in this section

image: how to complain - without using a claims company

if you think you've been mis-sold PPI …

1. complain to the business that sold you the policy

2. if you're still not happy, refer your complaint to the ombudsman service

phone us and we'll help you with our complaint form

3. you don't need to use a claims company to complain

why pay someone else to do it for you – when you're just as likely to win by doing it yourself for free

online PPI resource

This section of our website includes online documents, reference materials and links – relating to our work on complaints about mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI). This section may be of particular interest to businesses and consumer advisers.

PPI – what's happening?

our factsheet for consumers on payment protection insurance looks at the issues that crop up most often in the complaints we see
an update for consumers with a PPI case at the ombudsman service

standard documents for PPI complaints

designed to ensure the consistent handling of PPI complaints across financial services and by claims-management companies

consumer questionnaire
for consumers bringing a PPI complaint (either to a business or to the ombudsman service)
business response form
to be completed by businesses when a complaint is referred to the ombudsman service
practical guide to the consumer questionnaire and business response form

case studies and ombudsman decisions

a range of case studies highlighting our approach when we assess complaints about the sale of PPI
a selection of ombudsman decisions on PPI complaints also showing our approach:
– Mr A's case, Mr and Mrs B's case and Mrs C's case involve single-premium PPI policies sold with secured and unsecured personal loans
– Mr D's case and Mr E's case involve PPI policies sold with a credit card
PPI case studies from ombudsman news – including complaints involving claims-management companies
case studies involving new payment protection products – that sound like PPI but aren't

the ombudsman service's approach

an overview of the ombudsman's approach to some of the common issues raised in PPI complaints
a letter to claims-management companies and a letter to financial businesses clarifying general operational issues in relation to handling PPI complaints
a presentation to financial businesses and a presentation to claims-management companies about the general handling of payment protection insurance complaints
a letter to claims-management companies and a letter to financial businesses setting out how the ombudsman assesses disputes about whether or not PPI was sold

updates on complaints to the ombudsman about PPI

statistics from our annual review showing the number of PPI complaints we have received year on year – with updated quarterly figures published in ombudsman news
as part of the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards investigation into mis-selling and cross-selling by banks, the ombudsman provides information about PPI complaints

legal challenge ("judicial review") by the British Bankers Association

In October 2010 the British Bankers Association (BBA), on behalf of a number of high-street banks, announced that it had launched a legal challenge – in the form of a judicial review – against the then regulator the FSA and the ombudsman service on the approach to PPI complaints handling.
The judicial review took place at the High Court in London in January 2011, and judgment was handed down in April 2011 – rejecting the banks' challenge and endorsing the approach taken by the FSA and the ombudsman.
In May 2011 the BBA confirmed that it would not be appealing against the High Court ruling or continuing its legal challenge.

past action taken by the regulator

following the ombudsman's formal referral to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) – in July 2008 – of our concerns about the way PPI complaints were being handled by financial businesses, the FSA:

tracked the total sum paid out in compensation to those mis-sold PPI policies
introduced a package of measures – to ensure consumers would be better treated when buying PPI or complaining about it
confirmed that during the legal challenge brought by the British Bankers Association consumers could still complain about a PPI policy direct to the business involved

the ombudsman had earlier expressed concerns about the mis-sale of PPI in ombudsman news issue 4 (April 2001) and ombudsman news issue 50 (November/December 2005)

regulator enforcement action

enforcement action taken by the regulator against firms in relation to PPI includes:

Lloyds Banking Group fined £4.3 million for taking too long to make PPI redress payments [FSA's Final Notice]
The Co-operative Bank plc fined £113,300 for failing to handle PPI complaints fairly during the BBA’s unsuccessful High Court challenge [FSA's Final Notice]
Alliance & Leicester fined £7 million for serious failures with regards to the selling of PPI over the telephone [FSA's Final Notice]

information for businesses on how we handle cases

frequently-asked questions (FAQs) on a range of topics – from the role of third party complaint-handlers to whether complaints should be treated as legal pleadings

This is part of our online technical resource which sets out our general approach to complaints about a wide range of financial products and issues. We would like your feedback on how helpful you found it. Please also use the feedback form below to tell us about anything you think we could clarify or explain better.