Claims management firms that are making a fortune out of the PPI mis-selling scandal are making multi-millionaires out of its owners.
According to the Sunday Times, almost 1,000 firms have been set up, making a £1bn fortune.
Among them is Gladstone Brooks, which has taken £25m in fees from PPI claims in the first eight months of this year. It is run by Lisa O’Neill, 32.
Mitchell Farrar has earned £50m from PPI claims, and is run by two 37-year-olds Benjamin Farrar and Mark Mitchell.
Brunel Franklin is run by Sally Bowyer, 44, and says it has handled 100,000 successful PPI claims.
Ismart is owned by Ryan Horne, 32, Dylan Pritchett, 32, and David Haycock, 33, and has earned £40m from PPI claims.
Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, criticised claims management firms for their sales tactics, saying that “people are being hounded in their homes on a daily basis”.
Separately, it has emerged that one person became so fed up with being cold-called by one claims management firm that he invoiced it for £10 for every minute he wasted on the telephone.
When the nuisance calls continued, Richard Herman, 55, took his claim to the small claims court and won.
AAC, a firm which sells referrals to claim management companies, agreed to pay £195 in compensation and £25 in legal costs.
Herman said: “These firms ambush you in your own home. It’s incredibly intrusive.”
He has now set up a website to help others combat cold callers:
www.saynotocoldcalls.com
http://www.estateangels.co.uk/efiles/eat/KevinWilliamsFirstCall.jpg
Comments
These people are leaches on society. They will bring this country to its knees and all just to make a quick buck. They terrorise people with constant bombardment of calls, often with the promise of making lots of money for you. The MOJ needs to get its act together and close these firms down, before it is too late.