PPI advise needed

birchtree

Can anyone suggest where to get free and unbiased PPI advise?

Previously, I could not take out a personal loan without PPI. Now they wouldn't sell me PPI!

I'm on a war path with BOI, many other things happened in between what I wrote above, the story is really long, at this stage I need someone to talk to, and I want to file a case to ombudsman.

Liam D Ferguson

Can you clarify if your complaint is

• That you feel Bank of Ireland mis-sold you PPI in the past?
• That you want Bank of Ireland to sell you PPI cover now and they won't?
• Something else?

If you feel you've been mis-sold PPI there are a number of firms out there who will claim compensation for you. Some operate on a "no foal, no fee" basis but take a percentage of any claim. You can also just complain yourself.

Hard to comment further without a better idea of what your complaint is.

birchtree

I cannot get a clear answer on what were the rules on PPI pre-2009 and how that changed in 2009 and onwards.

Before 2009 I was forced to buy PPI. In 2009 I was given very ambiguous answers about PPI, but it was not compulsory anymore. And this year PPI is not available even if you wanted it.

If I was illegally forced to purchase PPI pre 2009 - I'll be looking for refund.

If I was misinformed in 2009 (when I needed PPI) - I will be looking for any action I can take, at least a complaint.

The bank has not given any PPI options post 2009. Is that how it is these days? The risk is just too high?

Where could I get impartial advise on the above?

Liam D Ferguson

You have several options: -

• Ring up the Financial Services Ombudsman's office - they may be able to tell you whether or not your claim is valid for their office.
• Contact one of the "PPI Reclaim" offices who present claims for compensation on a "no win, no fee" basis. You would pay a substantial commission for their service out of any claim. Having an initial chat with one would probably be free, but they're not 100% impartial as they want your claim business.
• Contact a solicitor. Should be impartial but won't be free.

coylemj

OP, if BOI forced you to buy PPI then it's probably because they wanted to protect themselves in case you were laid off work or suffered a serious illness. They also 'force' people getting mortgages to take out mortgage protection insurance but everyone understands the rationale behind that.

Whether you feel that they were justified or not, the fact remains that it was their money, they didn't have to lend it to you and if they had good reason to demand that you cover the loan with a PPI policy then they can potentially stand over that decision and you may not have a case for a refund of PPI premiums.

Please accept that advice as a 'devil's advocate' opinion, I'm not a flag waver for any of the banks.

Reclaiming PPI premiums I understand can be done in situations where the policy was sold to someone who would never have been able to claim against it, such as students who were forced to take out a PPI policy to protect the payments in the event that they were laid off from their (non-existent) jobs.

birchtree

coylemj wrote: »

<...> the fact remains that it was their money, they didn't have to lend it to you and if they had good reason to demand that you cover the loan with a PPI policy then they can potentially stand over that decision <...>

Technically, you're right. What I have against them, is that they forced everyone to purchase PPI when times were good and risk of default was low, and people did not want it. Then suddenly, when things gone bad, and now people would want to buy PPI, the banks won't sell it, coz the risk gone up! Personally, I don't think it is acceptable that it is not possible to purchase PPI. We had the same situation where young drivers were unable to purchase car insurance, until government intervened.

coylemj

birchtree wrote: »

Technically, you're right. What I have against them, is that they forced everyone to purchase PPI when times were good and risk of default was low, and people did not want it. Then suddenly, when things gone bad, and now people would want to buy PPI, the banks won't sell it, coz the risk gone up! Personally, I don't think it is acceptable that it is not possible to purchase PPI. We had the same situation where young drivers were unable to purchase car insurance, until government intervened.

I got car loans over the years and always declined PPI. BOI and NIB at various stages gave me loans without PPI and I don't work in the civil service or semi-state.

It was a standard tactic for the banks to make no secret of the fact that they wanted you to take out PPI and some bank officials may have been more aggressive than others in pushing it but I just told them in each case that my employer had a good sickness scheme and that I didn't feel I needed it so it was not included in the loan deal.

I don't think the fact that they forced you to take out PPI is grounds for a refund of the premium. The fact is that if you were laid off work or taken seriously ill, then there potentially would have been a payout of some sort so there was cover and you can't roll back the clock on that.

joedared

This is a long one so bear with me. Its also a heads up for those in a similar position. I would also welcome the opinion of others.

Took out a mortage in 1996. Was advised to take out payment protection insurance. No problems so far. It was a joint mortage , so the insurance was joint also. My understanding was that if one of us became sick or out of work we could process our claim. But I must admit I was'nt aware at the time that it was both of us.

I stayed in employment till Feb 2010. Had some savings, always thought I would get back in employment. So I did not look to process my claim. Thought I would do the honourable thing and continue to pay my mortage and use my claim when I wanted. "If it was necessary." Got back in employment in Jan 2011 (happy days) so can continue to pay my mortage and payment insurance. Unemployed again then in Jan 2012. Continued to pay bills related to mortage. No change in circumstances. So I thought I could reduce my bills by using my insurance claim.

You must make your claim within 6 months of becomming unemployed. I was never told this. Even if I accept that I cannot claim. I have paid insurance for the past 18 months or so. I cannot use or claim those payments. So surely I should be allowed to claim these premiums back.
My wife who is also part of the joint insurance. She has not worked since Mar 1998. Therefore we have been paying half of the insurance from Mar 98 till now and not able to claim. I should be able to claim this back also.

I have to accept that I cannot claim my insurance as it has gone past the six months. But I cannot accept paying for something that I can't make use of. It seems to me it's like paying insurance for a car , when you don't have a car.

phormium

In fairness the point about claiming within 6 months might not have been drawn to your attention specifically but it would have been in the policy details. I would also say that the amount of people who do not claim immediately when they have a valid claim is tiny. Why would you not, surely that is the whole point of insurance.

Did you advise the insurance company that your wife had stopped working? You could have changed the policy to cover just you at that stage.

joedared

no. I wasnt aware that the insurance was joint. Im not looking to claim. I thought I could process my claom when it best suited me. Thought it was the right thing to continue to pay whern I could.
Im looking for the premiums back that I have been pay when there was no way I could process my claim. I was paying for a product and not getting it

bee06

I'm not sure you have much of an argument in getting your premiums back because you didn't make the claim within the 6 months. Insurance companies advise people to read their terms and conditions fully so they understand what they are covered for and how to make a claim. Technically the policy is still of use to you because if you become employed again then unemployed again (and meet the eligibility requirements) you could make a claim. If you get sick now you also may be able to make a sickness claim (depending on the terms and conditions).

Regarding your wife if you can provide the insurance company proof she hasn't worked since 1998 you may be able to get those premiums back and switch to a single cover policy.