, what do I need to do?
There is no need to use a claims management company to complain - it is easiest if you make complaints directly to HFC and we will handle your complaint in exactly the same way.
You should write to us at:
HFC Bank Limited, PO Box 5207, Coventry, CV3 9FB
In your letter, please provide full details of why you believe you were mis-sold PPI. You may find it helpful to complete and send us the questionnaire available on the Financial Ombudsman Service website.
Sending us this form will ensure we have the information we need to process your complaint efficiently and as quickly as possible.
What can I do if I am dissatisfied with your decision?
We are obliged to inform you that if you remain dissatisfied you have the right to refer this matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9SR. You can telephone them on 0845 080 1800 or visit www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk for further information.
