Latest news with #mis-selling
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
AXA wins UK court ruling against Santander over PPI claims
Frensh insurer AXA has won a legal case in a London court, resulting in a ruling of approximately £680m (€781.53m) against Santander for the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI). The issue involved losses from mis-selling complaints related to PPI policies underwritten by two companies acquired by AXA from Genworth in 2015. These policies were originally sold by a company that Santander acquired in 2009. The legal proceedings initiated by AXA in the High Court of London in 2021 were prompted by losses associated with more than 650,000 customer complaints regarding PPI policies, with banks having disbursed around £40bn in compensation, according to Reuters. AXA, which assumed responsibility for these liabilities following its acquisition of two Genworth units in 2015, has already paid nearly £500m in consumer redress and over £70m related to complaints, Judge Julia Dias said in her ruling. In her judgement, Judge Dias confirmed that AXA "has a valid claim for an indemnity" against Santander Insurance Services UK concerning the payments made for redress and fees associated with the ombudsman. Legal representatives for AXA at Quinn Emanuel indicated that the ruling's value is estimated at £675m. However, an AXA spokesperson clarified that the company would only receive a portion of the total amount awarded, as Genworth has already compensated AXA for a significant share of the losses incurred from the mis-selling. Genworth Financial stated that it anticipates receiving around $750m, contingent on the current exchange rate. In response to the ruling, a spokesperson for Santander expressed disagreement with the court's decision and indicated plans to appeal. The spokesperson further stated: "We do not expect the net impact of the judgment to be material for Santander given provisions already made and the potential legal actions available. 'No customers have suffered loss as a consequence of the claim brought by AXA France or the judgment, nor does it impact upon past redress paid to customers for PPI complaints." "AXA wins UK court ruling against Santander over PPI claims" was originally created and published by Life Insurance International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Genworth Expects to Collect $750 Million on UK PPI Court Ruling
Genworth Financial Inc. expects to receive about $750 million after a UK court found Banco Santander SA liable for losses it suffered in relation to the mis-selling of payment protection insurance policies before 2005. The policies were sold by GE Capital Bank, which the Spanish lender acquired in 2009. They were underwritten by two units of Genworth that were sold to Axa SA in 2015. On Friday, a UK court said Santander was liable for Axa's losses linked to those policies and awarded it about £680 million ($911 million), the firms said in statements Friday.
Telegraph
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- Telegraph
Reeves to make it harder to claim compensation for City scandals
Rachel Reeves is preparing to make it harder for the public to launch mass compensation claims for City mis-selling scandals in a bid to avoid a repeat of the motor finance crisis. The Chancellor has launched a consultation on plans to rein in the power of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which adjudicates disputes between individuals and financial companies. At the moment, if the FOS discovers a mis-selling scandal, it has the power to propose an industry-wide redress scheme. However, under plans put forward by Ms Reeves, it will have to consult the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which will consider the impact of major payouts on the broader economy. Plans to tighten the rules come in the wake of the car finance mis-selling scandal, which risks costing banks as much as £44bn and has shaken faith in Britain as a place to invest in. Under the new proposals, the FCA will also be able to order the FOS to pause its own investigations until a decision has been made on how to address a large-scale scandal. Additionally, compensation will not be awarded if companies followed FCA guidance – a change to previous rules which allowed the FOS and the courts to apply their own judgment. The level of interest paid on compensation will also be cut for claims made after January 1, 2026 under the proposals. Currently, redress payments owed to wronged customers come with the addition of interest, paid at a rate of 8pc from the date at which their financial product was mis-sold. Under new plans, the interest will be paid at