‘I complained about PPI on a whim and got a cheque for £33k’

Anne, a 61-yearold retiree from Yorkshire, could barely believe her eyes when she opened an envelope from Halifax to find a cheque for £32,732. “I just had to sit down,” she said. “I was thinking, ‘ this can’t be right’. I didn’t even know that what I had been sold was called PPI. It was just coming to the deadline and I thought I’d have a look.”

Anne, who did not want to give her surname, had signed up for a credit card with Halifax in the Eighties and had been sold an insurance policy – a form of now-notorious “payment protection insurance” (PPI) – to ensure that she could keep up repayments after a loss of income or a bout of serious illness.

As a local government worker Anne was already eligible for 26 weeks of sick pay and, given her age at the time, was very unlikely to need the cover. She said: “I did question it but they were using scare tactics. I was 22 and applying for my first credit card; I wasn’t as savvy back then as I am now.”

Anne complained to Halifax and in April received her cheque, split

Use this template to complain:

Hello,

I wish to submit a complaint regarding payment protection insurance which I was sold alongside [insert product] that I purchased on [insert date if possible], and any other products I may have held.

I believe I did not need this cover and that it may have been mis-sold.

roughly half and half between compensation and interest.

PPI was widely mis-sold alongside credit cards, mortgages and loans in the Nineties and 2000s. Two years ago the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the regulator, decided to draw a line under the scandal, setting a deadline for claims of Aug 29 this year. As much as £12bn could remain unclaimed, according to some experts.

Anyone who has ever had any type of mortgage, credit card or loan could have a claim, according to Gareth Shaw of Which?, the consumer group. “We’ve heard from people who have I would be grateful if you could investigate this and, if applicable, make an offer of compensation.

Thank you. [Insert name and, if possible, policy/customer number] received thousands of pounds in PPI compensation for financial products they had forgotten about,” he added. “The deadline for claims is looming so now is the time to act.”

The mis-selling of PPI has been viewed as an opportunity by claims management companies, which will handle your complaint for a fee. But claiming yourself is usually a very easy process – and costs nothing. Mr Shaw said: “We would urge people to make a general claim by using a free online tool rather than using a claims management company, which will take a hefty chunk of any compensation.”

You should direct your complaint to the firm that sold you the product in question, whether your bank, a credit card company or other lender. The FCA has a database of such companies on its website. If the firm has gone out of business, you can claim via the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, the fund that pays out when lenders fail.

To claim, simply contact the firm and say you wish to make a PPI complaint. You can do this even if you do not have the original paperwork for the policy. Normally you would contact the firm to “inquire” whether you had PPI. However, given that the deadline is now so close, Martyn James of Resolver, a complaints service, said you should complain now even if you do not know if you were sold a policy.