Скрытая страховка при оформлении кредитной карты
Клиентом Райффайзен банка являюсь давно, уже около 10 лет и до сих пор считала, что это один из приличных банков, заботящихся о своих клиентах. Что на самом деле: в конце 2014 года оформляла кредитную карту в добавку к дебетовым, так как удобно для поездок и крупных покупок. Недавно решила просмотреть выписку за кредитный период и обнаружила непонятную для меня тразакцию «CR.CARD INSUR PAYMENT RL». При внимательном просмотре остальных выписок выяснилось, что такая транзакция присутствует в каждой из них, а суммы сильно варьируются — от 17 рублей до 1000 и больше.
Отправилась в банк. Там мне напечатали договор по кредитной карте, состоящий из 3 страниц — такой же я нашла дома. Первая страница — условия по кредитной карте, вторая — подробности договора. А вот третья — это целая страница мелкого шрифта с двумя галочками сверху, проставленными сотрудником банка. Оказалось, что эта третья страница — согласие на страхование жизни и чего-то там. Естественно, об этой страховке сотрудник банка не сказал ни слова.
Да, я не стала внимательно читать все страницы договора по кредитной карте, ознакомившись только с базовыми условиями, поскольку не ожидала мошенничества со стороны такой организации. И да, мне выдали эти 3 страницы уже скрепленными степлером. То есть если вы не ожидаете подвоха, то вы подпишите и третью страницу, дав тем самым банку возможность ежемесячно списывать с вас 0.6 процента от использованной суммы кредита. Очень рекомендую всем, кто оформлял кредитные карты в данном банке, тщательно проверить выписки — никаких смс уведомлений об этих списаниях не приходит и их легко не заметить в общем потоке транзакций.
Ну а про репутацию банка уже говорить нечего: имя-то может и Европейское, но бизнес ведут чисто по-русски. Увы.
При оформлении документов на получении кредитной карты Вами было подписано отдельное заявление на включение в программу страхования. Возможно в момент подписания данного заявления, Вы не придали значения, но тем самым выразили свое согласие в участие в страховой программе. Сожалеем, если это произвело на Вас негативное впечатление.
Ваше обращение, оставленное через отделение банка, было зарегистрировано под номером CPL000000399178 и в настоящее время находится в работе. По окончанию расследования с Вами обязательно свяжется представитель Банка.
С уважением,
Овсянкин Александр,
Отдел качества обслуживания,
АО «Райффайзенбанк»
Payment Protection Insurance (PPI)
Payment Protection Insurance, otherwise known as PPI, is an insurance policy that is available to protect you on loan or debt repayment, in the event that you are unable to meet the regular repayments, perhaps due to illness, an accident, or unemployment.
PPI is often sold as part of the loan package when taking out a personal loan, mortgage, credit card or store card. It can also be bought as a separate product.
Do I need PPI?
The UK Money Advice Service’s website provides some very useful information about PPI, including what it does and does not cover, its pros and cons, the costs involved, as well as other types of insurance to consider.
However, please note that this information is aimed at consumers based in the UK, and is not Guernsey-specific.
If you are considering buying PPI, you should ensure that you have been provided with a clear explanation of all the costs, conditions and exclusions involved. Remember, you are not obliged to buy PPI from the provider of the loan, mortgage or credit, and can shop around until you find something appropriate for you. Some loan or credit providers may insist that you take out PPI with them, but ultimately it is your choice whether you go to another lender or credit provider.
As PPI is not a cheap option, it is also advisable to ask for quotes for both a loan with PPI and one without. If this cannot be provided, again, you may want to consider other providers.
Was I mis-sold PPI?
PPI has received adverse publicity in the media over last few years, due to the number of claims that were rejected after policies were purchased.
Consumers had bought such policies believing they would cover their loan or debt repayment during periods of hardship, but thousands later found, when they came to claim on their policies, that they did not qualify to claim for PPI. For example, they may not have been in full-time employment, or they were below the minimum age.
On review, these policies were found to have been ‘mis-sold’, due to the inadequate explanation of the exclusions on such policies at the point of sale.
As a result, the banks, and other financial institutions in the UK who were involved in the direct sales process of PPI were required to provide redress to their customers. Unfortunately, as the redress exercise was put in place by the UK regulator, it did not extend to banks, loan or credit providers in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which sold PPI underwritten by UK insurers. That said, although ther was no specific requirement for Guernsey banks to follow suit, some UK banks with a presence in Guernsey extended their PPI redress policy to the Channel Islands too.
The UK regulator set a deadline of 29 August 2019 for PPI complaints. Generally, if you did not make a complaint to your provider on or before 29 August 2019 you can no longer submit a claim.
That said, you may be able to complain to your bank or other provider, or to the Channel Islands Financial Ombudsman (if the PPI was sold by a provider either in the Bailiwick of Guernsey or Jersey) or the Financial Ombudsman Service (if it was sold by a UK provider), after the deadline, if you experienced ‘exceptional circumstances’ which meant you could not complain within the time limit. Some examples of situations that may be considered exceptional have been provided by the Financial Ombudsman Service, a link to which can be found here, under the heading, “What counts as exceptional circumstances”.
Further information
However, please note that this information is aimed at consumers based in the UK, and is not Guernsey-specific.
Payment protection insurance (PPI)
The chances are that you’ve heard of payment protection insurance, or PPI, as a financial product that has been notoriously mis-sold to many customers taking out loans or credit cards over the last few years.
We’ll explain exactly what PPI is, and help you work out if you need it and if you’ve been mis-sold it in the past over the course of this guide.
In This Guide:
What is PPI?
