PPI Jargon Buster
ASU - Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover, an alternative name for Payment Protection Insurance
FOS - The Financial Ombudsman Service is the official independent expert in settling complaints between consumers and businesses providing financial services
FSA - The Financial Services Authority is an independent organisation responsible for regulating financial services in the UK. The FSA set the standards financial organisations must meet and they can take action against firms that fail to meet the required standards. The FSA aims to ensure people are confident in the financial system and receive the appropriate degree of protection when using financial services.
PPI - Payment Protection Insurance, an insurance policy taken out alongside mortgages, personal loans, credit cards and many other types of finance. A PPI policy is designed to cover your monthly finance repayments when you are unable to pay them. A PPI policy will cover you if you are made redundant or if you are unable to work due to accident, illness or injury.
Premiums - The amount charged by the insurance provider (usually monthly) for PPI cover.
Single premium policy - a PPI policy that is not paid monthly, but instead added as a lump sum to the amount borrowed at the time of obtaining finance. With a single premium policy, the customer ends up paying interest on both the insurance premium and the loan.
