Not upheld: Guarantor loan complaints complaint against Hippo Vehicle Solutions Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr B complained that Hippo, a credit broker, failed to consider his personal circumstances and guarantor options before conducting soft credit checks for a car hire agreement in June 2020. Mr B claimed the credit checks damaged his credit rating and caused him stress. Hippo argued that soft checks do not impact credit files, that guarantor options depend on lender criteria, and that Mr B's circumstances were discussed. The ombudsman found Hippo treated Mr B fairly, noting that soft credit checks are standard practice, Mr B consented to them, and although guarantor options could have been discussed earlier, this would not have changed the outcome as Mr B did not meet the lenders' lending criteria.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Hippo reasonably carried out soft credit checks after obtaining Mr B's consent, as such checks are standard practice in finance applications and do not adversely impact credit files. Although Hippo could have discussed guarantor options before the checks, the ombudsman concluded this would not have changed the outcome since Mr B did not meet the lenders' lending criteria regardless. The advisor did discuss Mr B's personal circumstances during the call, and Mr B did not raise concerns about his credit history during the conversation despite having the opportunity to do so.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website