Partially upheld: unfair removal of credit facility / lack of clarity in communication complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Ms B complained that Barclays unfairly removed her overdraft facility in August 2025, citing non-use in the previous 90 days. Ms B had been following Barclays staff advice to clear her overdraft balance daily to avoid charges, which inadvertently made the facility appear unused under Barclays' review criteria. While the ombudsman found Barclays was entitled to remove the overdraft under its consistent lending policies, it determined that Barclays failed to clarify the contradiction between its advice and its removal decision. The ombudsman upheld the complaint partially and ordered £100 compensation to acknowledge the avoidable upset caused by this lack of clarity.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Barclays was entitled to set its own lending criteria and apply them consistently to all customers. The decision to remove the overdraft was reasonable as Ms B was not using the facility for more than one day at a time, which fell outside Barclays' usage criteria. However, the ombudsman found that Barclays' communication lacked clarity regarding the contradiction between advising Ms B to clear her overdraft daily (to avoid charges) and then removing the facility for not using it. This lack of clarity caused avoidable upset and concern, warranting compensation.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website