No stay on unenforceable cases

A Chester County Court Judge has dispelled rumours of a stay on unenforceable loan and credit-card cases. Following consultation it was agreed that the legal basis for the cases was already well established. As a result the cases in question will now go ahead without delay along with a handful which may be heard as full trials in the Commercial Courts.

Court rules against lender in unenforceable case

On the 12th of March 2009 Judge Derek Halbert ruled that a lender had, by adding undisclosed interest to an administration charge, breached the Consumer Credit Act. In his ruling he concluded that the debt was unenforceable and that the agreement was an attempt to circumvent the provisions of the Consumer Credit ACT and that this should not be encouraged.

Payment Protection Insurance (PPI)

The Competition Commission has today released a damming report following its investigation into the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) market. The Competition Commission said in its summary; we provisionally found that each credit provider and financial intermediary faces little competition for the sale of Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) when it is sold in combination with the credit it insures. As a result of this lack of competition, it is highly profitable to distribute PPI. We estimated that the 12 largest distributors of PPI made profits in excess of the cost of £1.4 billion in 2006. We found that there were features of relevant markets which resulted in consumers facing higher prices and less choice. Not only was the matter of competition a factor in this investigation but the Citizens Advice Bureau issued a super-complaint which highlighted not only consumers paying excessively high prices for PPI but that consumers were also often mis-sold PPI by companies using pressure and unfair sales tactics.

Independent experts believe that as many as seven million people may have been mis-sold PPI since 2003. Over 20 million policies exist in the UK, so there is a strong chance that many readers will have entered into one or more PPI’s and up to a third of these could be victims of mis-selling. Of great concern is the fact that in many cases it is the vulnerable, low and low to middle income earners who are affected. Bradley-Turner's Claim Manager, Thomas McKenzie, said: “Firstly it’s expensive and can add over £2000 to the cost of an £8,000 loan. Secondly, in many cases the policies are simply not suitable. Many people have already tried to claim against their policy only for it to be rejected due to exclusions or the small print. The PPI providers, who include banks and loan companies, had a duty to check suitability at the time of selling the policy but in many cases this just didn’t happen. What’s worse is that in some cases customers have been pressurised into taking PPI, believing that it would improve their chances of getting a loan.” If you have a loan, mortgage or credit card, it is imperative that you check whether you are paying for PPI and, if you are, whether the policy is suitable for your particular needs. If the policy is not suitable, you should question why that is. Were you given all of the relevant information when you bought the policy? Thomas continued: “Anybody considering a compensation claim must establish what the grounds are as these vary from case to case”. If you are unsure of what the grounds are and how the regulations apply, you can contact Bradley-Turner who will carry out a full review. If it is established that you have a case and you do not wish to represent yourself, you can appoint Bradley-Turner who will handle your entire case on your behalf. And considering that it may be costing you somewhere in between £2000 and £5000, on an unsecured loan of £8,000 to £13,000, or even £10,000 to £12,000 on a secured loan of £25,000 to £35,000, it could prove to be an extremely worthwhile exercise.

1 in 2 let down by loan protection deals

Half of people taking out loan protection insurance will be shocked and disappointed if they need to claim, according to a disturbing new study.
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The Times Online

Two million mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI) policies. The scale of the mis-selling loan payment protection is higher than previously thought, say Which?
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