General Insurance Article - Judgement handed down on BBA judicial review

 "On behalf of its members, the BBA requested a judicial review of the way in which the industry should handle complaints about PPI sales, as set out in the Financial Services Authority's policy statement.

 "Whilst the UK banking industry has to date implemented every reform on PPI sales and complaints handling required by the regulators, the additional requirements in the policy statement effectively apply new standards to past sales, which we believe go beyond the rules and regulatory requirements which were developed by the regulator over time. 

 "It was due to the widespread concerns that the FSA and the Financial Ombudsman Service had not properly applied the law in this area - and only having exhausted all other avenues for resolving the underlying dispute that a judicial review was sought.

 "We are disappointed with today's judgment and now need to consider the details of it very carefully as well as next steps, including whether it would be appropriate to apply for permission to appeal.

 "Any complaints that are directly affected by the judicial review and therefore can not be decided will continue to be placed on hold until the next steps have been decided. We will continue to work closely with the FSA to ensure that all complaints are appropriately handled and customers are not disadvantaged. Customers who are considering making a complaint or who have a specific query about an existing complaint should contact their bank in the first instance."