SALLY SORTS IT won back £1,064,994 for readers in 2024… here’s her six top tips to complain to firms

Sally Sorts It is delighted to reveal the column won back well over £1million for readers in 2024. 

Although I am thrilled at the grand total, I am proud of every penny that I’ve helped to return to readers’ pockets. 

The column’s aim is to help put things right for readers who struggle to resolve matters on their own and hopefully achieve a result that is fair, whether the financial outcome is a few pounds, or six figures being reimbursed or wiped. 

One of the smallest wins was having a £100 parking charge cancelled for a woman who had struggled to download and use a parking app and left the carpark 15 minutes later without having parked her car. 

My inbox is gridlocked with motorists frustrated by unfair fines meted out by parking firms.

The grand total included cash handed over in compensation, reimbursement of fraud losses, insurance payouts previously denied, money released from accounts hitherto held prisoner or mislaid by banks and investment firms, legitimate refunds sat upon, sometimes for as long as a year, and erroneous bills waived. 

One of the greatest wins last year was when a reader got in touch after wealth manager St James’s Place made an error after cashing in their investments to meet a £213,197 inheritance tax bill, so that it went missing inside HM Revenue and Customs. 

On my intervention the firm made a second payment for the same sum to the taxman so the reader would not be penalised for late payment (and handed the reader £500 for the distress), while it pursued the taxman for reimbursement of the misdirected original payment. 

Adding up the big and small cases, the total won back was £1,064,994. My mission is to ensure readers are treated fairly by financial providers and consumer businesses. 

All too often, it appears organisations show reckless disregard for their customers. Whether it’s over-reliance on robot customer service systems or poor training of staff, there are many situations that leave customers fuming because they can’t get a simple complaint resolved. 

It shocks me that some companies bat away customers with valid issues too swiftly. For example, I covered two cases where policyholders made a claim on critical illness policies but were declined when they mentioned they had suffered a cardiac arrest. 

But on my intervention, they had their medical conditions fully investigated and, in the end, in both cases, the insurers involved, LV= and Aviva, found ways to pay £50,000 each to their policyholders. 

My hope is that the organisations that slipped up in 2024 resolve not to repeat the same mistakes. 

But I confidently predict consumer champions will not be out of a job in 2025. 

As with any long-running drama, some actors have regular roles in this column. Transport for London (erroneous charges), British Airways (compensation not forthcoming) and Tesco Bank (various, including doubling a driver’s premium following a case of mistaken identity) appeared more than once over the last year. 

Faceless scammers featured on several occasions, from those masquerading as caring banks to dupe victims by phone into shifting their balances into ‘safe’ accounts, to the nasty Paris taxi scam where a brazen driver charged a reader ¤500 for a five-minute taxi ride. 

Some financial organisations offered refunds following my intervention (John Lewis for the taxi scam), but others (Revolut and Chase Bank) stubbornly refused despite my best endeavours, forcing customers to seek help from the ombudsman instead. 

There have been cases where money wasn’t the most worryingaspect of a complaint. 

One episode involved a woman whose late husband’s ashes were mislabelled by an undertaker’s assistant, leaving her in torment over whether they belonged to him. 

On my request Co-op Funeralcare made further investigations. It concluded the ashes were his, but the widow remained upset. 

It was small compensation, but she was awarded £750 and the firm confirmed it had re-trained staff. 

The huge number of cases investigated last year threw up a host of practical tips all readers can use if something similar goes wrong. And if this doesn’t work, then please contact me at the email below. 

1. STUDY POLICY WORDING 

A Curry’s customer was denied full cover for repairs on a computer damaged when she fell into a canal, despite paying £800 in insurance premiums over the years for the retailer’s policy that promised to fix it free. 

The wording proved she had the right to a free repair. One point said, ‘If you require support and advice or for any reason your Product isn’t working . . . we will repair the Product or replace it .’ 

2. KNOW WHERE PURCHASES ARE COMING FROM 

A reader bought a wig from what she believed was a British company – wigsell.co.uk. 

But when she wanted to return the unlovely hairpiece of the wrong colour, it turned out the goods were sent direct from China, and it would cost £50 to return the £66 wig. 

On my suggestion, she made a successful chargeback claim via her credit card provider. 

This is a voluntary scheme operated by banks where card transactions can be reversed if goods turn out to not be of suitable quality, are not as described or don’t arrive at all. 

Remember to check the returns policy and where you are buying from before you make a purchase – and if all else fails, consider a chargeback claim. 

With chargeback a bank can withdraw the funds sent to a retailer and return them to your account. 

Customers normally need to do this within 120 days of the disputed transaction. 

3. USE SECTION 75 OF THE CONSUMER CREDIT ACT 

This hero piece of legislation helped several readers out of a tight spot last year. Like chargeback, but laid down in law, it protects customers who make purchases of over £100 and under £30,000. 

It means a credit card provider is equally responsible for a breach of contract or misrepresentation by a retailer. 

In one case I resolved, it enabled a woman to be reimbursed in full afterhe bought £12,000 of clothing from online fashion brand Matches shortly before it went bust. 

4. SEEK SMALL CLAIMS COURT HELP 

It’s often the last resort, but can come up trumps. One reader who felt misled by a stay at Alton Towers when its most famous rides were shut won his case for a full refund. 

5. REMEMBER INSURANCE DIES WITH YOU 

THE case of a man whose brother died leaving him with an uninsured car to look after raised the question of what happens to cover generally when someone dies.n 

In another case, a widow was turned down for a £1,500 pet insurance claim because she had left the policy in her husband’s name, who had died two years earlier. 

She had assumed that the relevant name on the policy was that of the pet, not the owner. On my intervention the insurer sorted out the policy and the claim was paid. 

6. DON’T FORGET MY THREE Ps 

PATIENCE, persistence and politeness are vital when making a complaint. Treat the person dealing with you with respect and chances are they will try to help. 

My persistence paid off for a reader whose Revolut prepaid card was drained by a fraudster while she was on a holiday in Africa. 

I got the response I felt was right – a full refund. I’m sure it helped that I kept my cool and my manners in check. 

Sally@dailymail.co.uk

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