Hi all, newbie here.

Firstly, sorry this is a bit long, but I could do with some advice.

I've used all your excellent advice to start a claim with M&S for mis-sold PPI.

I took out a store card with them back in 1998, which was changed to a credit card in 2003 when they stopped offering store cards.

Store card customers were pre-approved.

I took out the store card in store at the sales counter with just the normal sales person there, and I took out the PPI on the card at the same time.

I chose to do this deliberately.

I wasn't given any advice about whether this was appropriate for me by the staff member, and to be honest, it wouldn't have occurred to me to ask whether the insurance was even suitable for me. I was 28 with three kids under 5 and rushed off my feet!

When I took out the policy I wasn't working as I was at home with three small children.

M&S send out a policy review every year, but this year was the first year I actually checked it

- I've never done it before because I didn't realise I needed to as far as PPI was concerned, and to be honest, they send these out in an envelope that looks like it's just marketing materials rather than actually anything important,

while I don't remember looking closely at one of these "statements" before, often I expect I've just chucked them out unopened. My statements all say that there is important information enclosed on the envelope so I always keep and open them, but not the other stuff.

I assumed, naively and stupidly apparently, that because I'd taken the insurance out, it would therefore have been suitable for my needs. It just didn't occur to me that it wouldn't - after all, every other insurance I'd dealt with at that point, car, house, etc, was fit for purpose.

But anyway, the annual review certificate I got this year says on the front "employment status - not working". When I checked the policy details, it said that if I was working less than 16 hours a week, I wouldn't be covered. So all this time, I've not actually been covered. If I'd been asked whether I was working at the time of taking out the card, I would have told them I wasn't.

I've never thought to check since about whether I was mis-sold as I assumed that because I'd taken it out myself I wouldn't have a claim, but a friend advised me to look at the mis-selling criteria and I'm sure I have a case.

I wrote to M&S back in July explaining that I thought I'd been mis-sold because the policy clearly wasn't suitable for me as it wouldn't have paid out if I'd made a claim, and although I'd chosen to take it out, no attempt had been made to explain it to me, and it was made clear that taking out the insurance would help my application. I had no reason to doubt the sales-person's honesty or integrity - this was 1997, after all, way before any sort of scandal about mis-selling, and at the height of the consumer credit boom.

So, fast forward to today, when I phone M&S after getting 4 texts from them on Friday telling me to contact them urgently.

I spoke to a nice man who said that there was a letter on the way, but he would tell me what the letter said.

They've rejected my complaint because they said I ticked the boxes on the forms, which I did, (and which I told them I did, I've always said that I chose to take it out), that their staff member wouldn't have given me financial advice when I took the store card out (which surely they should have done if they were selling me a financial product?),

that I also took out the PPI when they changed my store card to a credit card, and that in the years since I have had ample opportunity to check the terms and conditions of the insurance.

I have obviously had the opportunity to do so, and that I didn't is my own fault, but I really had no reason to suspect I needed to.

As far as I was concerned I was paying my premiums every month and I was covered if anything happened.

They also say that the terms and conditions were on both the credit agreements and that therefore I knew what I was agreeing to and that any error is mine and nothing to do with them.They're sending me copies of the original agreements, but apart from the commission part, which they're paying me for, they've refused my claim.

There were periods in the last 20 years where I was working more than 16 hours a week, but it wasn't for more than about 5 years in total, but at the time I took out the insurance I wasn't working, and at the time the card was changed over I wasn't either.

Part of me feels like an enormous idiot for not checking the terms and conditions sooner, but honestly, it just didn't occur to me that I would have been mis-sold something so long ago, or that I could even have a claim, because I made a choice to be responsible and to take out the insurance myself.

I just left it to run and run in the background because once it was there I didn't feel that I needed to check it again. And I feel that they rely on you doing that, but to then use it against me to refuse my claim just makes me angry.

I've also sent them an SAR asking for copies of all the agreements and the terms and conditions that would have been in place at the time, along with copies of missing statements so I can plug it all into a spreadsheet and work out what I think they owe me.

However, while I strongly feel that I was mis-sold this PPI, am I actually right?

I don't want to accept this from them,

I feel I'm at least due my premiums back for a policy I couldn't have claimed on, regardless of anything else.

But am I right to fight this (it feels to me like they're just trying it on, to be honest, to see if I'll give in if they're nasty enough) with M&S?

I'm happy to take it all the way, if necessary, as this has become more about the principle now than the money, so it's off to the Ombudsman if I don't get any joy from M&S, but am I just kidding myself here that I've got any way of winning this?

I am stubborn and angry and quite prepared to make a fuss about this, but I just need to know if I actually have a leg to stand on before putting all the effort in - I'm not well and don't have much energy to spare so I like to make sure it's worth expending before I start.... I'd appreciate any help or advice anyone has, this is all a bit of a minefield!

Thanks in advance

the issue is it was an unadvised sale , so the rep had no need to check anything.

now your route is correct, it would not have paid out ever so they should be refunding.

however, would they ever had checked anything..i doubt it..

were they supposed too?..no at that time it was unregulated.

now there could be a route with the underwriters, as they might have been regulated under GISC or API

and they should have checked the policy was suitable.

dx