Daily Mail - 01.08.2019

Page 14

That’s how many PPI claims

Lloyds is getting every week

as August 29 deadline looms

NEARLY 200,000 customers

a week are bombarding
Britain’s largest bank with

PPI compensation requests

ahead of its claims deadline.
With only a month remaining,
Lloyds said that it is being
contacted by 190,000 people a
week – 120,000 above average.
Other banks are also thought to
have been inundated with requests
amid a scramble for pay-outs.
Lloyds set aside another £550mil-
lion to pay victims of the country’s
biggest ever banking scandal in the
second quarter of this year – mean-
ing the debacle has now cost it a
staggering £20billion.
For the industry, the PPI bill
stands at £35.7billion, enough
to pay Britain’s entire annual
public order and safety
budget. Victims of the disas-
ter must claim by August 29.
Lloyds – which is Britain’s
biggest High Street bank
with 22million current
account customers – said the
surge had taken it by sur-
prise, pushing down profits.
Around 10 per cent of its
190,000 weekly requests for
information are expected to
lead to official claims.
Other major names are
expected to set aside mil-
lions to deal with the cut-off
rush. Many claims will be
genuine as the PPI scandal
saddled huge numbers with
unnecessary bills. But other
customers appear to be try-
ing their luck, egged on by
unscrupulous claims man-
agement firms.
Martyn James, of consumer

rights group Resolver, said:

‘PPI was the biggest finan-

cial mis-selling scandal of all

time. It won’t just be Lloyds

• expect further big-money
  announcements from the
  other banking groups too.
  ‘Even though these num-
  bers are extraordinary, there
  are still going to be millions
  of people who are owed

money not put in a claim.’ As

many as 64million people

were sold PPI policies, mostly

between 1990 and 2010.

The product was designed

to cover repayments on loans

and credit cards if a borrower

was made redundant or una-

ble to work. Many customers

had no idea what they were

buying or how much it cost.

Many borrowers, for example

those who were self-

employed, could not even

use the product to claim.

Banks quickly realised that

PPI was a huge money-spin-

ner and set their staff mas-

sive sales targets. When the

extent of the scandal became

clear, they fought in the

courts to avoid offering com-

pensation but lost a land-

mark case in 2011 – opening

the floodgates.

In 2017, the Financial Con-

duct Authority watchdog

imposed the August cut-off

date for claims to try and

bring the saga to a close. At

Lloyds, the PPI charge has

driven profits down to

£2.9billion for the first six

months of 2019 – 7 per cent

lower than 2018. George Cul-

mer, chief financial officer,

said: ‘We were always in

favour of a time bar, partly

because we knew it would

encourage customers to

make contact. The speed at

which that’s happening has

caught us by surprise.’

Mr Culmer added that the

lender may yet have to set

aside more money, although

Lloyds is hopeful its costs

will be covered.

Lloyds estimates it has sold

16million PPI policies since

2000, including both legiti-

mate and toxic ones, adding

that just 54 per cent of these

have since been dealt with.

Barclays, Royal Bank of

Scotland and HSBC all

reveal their results in days.

Ian Gordon, at Investec, said

that if their experiences

match Lloyds’ the PPI bill

could rise by £700million.

15-year fixed rate home

loan back after a decade

STRICTLY Come Dancing has

revealed the first three contest-

ants joining this year’s line-up.

Former England goalkeeper

David James, EastEnders actress

Emma Barton and comedian

Chris Ramsey will star in the 17th

series of the hit BBC show.

James, 48, who was capped 53

times, will have his eye on the

glitterball after lifting trophies

at Liverpool and Portsmouth

during his footballing career.

Miss Barton, 42, who plays

Honey Mitchell in the BBC soap,

will put her stage experience to

good use having starred as

Roxie Hart in musical Chicago

and Dolly in the National Thea-

tre’s One Man, Two Guvnors.

The self-confessed Strictly fan

said: ‘I still can’t believe this is

happening. I’m very much a

dance around your handbag

kinda girl.’ The lesser-known

Ramsey, 32, will be recognisable

to comedy buffs who tune in to

Comedy Central UK to watch his

Chris Ramsey Show.

‘I’m looking forward to

making a fool of myself in front

of millions,’ he said.

Smiles: Comic Chris Ramsey

Fast feet: Ex-England goalkeeper David James

190

,

000

Unveiled, new stars

making the Strictly

glitterball their goal

By James Burton

Chief City Correspondent

Razzle-dazzle: EastEnders star Emma Barton

‘Scandal so far

cost bank £20bn’

HOMEBUYERS can now take out a 15-year

fixed rate mortgage for the first time in a

decade. High street bank Virgin Money

has revealed it will allow borrowers to

protect themselves against rising interest

rates until 2034.

Borrowers with a 35 per cent deposit

who sign up will be locked into an ultra-

cheap rate of just 2.55 per cent. This is just

0.26 percentage points more expensive

than the cheapest ten-year deal and 1.

percentage points higher than the top

five-year fix.

The last time borrowers could sign up to

a 15-year fixed deal was in 2009 when

Britannia Building Society offered a rate

of 6.49 per cent, according to analysts

Moneyfacts. Experts said the deal could

appeal to homeowners in their ‘forever

home’ looking to protect their family

finances against rising interest rates.

Economists and the financial markets

are at loggerheads over whether the

Bank of England will move to raise or cut

interest rates. Analysts at economic fore-

casting firm EY Item Club predict the Bank

of England base rate will remain at 0.

per cent for the rest of the year and rise

to 1 per cent around mid-2020. Traders, on

the other hand, think there is a 50 per

cent chance the base rate will fall before

the end of the year.

Borrowers who want to exit the 15-year

Virgin Money deal in the first five years

will be charged a penalty of 8 per cent of

their outstanding balance.

By Samantha Partington

Money Mail Reporter

By Eleanor Sharples

TV and Radio Reporter

(^) Daily Mail, Thursday, August 1, 2019