the Bank of England's base rate plus one percentage point – meaning the total will be as low as 1.1pc for the period, at which the official rate was just 0.1pc. Car finance scandal The proposed changes come in the wake of the car finance scandal, which revolves around the undisclosed payment of commission by banks to dealers who sold car loans to customers. The Court of Appeal declared the arrangement unlawful last year, opening up huge liabilities for major banks, including Lloyds. Some lenders brought a challenge to that judgment at the Supreme Court, with a ruling yet to be handed down in the case. The Treasury sought to intervene in the case amid fears the car finance market could grind to a halt ahead of a ruling, but Ms Reeves's petition was rejected. Charlie Nunn, the chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group, last year warned the car finance deliberations were harming the entire economy. 'Investors are looking at this and saying this principle of the courts coming up with decisions independently from the regulation – which is then having a significant retrospective look back – is bleeding across the whole economy,' he said in December. Emma Reynolds, the economic secretary to the Treasury,appeared to agree as she unveiled the consultation. She said: 'For years, stakeholders have consistently raised concerns that some elements of the redress framework can generate problems and lead to inconsistent outcomes for consumers and uncertainty for firms. 'This has suppressed investment and innovation in UK financial services, which can lead to firms offering fewer, less innovative products for consumers due to concerns about potential future redress.' Sarah Pritchard, deputy chief executive at the FCA, said the reforms would balance consumer interests with those of banks and the wider economy. 'When something goes wrong, it is right that people are compensated. But a lack of certainty in the financial redress system can hold back investment and innovation,' she said. 'Our changes will help create a system that is more predictable for firms and gives consumers quick and fair compensation where they're owed it, supporting UK growth.' However, consumer champions warned that the plans meant victims of poor financial practice risked losing out. Gina Miller of True and Fair, a financial campaign group, said: 'The proposed changes will reduce the FOS's powers to make awards, give the FCA a much greater say in mass redress schemes, and slashes the interest paid on redress. So much for the principle that consumers must be fairly compensated when they suffer loss due to regulatory or industry failure. 'These proposed measures risk tilting the balance of power further in favour of financial institutions, at the expense of ordinary savers, investors and small businesses. Limiting redress when schemes become 'too big' for banks to bear is not only unfair but undermines the very purpose of regulation: to protect consumers, not institutions.'
The Sun
30-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Universal Credit households warned claims at RISK over ‘mis-sold' savings accounts
SAVERS are being warned that opening a certain type of savings account could affect their eligibility for Universal Credit. When you apply for the key benefit, the Government will take into account how much you have in savings. 1 One of the factors taken into account is whether you have savings in a Lifetime ISA (LISA). A committee of MPs has just completed a review into Lifetime ISAs - and concluded the accounts may have been improperly sold to people who could be eligible for Universal Credit. The Lifetime ISA lets you save up to £4,000 a year either towards a first home or for retirement. The Government adds a 25% bonus of up to £1,000 a year on top of everything you save annually. Under the current system, any savings held in a LISA can affect your eligibility for Universal Credit or Housing Benefit. That's despite this not being the case for other personal or workplace pension schemes. The report said: "If the Government is unwilling to equalise the treatment of the Lifetime ISA with other Government -subsidised retirement savings products in universal credit assessments, Lifetime ISA products must include warnings that the Lifetime ISA is an inferior product for anyone who might one day be in receipt of Universal Credit. "Such warnings would guard against savers being sold products that are not in their best financial interests, which might well constitute mis-selling." The committee said the inclusion of the Lifetime ISA in the eligibility assessment for these benefits is "inconsistent" with other retirement products and "nonsensical". It comes as Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to reform ISA savings. Disability benefit explained - what you can claim ISAs are accounts that let you save away up to £20,000 every tax year without paying any tax on your interest or earnings. However the Government is hoping to push more savers towards investments rather than cash savings. What is a Lifetime ISA? FIRST-time buyers saving into a LISA can stash up to £4,000 into this account each year tax-free. The government will add a 25% bonus to your savings, up to a maximum of £1,000 per year. For example, if you save £4,000, you'll get a £1,000 bonus. The amount you pay in is linked to your annual ISA allowance (£20,000 for 2023/24) – for example, if you pay £1,000 into your LISA, you can still pay £19,000 into other ISA products. Any bonus you earn doesn't count towards your ISA allowance. You can open a Lifetime ISA with any bank, building society or investment manager that offers the product. You can only open a LISA if you're aged 18–39. You can hold multiple Lifetime ISAs, although you can only pay into one each tax year. You can also transfer your Lifetime ISA to another provider, for example, to get a better interest rate. If you want to use a Lifetime ISA to buy a home, there are a few restrictions you need to keep in mind: Only first-time buyers can use Lifetime ISAs to buy a home, which means you can't own, or have owned, a home in the UK or anywhere in the world. You'll need to be buying a home for no more than £450,000. You must be buying a home you plan to live in – the scheme isn't for buying a home you want to rent out, or a holiday home. If you don't use it to buy your first home, you can continue paying into a LISA until you're 50. You can then make full or partial withdrawal from your LISA, without paying a fee, when you turn 60. Savers might be making 'poorer decisions' The review also found that Lifetime ISAs could be contributing to people making poorer financial decisions. Many use the accounts to boost their deposit savings for their first home. But experts have argued that restrictions placed on LISA customers have led to thousands missing out. You can only use a LISA to purchase a home worth up to £450,000, which in many parts of the country is feasible but in the South East and London this is increasingly pricing people out. The £450,000 limit has not changed since the LISA was first introduced in 2017. On top of this, people withdrawing money from a LISA for any reason other than retirement or buying a first home face a 25% withdrawal charge. At face value this looks like just losing the bonus offered by the Government, but in reality you end up losing 6.25% of your own savings too. In the 2023-24 financial year, 99,650 people were charged the penalty. That's nearly double the number of people who used their LISA to buy a home (56,900). The Treasury Committee, which released the report, said this was a possible indication the LISA is not working as intended. The report said: "Many people have lost a portion of their savings due to a lack of understanding of the withdrawal charge or because of unforeseen changes in their circumstances, such as buying a first home at a price greater than the cap. "However, the case for reducing the charge must be balanced against the impact on Government spending. "The Lifetime ISA must include a deterrent to discourage savers from withdrawing funds from long-term saving." The Office for Budget Responsibility predicts spending on bonuses paid to account holders will cost the Treasury around £3billion over the five years to 2029-30. Treasury Committee chairwoman Dame Meg Hillier said: "The committee is firmly behind the objectives of the Lifetime ISA, which are to help those who need it onto the property ladder and to help people save for retirement from an early age. "The question is whether the Lifetime Isa is the best way to spend billions of pounds over several years to achieve those goals. "We know that the Government is looking at ISA reform imminently, which means this is the perfect time to assess if this is the best way to help the people who need it." Brian Byrnes, head of personal finance at Lifetime ISA provider Moneybox, said the accounts have "proven particularly valuable for first-time buyers on lower to middle incomes, with 80% of Moneybox Lisa savers earning £40,000 or less". "We firmly believe that by future-proofing the house price cap and amending the withdrawal penalty, the LISA would continue to serve as a highly effective product, helping young people build and embed positive saving behaviours early in life, get more people onto the property ladder, and prepare for a more secure retirement," he said.
