Not upheld: mortgage administration - refusal to change mortgage from joint to sole names; complaint handling complaint against Clydesdale Bank Plc trading as Virgin Money

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs S complained that Virgin Money refused to change her joint mortgage (held with her former husband) into her sole name, forcing her to remortgage elsewhere at significant cost. Virgin declined the application in 2021 on affordability grounds and again in 2025, despite Mrs S securing a new role with higher income. The ombudsman found Virgin's decision was fair and reasonable, as lenders are entitled to make commercial risk assessments and Virgin had properly considered Mrs S's improved income but remained concerned about income stability over the mortgage term. The only error identified was Virgin's failure to initially treat Mrs S's complaint formally, for which £100 compensation was ordered.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Virgin was entitled to make a commercial risk assessment decision about lending and was not obliged to approve the change of parties request. While Virgin's lending criteria are commercially sensitive and cannot be fully disclosed, the ombudsman confirmed Virgin had assessed the application fairly, taking into account Mrs S's recently improved income. The ombudsman noted that lenders are permitted to decline lending based on risk assessment, particularly where someone has only recently secured a new role, and that another lender's willingness to lend does not mean Virgin made a mistake. The only error identified was Virgin's failure to initially treat Mrs S's dissatisfaction as a formal complaint.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website