Forget about PPI and see what else you can claim
FINANCIAL institutions have paid out billions to consumers who have made PPI claims over the past decade.
Readers have been asking me what other claims they may be missing out on. Here’s what you need to know:
OLD DIRECT DEBITS
WHERE you pay for an ongoing service or product, such as a gym membership, insurance or a subscription, you will in most cases set up a direct debit so that the payment is taken automatically from your bank account each month.
What many people forget is that you need to cancel the direct debit at the same time as cancelling the service/ subscription.
Thousands of consumers therefore end up paying unnecessarily for several months after the event.
Check your direct debits to make sure this doesn’t happen.
If it has happened, contact the supplier of the goods or services and demand a refund, which they will be legally obliged to give.
FLIGHT DELAYS/CANCELLATIONS
IF YOU’VE experienced a flight delay in the past six years you may have a compensation claim.
To be eligible, your flight must have arrived at its final destination more than three hours late and the cause of the delay must not have been due to an event that was outside of the airline’s control, such as adverse weather or an air traffic control strike.
These situations are known as ‘extraordinary circumstances’.
If you think you have a claim, contact the airline.
You may also have a claim if you experienced a flight cancellation in the past six years. Again, you won’t have a claim if the cause was due to extraordinary circumstances and you will not be able to claim if the airline notified you of the cancellation more than 15 days prior to the flight.
MIS-SOLD GOODS OR SERVICES
MIS-SELLING is the deliberate, reckless, or negligent sale of products or services in circumstances where the contract is either misrepresented, or the product or service is unsuitable for the consumer’s needs.
Every day goods and services are mis-sold to consumers.
If you think you have been a victim of mis-selling, you will be entitled to your money back and in some circumstances, compensation.
THE NEXT BIG CLAIM?
DIESEL vehicles are quickly going out of fashion, due to increased running costs and various new surcharges and taxes being levied on them.
These charges are part of a government-led crusade to tackle toxic air pollution, which is hitting diesel owners in the wallet.
This not only means that the running costs are increasing, but also that the second-hand value of diesel vehicles is on a steady decline.
Manufacturers and dealerships have known about this for the past few years, yet to my knowledge, some still do not warn consumers and in my view, this is potentially mis-selling.
■ Dean is solicitor-advocate, barrister, arbitrator at Consumer Dispute Resolutions Ltd and consumer lawyer of the year (2018) For more advice from Dean go to theconsumerlawyer.blog