Not upheld: irresponsible lending and affordability complaint against Santander UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs M complained that Santander irresponsibly lent her £10,000 in June 2025 for an investment scam, claiming the loan was unaffordable and based on inaccurate income information. Santander declined to write off the loan but offered to remove interest and charges. The Ombudsman found that Santander completed reasonable affordability checks using the information Mrs M provided and credit bureau data, resulting in a 67% affordability ratio. Although Mrs M disputed the accuracy of her declared income and argued the checks were insufficient, the Ombudsman determined that Santander could not have been aware of an earlier £9,500 loan that had not yet appeared on her credit file. The complaint was not upheld, though Santander was directed to treat Mrs M reasonably regarding repayment arrangements.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The Ombudsman found that Santander completed reasonable affordability checks based on the information provided by Mrs M and verified through credit and bureau data. The checks revealed an affordability ratio of 67%, which supported the lending decision. Although Mrs M claimed her declared income was inaccurate, the Ombudsman did not consider it unreasonable for Santander to rely on the information provided and the supporting credit checks. Critically, Santander could not have been aware of the earlier loan as it had not yet appeared on Mrs M's credit file.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website