The UK Financial Services Authority is currently managing a massive process to compensate consumers who were “mis-sold” payment protection insurance (their equivalent of consumer credit insurance).
The claims relate to circumstances where people say they were sold PPI but:
• did not know they had been sold it
• would not have been able to claim under the policy due to exclusions or limitations (for example a number of policies did not provide cover for people who were self-employed), and
• did not need the policy as they had sufficient cover elsewhere.
According to the FSA, £1.9 billion redress was paid to customers in 2011.
In Australia ASIC’s report 256 published in 2011 identified some risks in sales practices but not on the scale now revealed in the UK.
