Not upheld: Irresponsible lending complaint against HL Partnership Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Ms B and Mr M complained that HLP's advice on their first mortgage application caused them to miss a lower interest rate, resulting in claimed losses of £9,151.30. They alleged they instructed Ms L to apply for the Forces Help to Buy Scheme but this was not pursued with the initial lender. The initial lender declined the application on 16 June 2022 on affordability grounds, which HLP failed to communicate. A new application was submitted in August 2022 to a different lender following FHBS approval. The ombudsman found no evidence supporting Ms B and Mr M's instruction to apply for FHBS and determined the initial application would likely have been declined regardless. While acknowledging HLP's failure to communicate the decline, the ombudsman found this did not cause the financial loss claimed and recommended £50 compensation for the service failure.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Ms B and Mr M's claim that they instructed Ms L to apply for FHBS was not supported by evidence, and the fact-find recorded no such detail. The initial lender would not have accepted FHBS anyway and declined the application on affordability grounds relating to Ms B's second income, which would likely have resulted in decline regardless of FHBS. The earliest a new application could be made was 15 August following FHBS approval, and the ombudsman found EW acted in Ms B and Mr M's best interests by submitting it promptly to avoid further interest rate increases. While HLP failed to communicate the 16 June decline, this failure did not cause the financial loss claimed. The ombudsman categorised the service failure as causing frustration and annoyance warranting compensation up to £300.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website