Dear Listener

MONEYBOX SATURDAY 12 May 2012

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Dear Listener

The five major High Street banks have now set aside 7.5 billion pounds for payment protection insurance compensation after mis-selling it to millions of people during a decade or more. Four of them raised their provision against the cost by another billion pounds between them in the first quarter of the year. Not since the 1990s has mis-selling occurred on such an industrial scale.

But I get a lot of tweets from people asking why I use that word when really I should be calling it fraud. That of course is a serious allegation of criminal activity.

So off I went to read the Fraud Act 2006. It is one of the shorter and simpler Acts of Parliament and I have to say that reading sections 2, 3, and 4 made me think those tweeps might be right. You can read the whole Act here http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/35/contents but at its simplest fraud happens if you lie to me with the intention of making money for yourself or making me lose money. It is also fraud if you fail to tell me something you are obliged to tell me with similar intentions. And it is fraud if you have a position of trust which you abuse with those same intentions. So it is pretty broad. Now, I am no lawyer but if you think of what happens in any of the events we typically describe as mis-selling there is at least an arguable case.

Of course, proving beyond reasonable doubt that any individual or firm did or omitted to do any those things with any of those intentions would be difficult. But I can certainly see why some tweeps think that if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and waddles like a duck, it might just be one.

As you will see we are running a story about one huge PPI claim this week. It has changed her life. Perhaps you know someone whose life could be changed by getting back mis-sold PPI

***IN MONEY BOX THIS WEEK***

The Which Big Switch auction happened this week and some of the 280,000 who joined in will save more than 100 pounds off their energy bill. But has the massive exercise in consumer power really achieved significant cuts in the best deals that were already on offer?

Why does HMRC make us pay a premium fee for every minute we spend waiting on its self-assessment helpline? I asked that question last week when Stephen Hardwick, Director of Communications at HMRC, came on the programme. After hearing his answer many listeners have asked us to explore it further. Hear our conclusions on Saturday.

Banks and building societies now have to tell savers when an interest rate bonus comes to an end. And if they fail to do so then compensation may be due. But even when they do send a letter is it clear enough?

We will call her Mary. She followed our advice on Money Box and Breakfast TV and put in her own claim for compensation for mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance. She got back more than 50,000 pounds. She has cleared the remaining debts on her credit cards and still has 20,000 pounds in the bank. Hear Jane tell her story in her own words. And her advice for others.

Four chunky items this week in our 24 minutes of prime time Radio 4. Hear how we fill the time by listening live at midday on Saturday, to the repeat on Sunday 9pm, or anytime online at www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/moneybox. Remember you can put in a regular order for our podcast. More than 200,000 listen that way each week. It is free.

There is more information on our website www.bbc.co.uk/moneybox where you can also download transcripts of past programmes and send us ideas or problems you want us to look into.

This newsletter is available at bbc.co.uk/moneybox/newsletter around the time it hits your inbox - tell your friends who do not subscribe. And you could join more than 31,400 people who now follow me on Twitter to enjoy - or rant about - my random but timely thoughts on money and a few other things whenever I am awake at twitter.com/paullewismoney. My blog is at  www.paullewismoney.blogspot.com

I am back on Wednesday with Money Box Live at 3pm taking questions on credit and debt.

Best wishes,

Paul

PS. I will be on Breakfast on BBC One on Saturday talking about one of the items in our programme probably around 0850. And back on Breakfast on Thursday morning with another money story, probably 0640 and 0820. But times can and do change at short notice.

e-mail Paul Lewis