PPI complaints lead to jobs boost at financial ombudsman

PPI disputes have increased sufficiently for a financial ombudsman to hire around 1,000 new staff to deal with the complaints.
 
Jan. 22, 2013 - PRLog -- Around 1,000 more staff have been employed by the Financial Ombudsman Service to deal with the growing number of complaints about the mis-selling of Payment Protection Insurance (PPI).

The recruitment campaign has been prompted by an estimated 45% increase in work load over recent years, with consumer groups calling it the UK's biggest financial scandal.

PPI is designed to cover repayments should customers become unemployed or are involved in an accident which makes them unfit to work, although policies were mis-sold on a huge scale and many were sold them even though they may not have been needed or would not have been able to claim.

UK banks and building societies are facing a bill of more than £13bn in refunds for mis-sold PPI policies. All claims must be placed with the financial institution in the first place; if the claim is rejected then people have the right of a free settlement by the Financial Ombudsman Service, if the PPI policy is found to have been mis-sold.

PPI cases will account  for more than 45% of the Financial Ombudsman Services workload in 2013 and 2014, forcing them to take on around 1, 000 new staff to deal with the volume of new claims.

Tony Boorman, deputy chief ombudsman, said; "While we see some businesses using complaints positively to improve customer service, many continue to frustrate their customers with delays and inconvenience.

"Two years after the court ruling confirmed the approach that financial businesses should take when handling PPI complaints, it is disappointing that we're still seeing significant numbers of unresolved disputes about mis-sold policies being referred to the ombudsman."

The consumer group, Which?, said: "The banks must deal with complaints fairly and help consumers claim back the compensation they are due without hassle.

"The rise in complaints to the financial ombudsman shows that some banks are still not making it as straightforward as they should for people to get back the money they are rightly owed."

The Financial Ombudsman Services work is funding by a levy on the financial services industry, which is set to rise from £17.7m to £23m in the next financial year, and will reflect the increasing volume of PPI complaints.

"Banks are committed to handling PPI complaints as efficiently as possible and have staffed-up to manage the complaints process. Given the high levels of complaints being made and the backlogs that the ombudsman is experiencing, we recognise the need to resource it appropriately," said a spokesman for the British Bankers' Association, which represents the UK's major banks.

"All of the UK's High Street banks have committed publicly to ensuring a decisive end to any bad practices which resulted in mis-selling. Banks are overhauling their incentive structures for front-line staff, rewarding staff for high levels of customer service and not sales volumes."

If you believe you have a PPI claim, contact Francis Alexander Solicitors, leading experts in this area of the law, by visiting their web-site at www.ppiclaimsmanchester.co.uk
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