Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

[L'pool64]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hi I_Cru,

if you let your case go to FOS,it can take up to two years to resolve. For what it is worth, if a pay out would ease your situation at the minute then surely it is worth communicating back with the companies? On this site you have Victoria and Di, who are two of the most fantastic people you will ever come across. They will give you of their time and expertise freely and willingly..... If you just ask for help.

yes it will take your time but, not a huge amount.

best regards,

:beagle:

[Monty276]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hi,

I received a fob off decision from Santander this morning which stated the following...

"Thank you for telling us of your concerns about the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) taken out to protect your loan payments.
We are sorry that you have found it necessary to complain.

My investigation is now complete and I unable to uphold your complaint. I appreciate that you have concerns about the sale of a PPI policy, but I have provided the reasons for my decision below:

My Decision and Reasoning

Santander undertook a customer contact exercise for customers who purchased Alliance & Leicester Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) via the telephone between 14 January 2005 and 31 December 2007. Between January 2009 and October 2009 we wrote to you at the above address.

The purpose was to advise that we had identified problems with the sales of some PPI products and that depending on your circumstances that you might be entitled to a refund. In order to investigate this possibility we requested that you contact us on the telephone number provided in our letter or write to us using the pre paid envelope we enclosed.

As you did not respond to the letter, we sent you a follow up letter, enclosing a copy of the orginal letter, advising you that if we did not hear back from you within 14 days we would consider the matter closed. For your reference, I have enclosed template copies of both of the letters you would have received.

Our records show that you chose not register any complaint following either letter.

The Financial Conduct Authority, who regulate Santander, allow us to place a reasonable time limit on when we will accept complaints from customers we have written to advising that they may have been mis-sold and notifying them of what they need to do next in order for us to assess if any compensation is due. This is known as "time bar" and means that you can only complain about the sale of a policy if you do so within six years of the sale of your policy sold on 14 March 2007, or, if later, three years from the date of our letter sent to you.

I am satisfied that three years have elapsed since we wrote to you in which you had the opportunity to decide whether or not you had any concerns over the way in which your PPI was sold, and to make a complaint about it, therefore your complaint is now time barred."

They then go on to say that if I am dissatisfied with the result contact the Financial Ombudsman Service etc.

What they are saying is rubbish, I never received any phone call or letters from Santander with regards to "problems with the sales of some PPI products"

I never received any phone call or letters from them, if I had I would have certainly replied if I was entitled to a refund!

Any suggestions what I should do next?

Regards

Monty

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hi Monty,
I am sorry, you have such a hard time with Santander, but it is not at all surprising.
Did they send you the copies of actual letters, written to you personally, or "template copies, which you would have received"?
I might be wrong, but my understanding is that you are entitled to reopen any case at any time, should there be new circumstances you discoverd in the relation to your case.
Were their letters send by recorded delivery?
If not, it is reasonable to believe your side of the story, that you did not receive it.
If you did receive those letters and were told that there is a time limit, you would be insane not to take actions if you were going to complain anyway and were made aware that by missing the deadline you will lose your case.
Considering that you are not insane and considering Santander being very unreliable, it is reasonable to believe that you did not receive those letters. That would be a common sense.
Let's see what others will suggest.
I would personally write or email to Santander's CEO a strong latter of complaint and insist on reopening your case prior to your escaping this matter.
You may call to then FOS just for a verbal advice, explaining your situation.
In my experience their verbal advices over the phone were useful and helpful.
Best of luck and please keep us posted
Victoria

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hi L_Cru,
Sorry, I could not reply sooner as I was away on a business trip.
Yes, unfortunately, with Santander you have to be prepared for a fight.
It is so very wrong, not only they owe you, but you have to fight so hard to get it. However, that is the way it is with Santander.
However, as you can see from this forum, a lot of us managed to win.
I believe the FOS will not be able to take such a case because it is a store card taken before 2005, so it does not go under the jurisdiction of the FOS. It was not regulated then in 2001.

(By the way, with M&S it was an easy case for me. How does it go with them?)

Your options with Santander are:
1.To write or email to the Santander's CEO department.
Few of us went down that route and it worked (in my own case and also in LouLou's case).
2. To write to the underwater (Genworth). Our fabulous Di has the best template letter for the underwriters.
It used to work, but unfortunately they become more and more like Santander and just started to repeat Santander's rejection letters word for word.
If they reject, you can then take it to the FOS (they can take a case agains the underwriters, but it is about 4 years).
3. Also you can take your case to small claim court. Our wonderful L'pool is a great expert and she can advise you if it comes to that.
(By the way, you can email to the CEO a and send Di's letter to underwriter at the same time).
If none works, then you still have small claim courrt.
One observation to point out.
If you are not covered by PPI due to your employment status (like I believe, is in your case) or pre-existing medical conditions, you will eventually get a full refund if you are persistent and are ready to keep going in spite of their ways to discourage you and make you doubt your entitlement for a refund. That is their tactic.
So, please, no matter what, do keep going and you have all the chances to win.
It took me 4 months and 3 rejection letters, but I did get there at the end. So did L'pool, LouLou and Di.
We are here to help.
LB is the best forum.
Good luck and please keep us posted.
Victoria

[trackmaxi]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Could anyone help me on what I can do next with Santander please??

