Seeing as PPI was hidden inside loan, credit card and mortgage agreements it’s good to see that people are making a complaint just in case they have a policy they don’t know about. The Financial Services Authority (FSA), FOs, Money Saving Expert and Which? have and would still say that you should make a complaint to see if you were mi sold PPI, yet the Press have managed to turn people being proactive into a ‘Bogus PPI Claims’ story. Both the BBC and the Telegraph are running the story claiming that claims companies are to blame for the 5,661 complaints made by non-policy holders.

No doubt the banks, lenders and insurers that mis sold the over-priced and useless cover in the first place are enjoying the deflection of attention. Lest we forget that the reason we have PPI claims at all is because they told their sales staff to include it in borrowings in return for high commission payments and profit margins. The fact is that the FSA, FOs, Money Saving Expert and Which? would all celebrate 5,661 non-PPI policy holders making complaints directly to the FOs themselves because it’s great that they’re conscious of the mis-selling. Yet, when those complaints are made through a claims company it’s cause for outrage and classed as bogus claiming. Seeing as such complaints would not cost the claimant anything through the majority of the well-known companies (No win, No fee) then what’s the problem?!

But, that could be read as a tad bitter, so here are the facts when it comes to co-called bogus claims in the UK…

- Personal Injury Claims: 120,000 a year (Association of British Insurers ) – wasting 29,000 hours a month at an average of £150 an hour, that’s £4.3m

- Benefit Fraud: (DWP) costs the taxpayer £1.3bn

- VAT fraud: £8.4bn (BBC Panorama)

- Motor insurance fraud: 133,000 bogus claims costing £849m (Association of British Insurers)

So, when you compare 6,000 people seeing if they’re owed PPI to actual bogus claims for benefits, car crashes and injury compensation, I think it’s clear to see the media are talking a load of drivel.

In the last financial year these firms initiated 69% of the PPI claims that went to the ombudsman (down 7% on the previous 12 months), showing an overwhelming preference over self-claiming. While we here at PPIClaimForm.co don’t do any TV, radio or newspaper adverts or phone calls we can see how other companies doing this could encourage people to make claims through a company. But ultimately, people have the ability to decide how they pursue a PPI complaint and most claimants simply don’t have the time to run a case against a lender.

Speaking about the freedom to check if you have PPI, Natalie Ceeney, the Chief Financial Ombudsman said:”I think it is perfectly understandable for people to ask their bank – did I have PPI?.” “At the same time we are seeing consumers being very badly misled by claims management companies.” Compensation Banks are in the process of paying out £9bn in compensation to borrowers who were mis-sold PPI, usually because they could never have claimed on the policies. The huge payout has spawned an industry devoted to getting hold of a slice of the money.”

OK, rant time… Apologies Natalie for helping people get their money back, do you not pay someone to service your car? Do you not buy your groceries at a shop instead of growing them? Do you not use a mobile phone or ring a plumber when the boiler goes bump? The majority of us pay an expert to provide these services for us because we either don’t have the time or inclination to do it ourselves. And we pay for them for their time and work.

I know that not all claims companies are whiter than white, but honest mechanics lose out because of less scrupulous garages as do tradesmen. If people are to be encouraged by public bodies and consumer champions to see if they have been mis sold PPI and they choose the most popular way to do it, it seems unfair to make out that claims companies as a whole are encouraging people to make bogus claims.