The outgoing Head of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has urged banks to learn from the payment protection insurance mis selling scandal and use it as a catalyst to improve its treatment of customers.

Hector Sants, who is set to leave his position as Chief Executive Officer at the FSA at the end of the month, believes the PPI scandal offers a “commercial opportunity” for lenders to develop their customer services.

“It’s clearly an opportunity for banks to respond positively, pro-actively and with the right attitude and get on and do something about it,” said Sants, speaking in his last interview at the FSA helm. “There is an opportunity to demonstrate a new approach.”

Despite designed to protect policy holders should they become unable to work, due to redundancy or illness, and meet their monthly repayments, many customers were let down by their lender after it mis sold them a policy which was all but useless.

Lenders have collectively earmarked around £9bn to cover the cost of payment protection insurance complaints.