I have just had my SAR back from Santander, which shows over the years, 3 loans and my mortgage.

The first loan I took had no PPI, the second one DID have PPI and the third didn't.

My question is how to proceed with asking for a refund now.

My employment status during the period off three loans was the same, full time employed and full sick pay 12 months and then 1/2 pay for 12 months.
I also remember the chat with the agent on the phone going along the lines of "It's your second loan with us so it's more likely to be accepted with the insurance"
The third loan I spoke to someone in work about it and he advised me at the time we didn't need the PPI because our sick pay was enough to cover it and it wasn't grounds to refuse the loan. I never thought to look at getting back what I paid on the last one, just accepted it had happened!

Can anyone help with the best way to proceed with Santander please??

I've just had a letter from MBNA saying I am receiving £2200 back from them so I am made up, just hope I can get my Santander and Egg ones back too!!

Thanks in advance guys and girls....

Matt

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hello Matt,

Congratulations with your success with MBNA. Well done.

Santander is one of the difficult companies. However they are more difficult with credit cards than with loans.
In your SAR should be some reference related to your telephone conversation, if not a full content, at least, what they call a "footprint".
Is there any mention of your conversation?

It seems like you have a strong case.

Why would you want to take PPI for one loan while you did not take it with others?
Your personal circumstances clearly indicate that you did not need that cover, having obviously other means to repay, other insurances.

Your side of the story is believable, you had no reason to get that insurance, while the business, Santander, had all the reasons to sell it to you.
You were misled to believe that it will increase your chances to be approved, that makes it mis-sale.

Go for it and please be determined and prepare to stand up to them.

We are here to help.

Best of luck.

Victoria

[trackmaxi]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Whoooop........ SUCCESS again, Santander are paying me out! £2569.... I'm actually shocked at the amount, and made up!

Looks like my well structured letter worked a treat!! Onwards with EGG now......

Matt

[Amethyst]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Wow great work Matt, congrats and enjoy

[sammyg1971]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Has anyone had any success with Santander with store cards yet?
I had 2 store cards a Debenhams and a new look one and they both had PPi on them.
I wrote to Santander to ask for the ppi back but I got the generic letter back stating they were not regulated blah blah blah.
I then tried genworth who also said no with their generic letter.
Is there any other route to go with these apart from the small claims court?
Its not fair that they have taken all this money and getting away with it and yet the FOS are not able to do anything about it ....
any advice appreciated
sammy

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Whoooop........ SUCCESS again, Santander are paying me out! £2569.... I'm actually shocked at the amount, and made up!

Looks like my well structured letter worked a treat!! Onwards with EGG now......

Matt

Congratulations, Matt! Well done again! Enjoy!

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Has anyone had any success with Santander with store cards yet?
I had 2 store cards a Debenhams and a new look one and they both had PPi on them.
I wrote to Santander to ask for the ppi back but I got the generic letter back stating they were not regulated blah blah blah.
I then tried genworth who also said no with their generic letter.
Is there any other route to go with these apart from the small claims court?
Its not fair that they have taken all this money and getting away with it and yet the FOS are not able to do anything about it ....
any advice appreciated
sammy

Hello Sammy,
Yes, we had successes with Santander store cards. It is not an easy one, but you can get there eventually if you can prove mis-sale and have good real grounds for your complaint.

I had success myself with Santander store card taken before 2005 when they were not regulated. At first they rejected 3 times. But I continued to fight my case. Then eventually they had to uphold.

Unfortunately Genworth these days takes the same line as Santander.

About the way forward.

1. Firstly I suggest to email to the CEO. That what worked for me and also for our LouLou.

By the way, do you have your SAR with all available data? It can be very helpful.

If you state your case and show your reasons for complaint clearly in your email to the CEO, you can give them further 2 weeks to reconsider prior to escalating your case.

That would be my next step. While doing that I would at the same time contact my MP. I copied to my MP all my communication (by email) with Santander CEO office team and it was visible that MP is well aware what is going on. It was helpful.

2. At the same time you can bring your case against Genworth to the FOS and the Ombudsman will take it because Genworth were regulated. Furthermore I believe it is an established link between Santander and Genworth and it should not be a problem with that. Unfortunately it might take up to 4 years.

3. You can do both at the same time, to file your complaint with the FOS against Genworth anyway and still email to the FOS a strong letter giving them 2 more weeks. It would be good if you can inform your MP and include him or her in that email to the CEO. It is something our MPs are supposed to help us with, it is their "territory".

