Some £215m has been paid out by banks in payment protection insurance compensation for the first half of 2011, according to the Financial Services Authority.

The figure came primarily from 16 firms who made up 92 per cent of all PPI complaints. The remainder was split across 400 smaller firms.

There was a significant spike in May and June following the High Court’s decision to reject the legal challenge to the FSA’s PPI complaint handling measures.

In May, £37m was paid out and a further £65m was paid out in June.

The figures include the value of ex-gratia payments made to complainants and cases settled by the Ombudsman.

Margaret Cole, interim managing director of the FSA’s conduct business unit, said: “The treatment of PPI complainants has left an indelible stain on the financial industry’s record.

“We remain 100 per cent committed to ensuring that where consumers were mis-sold PPI they will receive the appropriate redress from firms and we are monitoring firms’ progress to ensure this is done properly.”

Today is the final day for banks to deal with complaints put on hold during the judicial review.

Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group are both on track to meet the deadline but HSBC has said it will not be ready until the end of this week.

It said that it had written to all customers concerned but had not yet advised them about the amount of compensation they would receive.

Richard Lloyd, Which? Executive director, said: “There’s no excuse for banks not to have cleared the backlog of complaints caused by the Judicial Review. Any firms that have not met the 31 August deadline should face tough enforcement action.”