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Can I complain about commission - because of the Plevin judgment?

Some people with PPI may be due some money back - after a court case called Plevin v Paragon Personal Finance Ltd. Find out if you might be affected and what to do next.

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What is Plevin?

We decide complaints based on what’s fair and reasonable in the individual circumstances. And as part of this, we take the relevant law into account.

For PPI complaints, the court case of Plevin v Paragon Personal Finance may be relevant. In this case - often just called Plevin - the Supreme Court said that, in some circumstances, an undisclosed commission on PPI could result in an unfair relationship between the lender and consumer under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

In August 2017 the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published more rules and guidance about PPI complaints - some of which relate to the issues raised in Plevin. The FCA has said that if this commission made up over half of the cost of the PPI, and this wasn’t made clear, then the lender should give some of this money back to their customer. We take FCA rules and guidance into account when deciding what’s fair in individual complaints.

Does Plevin affect me?

Not everyone who complains about PPI will be affected. If you’ve already had a full refund of your PPI, then there’s no need to complain about commission – as you’ve already had everything back that you paid.

If you’ve complained about mis-sold PPI already, but you didn’t get a refund, you might be able to complain about commission.

In general, you might be able to complain about commission if:

  • you took out the credit the PPI was sold with (for example, a loan or credit card) on or after 6 April 2007;
  • you took out the credit the PPI was sold with before 6 April 2007, and it was still running on or after 6 April 2008.

How do I complain about commission?

Have a look at our guide on how to complain. The first step is to complain to the business. Remember - you’ll need to do this by 29 August 2019. Other time limits might apply - so if you think you’ve got a complaint, act as soon as possible.

If you’re unhappy with the business’s answer, you can ask us to look into it for you – within six months of the business’s response. If we think that the business has acted unfairly, we’ll explain how we think they should put things right.

If you need help, phone us on 0800 121 6222 or email [email protected].