It's the final countdown

Just 1mth left to reclaim PPI

Do it urgently for FREE - don't wait till the 29 Aug deadline

In the words of 80s band Europe, it's The Final Countdown (de, de, de, de... de, de, de, de, de). For years we've shouted and screamed from the highest metaphorical rooftops to urge you to reclaim cash wrongly taken from you in arguably the biggest systemic scam of recent times. This was carried out not by backstreet robbers, but by men and women in suits at banks and other financial firms who mis-sold and overcharged for payment protection insurance for decades. But the end is nearly upon us.

So if you've had a loan, credit card, mortgage, overdraft, catalogue debt or car finance over the past 30+ years, check NOW if you're owed via our Free PPI reclaim tool and guide - and do it well before the upcoming deadline.

To spur you on, a jaw-dropping £36 billion has been paid since 2011 to millions of people - but hundreds of millions is still to be repaid. We typically hear of successes in the £1,000s, though the biggest we've seen was the mammoth £175,000 that Swindon couple Jane and Bob got last year.

Jane said: "We didn't apply originally, but we then read all the MSE info and tried. The banks made it hard but we kept going, and this money gives us the peace of mind to look forward to retirement debt-free."

The reclaiming window slams shut at 11.59pm on 29 Aug, and other than truly exceptional cases, that's it. But don't wait till the last min as there's a risk technology could fail, lines could jam or the postie could lose your letter. Plus the earlier you claim, the quicker the result - important as the expected surge could delay claims processing.

While actually complaining is best, you could still beat the deadline by simply enquiring if you ever had PPI by 29 Aug. Every big bank or card firm we spoke to told us this'll work. Most automatically turn the check into a complaint later, but not all do - see our bank-by-bank checklist . If your firm is not listed, assume you must complain by the deadline to be safe.

The resolution of the complaint may take weeks or months, but if you meet the deadline, that's enough to beat the clock from your perspective.

There's nothing wrong with the concept of payment protection insurance - which covers repayments if you can't make 'em - but banks and others massively overcharged and systemically mis-sold it for decades. This created the UK's biggest recent financial scam. There are two types of mis-selling:

• Were you outright mis-sold? Banks, car salespeople, shop assistants and others may have lied that PPI was compulsory, added it without asking or failed to ensure it was suitable - see the full mis-selling checklist.
  
  - How far back can you claim if mis-sold this way? You can go as far back as you like, but it can get tough if the PPI was taken out pre-2005.
   
  - How much will you get back? If outright mis-sold, you're entitled to the full amount of PPI you paid, plus interest charged by banks on the PPI itself. Whatever that total, you get an additional 8% a year on top - a bit like savings interest - as it's assumed you'd have put that in a savings account earning interest.
   
• Or are you one of millions overcharged commission? Even if you wanted PPI, you were likely mis-sold due to the excessive commission taken by banks and building societies. After a landmark 2014 ruling called Plevin (the surname of the successful claimant), if more than 50% of the PPI cost included undisclosed commission (most wasn't disclosed), you're due the extra above that.
   
  So just having had PPI means you may well have been mis-sold. Watch Martin's Plevin video to see how outrageous banks' and building societies' commission was.
  
  - How much can I get under Plevin? It depends on the commission, but on loans, lenders typically took a HUGE 67% for themselves. On a £10k loan over 5yrs, Plevin payouts are typically £500ish.
  
  - Can anyone claim under Plevin? No. The PPI and loan had to be active at some point since Apr 2008, though there can be exceptions. Also, you can't claim if you've already had a mis-selling payout, even if you didn't get the full sum back.
   
  - I think I had PPI but I'm not sure I was wrongly flogged it - should I just do a Plevin claim? NO. It's VITAL to check first if you were outright mis-sold PPI as you'll get more. If the bank rejects your mis-selling claim, it should then automatically assess you for Plevin.

• First check if you had PPI, even if unsure, by searching all old credit card, mortgage, loan, store card and overdraft statements. It may have been called 'payment insurance' or 'accident or sickness cover'.
  
  - Can't remember the lender? All debts active in the last 6yrs are on your credit report(s) even if the accounts were opened earlier. See how to check your credit reports incl MSE's Credit Club. It won't show whether you had PPI, just the lenders to check with.
  
  - Not got paperwork? You can request it from your lender, and as long as the account was active in the past 6yrs the firm must keep details, regardless of when you opened it. If it was closed more than 6yrs ago, you can still ask for paperwork or whether you had PPI at all, but there's no certainty it'll have this info.

Once you've sorted your paperwork, follow the steps below...

• Not claimed before? Do it yourself for FREE. You DON'T need to pay to reclaim - claims handlers typically take a third of your payout, often £1,000s, and do very little you can't do yourself. To do it easily, use our free reclaiming tool, powered by complaints site Resolver. It sends your claim to the bank, building society etc that sold the PPI.
  
  For inspiration, here's Laura: "Found old paperwork while tidying & made four PPI claims using your Resolver tool - now I'm £11,000 richer."
   
• If rejected on a new claim, go to the free Financial Ombudsman Service. Sometimes when you contact banks etc they say "fair cop".
   
  But if they wrongly reject you (as many do) and you've exhausted their complaints processes, you've 6mths to take your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service. This independent body can adjudicate and, if it upholds your claim, force banks to pay you back.
  
  Via our free reclaim tool you can easily escalate the case to the ombudsman if you're turned down.
   
• Even if previously rejected, many should claim again. There are 1.2m whose claims were turned down by banks, building societies and other firms (even where the ombudsman agreed with the rejection) who are now eligible again under Plevin. You should have been notified by whoever sold you PPI - if not, claim anyway.
  
  What's more, after a ruling on commission payments in Nov, up to 150,000 previously rejected claimants should have received letters from lenders saying they can reapply.
  
  If you got one, act on it. If you still have details from your previous claim, use those to help with your new one. However, don't worry if you don't have them as you can still try. With our free Plevin reclaim tool, you only need to fill in a few straightforward details.
   
• You can reclaim PPI for a deceased relative too. The deadline still applies, but the process is slightly more complicated. Read Martin's blog on how to reclaim PPI for a deceased person.

• Payouts are normally taxed - so check if you're due this back. 
  If your payout was since Apr 2016, you could be due £100s if you needn't have paid savings tax. Read Martin's blog for info on how this works or check our guide for how to reclaim PPI tax.