MoJ shut down over 700 claims firms last year

17 April 2012 | By Natalie Holt

The Ministry of Justice has closed down around one in five claims management companies over the last year and almost doubled the number of MoJ staff responsible for regulating claims firms.

A freedom of information request submitted by the Law Society Gazette found the MoJ’s Claims Management Regulation department cancelled the authorisation of 734 claims firms in the year to the end of March.

The closures brought down the total number of authorised claims firms to 3,018.

The MoJ has set up a dedicated team to deal with poor practices by rogue claims firms who solicit claims for missold payment protection insurance.

The number of MoJ staff that have been allocated to regulating claims firms has risen from 32 in 2007, when the MoJ took over claims management regulation, to 57 currently.

The MoJ launched an investigation last month into claims management companies after a wave of invalid compensation claims on behalf of customers allegedly missold PPI.

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Readers' comments (7)

GARY | 17 Apr 2012 12:01 pm
There's almost MORE claims firms than broker firms left.
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Shaks | 17 Apr 2012 12:26 pm
Close them all down, they're parasites that suck on the blood of the ill-informed. Anyone with a genuine claim can obtain redress free of charge by dealing direct with the company in question.
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Bill Wells | 17 Apr 2012 12:32 pm
Only 3018 to go. Then stop solicitors from ambulance chasing and advertising altogether and it will be good riddance to bad rubbish !
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colin | 17 Apr 2012 12:42 pm
3.018 authorised ambulance chasers............i m fed up with getting spurious letters about having sold my clients lump sum PPI, when in fact the policies they are writing to me about are life assurance policies.
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keith Hood | 17 Apr 2012 1:20 pm
Well its a start!
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Anonymous | 17 Apr 2012 1:40 pm
Why do you never report about the hundreds of thousands that have been ripped off and help them succeed in claims ?

If you read the report it is clear that this is companies that have closed down in the majority. How many brokers have had their registration cancelled with the FSA ? does that mean they were all crooks ? or maybe some just did not want to trade anymore ?
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Anonymous | 17 Apr 2012 5:53 pm
As an ex broker now working in the claims industry you would not believe the tactics employed by the major banks in trying to dodge a claim. One of the many excuses is the use of a non advised sale !! Most of the clients thought they were getting advise and this was obviously not the case. There are always two sides to each story and lets have some balance in this argument. Consumers have been mis sold this product, the vast majority by the banks hiding behind the protection (to them) of a non advised sale.
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