From my personal experiences from interacting with banks and other such institutions I have learned that faced with a situation where I or the bank has something to gain, 99% of the cases the bank will win. It comes as no surprise because banks are greedy corporations interested only in their balance sheets and high profits – often neglecting the human factor.
Aside from the reckless investments, outrageous bonuses, big fat pensions for those at the top only and general all-round greedy money-grabbing ethos, just think how often they try to fix their mistakes. Only when forced by the FSA and after being taken to the High Court and being ruled against did they even agree to compensate victims of mis-sold payment protection insurance. And then they do their best to delay paying customers compensation. To top this, banks begun talks with consumer groups which represent the interest of the PPI victims in order to impose a deadline for the claims. Banks initiated these talks hoping that the deadline will save them from countless PPI claims which they would have to solve. This could translate into millions of pounds gain for the banks. Luckily the consumer groups caught on their sneaky strategy and rejected their offer. As a result the talks ended without an agreement and people will continue to claim their PPI refunds back from the banks happily. However I do not think banks will stop that easily and that they will think of other ways to cut their losses.
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Remember when people went to the bank to get a loan and the bank employer would offer PPI as a precaution to cover repayments? Neither do a couple of million people who were mis-sold PPI; they were either tricked into opting in to pay the premiums for PPI or practically forced to buy the insurance regardless of their needs and wants. This is how bank get what they want – big fat commissions and higher profits. The strategy isn’t new but it is very effective and it is quite possible to see it again in the future under a different form. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that the banks have their thinktank working on how to continue selling PPI in a different manner.
In the meantime, everyday tax payers like me and you have to live with the consequences of the banks and their behaviors, especially since some of them are now state owned. I deeply believe that the way banks work should change and start working for the benefit of their customers and not against them. Make sure that you fight your case if they have ripped you off, see how much you might be owed and claim back your PPI refund.
I’ve had my rant now. I feel better.
