Did Wronged Consumers Misbuy it?

Lloyds Banking Group PLC will reduce some of the bonuses awarded to top executives in 2010 following an insurance misselling scandal that resulted in the U.K bank handing hefty compensation to consumers, a person familiar with the matter said Monday.

Last year, Lloyds set aside £3.2 billion ($5.06 billion) to compensate consumers who were wrongly encouraged to buy payment protection insurance. PPI was often sold alongside loans to insure that the borrowers could continue repayments if they lost their jobs or fell ill. U.K consumer groups have alleged that this was missold to many consumers who didn’t qualify or weren’t even aware they had purchased the insurance.

–“Lloyds to Claw Back Bonuses”; The Wall Street Journal (2/20/12)

I think The Wall Street Journal is on to something.

Wall Street didn’t fraudulently package trillions in securitized mortgages; it “mis-securitized” them, while simultaneously inducing the credit rating agencies to “mis-rate” them to misled investors who mistakenly bought them — all against a backdrop of mis-regulation.

Channeling Orwell

Does the foregoing give you the feeling that you’re “mis”-ing something?

Or that somebody’s “mis-ing” with you?

It all leaves me feeling misgusted.

P.S.:  until about age 7, I thought the word “misled” was pronounced with a hard “i” (“my’-zuld“).

Also:  when someone does work for you, you pay them “compensation.” 

When you rip someone off, get sued, and agree to a multi-billion dollar settlement, it’s not called “handing consumers hefty compensation”; it’s called, “paying defrauded customers restitution.”

Just thought I’d clear that one up as well.

About the author

Ross Kaplan has 19+ years experience selling real estate all over the Twin Cities. He is also a 12-time consecutive "Super Real Estate Agent," as determined by Mpls. - St. Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Magazine. Prior to becoming a Realtor, Ross was an attorney (corporate law), CPA, and entrepreneur. He holds an economics degree from Stanford.

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