Monday, February 15, 2010

PAYMENT PROTECTION INSURANCE: SELF-EMPLOYED SITTING ON A BITTER-SWEET BONUS.

TOTAL-RECLAIM
PRESS RELEASE

February 15, 2010.

PAYMENT PROTECTION INSURANCE: SELF-EMPLOYED SITTING ON A BITTER-SWEET BONUS.
Total-Reclaim does not charge up-front fees.

Thousands of self-employed who ducked out of working for a business to work for themselves could be sitting on a bitter-sweet bonus.

Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) reclaim specialist Total-Reclaim says it is seeing an increase in the number of people who haven’t just been mis-sold PPI policies when they’ve taken out loans or credit cards, but have also been left completely unawares that their policy becomes invalid when they become self-employed.

“Anyone who is, or becomes, self-employed, retired, a student, works less than 16 hours a week, has certain medical conditions, a dangerous job or is in the armed forces should not be sold PPI or continue payments if their employment status changes and meets any of those criteria – they are unable to make any claim. And yet the banks and lenders continue to mis-sell PPIs, but also misinform, or fail to inform, people who have ongoing PPI policies,” said Daryl Vickers of Total-Reclaim, which does not take up-front fees.

“When somebody moves out of full-time employment and becomes self-employed – as many people have during the boom and bust of the past few years – they will inevitably advise their bank because there will be a distinct change in their finances.

“The problem is that the lenders have not been telling those people that their PPI becomes invalid, but have nevertheless continued taking PPI policy payments against insurance that would never be paid out so long as they are self-employed.

“People who become self-employed may believe that their loan payments are covered by PPI should they lose their income, but in fact they’re not. But they’re still paying the premiums.”

One case involves self-employed search engine marketer Andy Donaldson, 30, from Liverpool, who trades as Hit Search, who took out a £10,000 loan while employed, but when he informed his bank he was going self-employed in April 2007 they failed to advise him that the PPI on his loan would become invalid.

The premiums have been refunded in full following action by Ellesmere Port and Warrington-based Total-Reclaim – and Andy received £1,700 as a result.

Around 20 million UK households are paying for Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) policies, millions of which may well have been mis-sold.

The vast majority of people paying for mis-sold PPI do not realise they can reclaim their payments - the average refund and compensation is £1,800 - and many are still being sold PPI policies against which they could never make a successful claim.

Many have discovered the policy has been added to a loan arrangement without the customer’s agreement, and some have been told they cannot get a loan without taking out PPI.

Total-Reclaim is fully approved by The Ministry of Justice to handle legal reclaims on PPI debt refund. Total-Reclaim does not charge up-front fees, but takes a commission on the premiums recovered following reimbursement from the lender to the borrower.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley/Megan Codling
07788 978800/07795 848586

1 comment:

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