Prestige Finance PPI: Understanding Your Options

Prestige Finance, like many lenders in the past, offered Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) alongside their loan products. PPI was designed to cover loan repayments if you were unable to work due to illness, accident, or unemployment. However, widespread mis-selling of PPI led to a significant scandal, and millions of people successfully claimed refunds.

What Constitutes PPI Mis-selling?

PPI was often mis-sold by Prestige Finance and other lenders in several ways. Common examples include:

• Not being told PPI was optional: You may have been led to believe that taking out PPI was compulsory for loan approval, or that it would improve your chances of getting the loan.
• Being sold unsuitable PPI: The policy may not have been suitable for your circumstances. For example, if you were self-employed or had pre-existing medical conditions, the policy might not have provided any real benefit.
• Lack of clear information: You may not have been given clear and accurate information about the terms and conditions of the policy, including exclusions and limitations.
• Pressure selling: You may have felt pressured into taking out PPI, even if you didn’t want or need it.
• Failure to assess affordability: The lender may not have properly assessed whether you could afford the PPI premiums.
• Commission undisclosed: The high level of commission earned by the lender from selling PPI may not have been disclosed.

The PPI Deadline and What It Means

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) set a deadline of 29 August 2019 for making PPI claims. This deadline has now passed. This means you can no longer make a new complaint to Prestige Finance, or to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) directly regarding the mis-selling of PPI.

Are There Any Exceptions?

While the official deadline has passed, there are very limited circumstances in which you might still be able to pursue a claim. These usually involve:

• Undisclosed Commission Claims (Plevin): This involves arguing that the high commission paid to the lender for selling PPI was unfair, even if the PPI itself wasn’t necessarily mis-sold in other ways. This type of claim can be complex and often requires specialist legal advice. Even Plevin claims are significantly more difficult to pursue now that the general PPI deadline has passed.
• Exceptional Circumstances: If you can demonstrate that you were genuinely unable to make a claim before the deadline due to exceptional circumstances (e.g., serious illness, mental incapacity), you might be able to persuade the FOS to consider your case. This is extremely rare.

What to Do Next

Given that the deadline has passed, the options for pursuing a PPI claim against Prestige Finance are severely limited. You should carefully consider whether you have a valid reason to argue for an exception to the deadline. If you believe you do, seeking legal advice from a solicitor specializing in financial mis-selling is highly recommended. Be cautious of claims management companies who may promise easy success, as the chances of success are now very low. Thoroughly research any company before engaging their services and understand their fees.