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Thanks to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s animatronic head, more consumers have seen the light when it comes to Payment Protection Insurance (PPI).
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), whose PPI awareness campaign is proving to be effective, said a whopping 8.4 million checking enquiries were made in the 10 months following the initiative’s rollout. In addition, 3.7 million complaints were actually filed.
Barclays Group, for instance, recognised additional charges of £400 million relating to PPI in the first quarter of the year mainly because of the continued higher complaints flow.
“More consumers are complaining themselves, rather than using claims management companies (CMCs),” noted the FCA in its progress report. “Fifty-five per cent (55%) of complaints have been made directly by consumers, compared to 45% before the campaign.
“This means tens of millions of pounds of additional redress will stay with those complainants rather than being paid to CMCs.”
Meanwhile consumers, who only have until August 29 next year to lodge their complaints, are also said to be enjoying better access to PPI pages as companies take steps to improve the information they provide and simplify the complaints process.
According to the FCA, whose supervisory work is aimed at fair and consistent outcomes, £3.7 billion of redress has already been paid since the start of the campaign. The amount translates to a 64% increase compared to the previous 10 months.
“We are encouraged by the results of the first 10 months of the campaign,” said Jonathan Davidson, executive director of supervision, retail, and authorisations. “However, with less than a year until the deadline, we will carry on working hard to ensure every consumer has had the chance to make a decision on whether to complain about PPI.”
Davidson noted there has been more than £30 billion in redress since 2011.