The Sun
09-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Sun
Car finance mis-selling case: Everything you need to know
THE car finance mis-selling scandal is everywhere, with motorists queuing up to claim a share of what could be billions of pounds in compensation. It's claimed that dodgy car dealers were pocketing extra cash from high-interest car loans, leaving drivers worse off. 2 Check if you could claim for mis-sold car finance below My Claim Group There's an upcoming court case that will put this to the test. If successful, anyone with a car finance agreement signed between 2007 and 28 January 2021 could make a claim. Could you be in line for some car loan compensation cash? In this in-depth article, Sun Motors experts will explain what the car finance misselling scandal is and why it matters to you. We'll also show you how you can register a claim through trusted provider My Claim Group. What is the car finance mis-selling case about? The majority of cars sold in the UK are bought with finance agreements. These loans enable drivers to pay a deposit and then spread the cost of a new vehicle over several years. It was discovered that car dealers, acting as loan brokers, earned a commission based on the interest rate charged to the buyer for Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) and Hire Purchase agreements. These cover about 40% of all car finance agreements. The higher the interest rate charged to the consumer, the more commission the dealer made. Basically, car dealers were incentivised to make loan agreements with higher interest rates. The practice, known as discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs), has left many drivers paying hundreds and even thousands of pounds more for their vehicles. The practice was banned by the UK's money regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in 2021. The FCA is also exploring where mis-selling took place on non-discretionary finance agreements, where car dealers didn't set the interest rates. It's less likely (but not out of the question) that these loans will also be part of this mis-selling scandal. My Claim Group Car finance mis-selling - the timeline Here's a basic timeline of the current car finance misselling legal situation. Problem found (2019): The FCA found some car dealers were making more money by charging people higher interest rates for loans. New rules (2020): The FCA officially banned Discretionary Commission Arrangement (DCA), where dealers chose the interest rate to get more commission. Changes start (2021): The ban came into force, which could save drivers money – around £165 million a year. More rules (2023): A new rule called Consumer Duty came in, making sure companies put customers first. By the end of the year, over 10,000 people had complained about how commission was handled when they bought a car. Pause and review (2024): The FCA paused complaint handling so it could properly look into how car finance was sold, and whether people deserve money back. Court cases begin: Some companies challenged decisions in an attempt to block compensation. Court of Appeal ruling (Oct 2024): The Court of Appeal made a judgment in the Test Cases, finding that it was unlawful for car dealers to receive a commission from loan agreements unless customers were made aware of this. This opens the door for compensation claims from millions of motorists. What's next?: The FCA says it might bring in a refund scheme (called the Car Finance Redress Scheme). A final decision will come six weeks after the Supreme Court rules on the case. How do I know if I've been affected? If you're wondering if all this applies to you, here's how to find out. If you bought a car on finance between 2007-2021, you could have a claim. The easiest and quickest way to check if you're eligible to apply for compensation is to join one of the group claims against lenders. My Claim Group is one of the leading legal firms representing thousands of drivers on a no-win, no-fee basis. If you're confident of doing things yourself, you can use this MoneySavingExpert car finance misselling guide to make a free claim. Which firms are involved? The initial mis-selling scandal emerged after the FCA began investigating Barclays, says Which?. Some of the companies caught up in the finance scandal include high-street giants Lloyds, Santander and Barclays as well as Close Brothers. Don't worry if you don't know or can't remember who provides your car loan, My Claim Group can do all this for you. What is the average payout for a mis-sold car finance refund? The finance sector is taking this very seriously, with estimates for the total cost of compensation an eye-watering £16bn, says Which?. The massive figures represent the fact that DCAs were in place for almost 15 years, and could cover millions of loans. The situation is changing and there are several possible outcomes. If the Supreme Court sides with borrowers, the average compensation should be around £1,000. However, the precise amount depends on the amount of money borrowed and interest rates, so some could expect much higher payouts. Compensation could be paid on any loan agreement that has been mis-sold. This means you may be able to make multiple claims if you have owned cars and paid loans during this period. My Claim Group When will the Supreme Court make a decision? The Supreme Court is expected to make a decision on the car finance mis-selling scandal at some point in 2025. We can't be more precise than that at the moment. Don't worry, you won't miss the announcement. This is likely to be big news for the public (and potentially bad news for the banks) Is it worth putting in a complaint now? Yes, it's important that you register your claim as soon as possible. The sooner you get your claim in, the quicker you could get any compensation that you are due. The good news is that registering your claim is simple and takes a few minutes. How do I complain? If you think you've been mis-sold car finance, the first step is to contact the company that gave you the finance. If you're not happy with their final reply, you can take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). But be aware: you might have to wait a while for that reply. Because of the sheer number of claims, the FCA says companies no longer need to respond within eight weeks. Now, finance companies don't have to reply to complaints about commission until 4 December 2025. If you're unhappy with the response, or you don't receive one, you'll also get more time to take your complaint to the FOS. Normally, you'd have six months after getting a final response. For these complaints, you'll now have 15 months, or until 29 July 2026, whichever is later. As we've explained above, you can do this all yourself if you've got the time and the My Claim Group