4. If the CEO office will not sort it out, I would take it to small claim court. L'pool did that after being rejected by the CEO. It costs you almost nothing. L'pool got everything and more refunded out of court. They did not have to go to court after all. However your determination and being prepared to do it is an important and helpful tool. That is why, just in case, your SAR is very useful to have ready.

What are your reasons for complaint, were you not able to benefit from the policy (your employment status, pre-existing medical conditions etc.), was it useless and unnecessary for you because you had other means to repay, or you did not apply for it or you did not know it was optional etc.? What did you state as the reason you think it was mis-sold?

If you have good grounds, you certainly can get it upheld, it is definitely possible. Being persistent and being prepared to fight for your case when you know you are right, is your best ally.
This fabulous forum has such wonderful people who will give you all the best help and support you can wish for.

Best,

Victoria

[sammyg1971]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Thanks for your reply Victoria,
do you have the e mail for the CEO please and also is there a template letter I can use as I am not very good putting words together.
Thanks so much
Sammy

[Victoria27]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Sammy, you are very welcome

Email I used was:

ceo@santander.co.uk

also

SCLUKPPIExecComp@santander.co.uk

There is no template as such. Though ther are few letters even here, on our thread. Few of them I wrote myself

I am happy to help you with that.
I wrote a lot of letters in the past on that subject. I'd like to help and together we will try to prepare that letter, but, please, be aware that my English is not perfect as it is my second language, so, you might need a few corrections . I am sure you are better than me putting words together, I might put a few thoughts and ideas together. ))

In order for me to have some ideas, would you kindly let me know about
your reasons for complaint, your grounds etc.,
tneir reasons for rejection (I can guess, it is all ther same ), still it may be helpful,
also
do you have your SAR?

I might not be able to reply to you straight away, being very busy with my work, but I shall do it as soon as I have my first chance.

We'll give it our best shot.

Victoria

[squidier]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Having read the hugely informative posts in this thread I wondered whether I could as some advice.

My Mum died last September and whilst sorting out her estate I found that she had ppi on a Debenhams store card. I would like to try to make a ppi claim on behalf of her estate. I am the executor of the estate.

I have managed to get the SAR info from Santander (they don't make it easy do they?!).

Mum did not tick the box for ppi on the original loan agreement in 2000. The SAR correspondence states that in 2002 'Automatic letter deb insurance added by telemarketing sale' which I guess means that they rang her and persuaded her to take the insurance.

Then in 2003 the sar lists:

30/11/2003 - INSURANCE STATUS TO F
30/11/2003 - INSURANCE STATUS F TO R
30/11/2003 - INS. CANCEL REASON TO R
30/11/2003 - INS. EFFECTIVE DATE 01/01/0001 TO 30/11/2003
30/11/2003 - INS CANCEL DATE 01/01/0001 TO 30/11/2003

Which I guess means she cancelled it, the tranasctions on the account show premiums paid for April and May 2003, then nothing until August 2005 when she paid monthly until her death.
However the sar also has

23/09/2005 - INSURANCE STATUS F TO X
23/09/2005 - INS. CANCEL REASON TO X
23/09/2005 INS CANCEL DATE 01/01/0001 TO 23/09/2005

Which sounds like a further cancellation?

So I would like to make a claim based on:

1. That Mum didn't originally want the insurance, was then persuaded to buy it over the phone (she had poor hearing, probably didn't understand what they were saying), she then cancelled it but it was again reinstated.

2. She was 69 in 2002 so many of the policy benefits were not available to her a few months after starting the policy.

How do you think I should word the initial complaint letter - I would like to get it right at the start as I'm aware from this thread that Santander are difficult to deal with and that my Mum isn't around to say what actually happened.

Thanks
Jane

[McG44]

Re: Please post your own experience of reclaiming PPI from Santander

Hello all!

Just joined and am impressed by all the info. I thought I would share this in the hope of some insight.

My claim on a credit card ( i had two) was upheld by MBNA only recently. They were able to tell me, that the one they took over from Santander in 2001 had PPI applied but it was cancelled by me within 30 days, and consequently they refunded the £25.00 on that specific card - fair enough!!

They couldn't tell me what the story was before that time, as it was Abbey Visa ( Santander) and Santander are claiming their records don't go back that far (1997) so are refusing to consider even looking!

I was wondering if anyone else has a similar scenario in which case could they comment on whether they think it likely I had PPI on the card from the start (1997), Obviously I cant remember, but if there had been PPI on the card when MBNA took it over in 2001 I'm assuming they wouldn't have needed to sell me it twice, so that suggests there wasn't any on it pre-MBNA and it would be a waste of energy pursuing a claim with Santander.

I have no problem tackling Santander, I just don't want to waste my time or get my hopes up.......MCG