Payment protection insurance is a form of cover sold alongside various types of loan or credit card. The idea is that it allows you to guarantee you’ll be able to keep up with repayments in the event that you are unable to come up with the money yourself for whatever reason.
This could be due to illness, redundancy or any other change in your employment status.
Do I need PPI?
At least in theory, PPI can be very helpful and is similar to other loan insurance products like income protection insurance or critical illness cover.
Whether or not you feel that you need it is, ultimately, up to you and will depend on various factors including the cost of the cover as well as any contingency measures you might already have in place in case you can’t make payments like a savings account or the income of a spouse.
Have I been sold PPI?
Until fairly recently, PPI was often bundled in with various loans and credit cards by providers, often without the full knowledge of the borrower.
If, when you took out your credit card, there was discussion of ‘protection cover’ or simply ‘cover’, then the chances are that you were sold PPI along with the card.
The best way to check if you have been sold PPI is to simply examine the original paperwork associated with your credit card. If you don’t have it to hand then you can always contact your card provider to get hold of it and all of the associated information. Again, check for phrases like ‘protection cover’ on your paperwork, including any monthly statements.
Have I been mis-sold PPI?
What the PPI scandal in recent years revealed was that many loan and credit card providers had lumped PPI in with their credit products either without the borrower being fully aware or to borrowers who would be unable to claim anyway.
Those who have pre-existing medical conditions, as well as some self-employed people will not be able to claim on their PPI even if they have a policy active. This was not always made clear to those who it was sold to.
If you fall into any of these categories, or feel that you have been sold PPI when didn’t want or need it, then you should be able to reclaim it.
How to reclaim PPI
In order to reclaim PPI you feel that you’ve been mis-sold, you’ll need to get in touch with the company who sold it to you.
You’ll need to get all of the relevant documentation ready and draft a letter detailing the amount you’ve paid, when the policy was taken out, and how much you paid for the cover, among other bits of information.
You’ll also need to provide any relevant reference numbers for your complaints case and the details of any personnel involved to make the process as streamlined as possible.
There are various templates for PPI complaint letters available online that will tell you exactly what you need to write in order to reclaim.
In some cases, when the body who sold you the PPI does not respond, you will need to go over their heads and get in touch with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS is a government watchdog designed specifically to promote fair and reasonable practise in these kinds of situations so they will be able to help you reclaim what you are owed.
What Is Payment Protection Insurance?
Whether due to unexpected illness or job loss, there are numerous reasons why you might struggle to repay debt. Payment protection insurance is designed to mitigate this risk, but it carries with it some negative historic connotations due to mis-selling. We’ll cover how payment protection insurance works below, along with its pros and cons.
Payment protection insurance (PPI) explained
Payment protection insurance, or PPI for short, is a type of policy designed to help consumers repay debts over a short-term, fixed period. It provides coverage for issues like accidents and illness, which is why it’s often referred to as accident, sickness, and unemployment insurance. Terms and conditions will vary, but most PPI helps policy holders meet specific monthly loan repayments over a fixed term.
In the past, PPI was sold as part of a package deal with financial products like credit cards, mortgages, loans, and car finance. The full premium was often added on to the total amount borrowed, with the borrower then paying off the premium over the loan’s term – with interest. These single premium policies were banned in 2009, so you’ll now pay monthly premiums instead.
How was PPI mis-sold in the past?
You may have heard of payment protection insurance claims being paid out for mis-sold PPI. While today’s lenders have stricter guidelines to follow when selling this type of insurance, there have been issues in the past.
Here are a few of the main reasons why payment protection insurance refunds have been issued:
PPI was sold without a signed agreement
PPI was sold without the borrower being informed of its purchase
PPI was sold as a mandatory add-on to a credit card or loan
PPI policies weren’t adequately explained to the borrower
These policies were often added on as a standard bundled product for any loan, without giving borrowers the information needed. In short, buyers didn’t understand what they were paying for. As a result, billions of pounds have been repaid in payment protection insurance claims.
How to claim a payment protection insurance refund
If you took out any of the following lines of credit prior to 2011, it’s possible that you were mis-sold PPI:
Secured business loans
It’s worth looking over your past bank statements to see if you paid for payment protection insurance without knowing about it. While the FCA set a deadline of 29 August 2019 to resolve PPI complaints, you might still be able to launch a complaint with your provider under exceptional circumstances. You can learn more about these requirements on the Financial Ombudsman Service website .
What is mortgage payment protection insurance?
A similar product you might see advertised is mortgage payment protection insurance. So, what is mortgage payment protection insurance, and how does it differ from regular PPI? Both products are intended to help you repay debts in the event of unexpected job loss, accident, or illness. Mortgage payment protection insurance typically goes a step further by covering mortgage payments as well as a percentage of household bills. It’s targeted directly at homeowners, with longer lasting coverage.
Is payment protection insurance right for you?
While there have been issues with mis-sold PPI in the past, restrictions have been significantly tightened to make this a better regulated insurance product. Payment protection insurance can be a good idea for consumers who don’t already have loan protection insurance or critical illness cover. However, there are a few factors to keep in mind. The first is that PPI is very specific in its coverage. It will only cover one debt, whether it’s your mortgage, loan, or credit card repayment. Policies don’t kick in with immediate coverage either; you’ll first need to make payments throughout the deferred period.
As with any insurance product, it’s vital to read the fine print carefully. Pre-existing conditions won’t be covered, and some illnesses may be excluded. If you already have a sizeable savings cushion and illness coverage, you probably won’t need to take out a separate, debt-specific policy like PPI.
We can help
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