The fact that there have been so many PPI claims over the past few years has meant that the PPI industry has been landed with a big bill. But just exactly what is the justification for people claiming back money against PPI policies?



Well, let's take a look at the actual product itself. Payment Protection Insurance, as you might guess from the name, is supposed to protect people taking out loans, credit cards or other similar financial products, in the event that, through no fault of their own (for example income cut through redundancy or illness) they are unable to meet their monthly repayments. You probably think that sounds like a great idea, right? Certainly - in theory it is.



The issue surrounding PPI claims isn't the product itself but the way in which it has been sold, or rather mis-sold, to potentially millions of consumers. It recently emerged that numerous consumers had been made to believe that PPI would either increase their chances of successfully applying for their loan or other financial product. In other cases, consumers had been told that PPI was compulsory.



These are only the tip of the iceberg. There are other situations where people have been sold policies that they would realistically never have been able to make a successful claim on in the first place, for example those who were unemployed, retired or self-employed when applying for the policy. There are also people who have been sold the policies without even knowing it and others not given time to read the terms surrounding the PPI. Unfortunately, there are plenty of other examples too.



Any company which sells or brokers any form of financial product or service to a consumer has a responsibility to make sure that the said consumer is completely aware of the terms. In the cases that have emerged in recent years, the lenders and brokers have failed and this is why there are now so many PPI claims taking place.