The UK's Financial Conduct Authority has issued guidelines to govern the handling of certain regular premium payment protection insurance (PPI) complaints.

The FCA is also proposing to pass new rules to require financial firms to write to around 150,000 consumers who had previously complained unsuccessfully to tell them that they can make new complaints and to remind them of the complaint deadline of 29 August 2019.

In March 2017 the FCA made rules and guidelines in relation to the Supreme Court judgment in Plevin v Paragon Personal Finance Ltd. That judgment says that a lender’s failure to disclose at point of sale that a large commission was payable out of the PPI premium can make the lender’s relationship with the consumer unfair under the Consumer Credit Act.  

The FCA’s 'final guidance' deals with an uncertainty that emerged since it passed rules to accommodate the Plevin judgment. The guidance says that firms should assess commission disclosures not only at the point of sale but on a continuing basis and under the FCA’s general complaint-handling rule.