Partially upheld: irresponsible lending - unaffordable credit complaint against NewDay Ltd (trading as Aqua and Marbles)
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-6209083 of 2026-05-07T00:00:00+00:00. irresponsible lending - unaffordable credit complaint against NewDay Ltd (trading as Aqua and Marbles). Outcome: Partially upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-6209083 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2026-05-07T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | NewDay Ltd (trading as Aqua and Marbles) |
| Product | credit card |
| Claim type | irresponsible lending - unaffordable credit |
| Outcome | Partially upheld |
| Remedy | NewDay must rework both accounts removing all interest, fees, charges and insurances from Aqua card inception and from Marbles card December 2024 onwards. If credit balance results, refund to Miss H with 8% simple interest per year from date of overpayment. If outstanding balance remains, arrange affordable repayment plan. Remove all adverse information from Miss H's credit file once balance cleared or refunded. |
Summary
Miss H complained that NewDay irresponsibly lent to her by approving two credit cards (Aqua in December 2020 and Marbles in July 2024) when she could not afford the repayments. The ombudsman found that NewDay's affordability checks showed Miss H earned only £485 per month with approximately £66.29 disposable income after interest, and that she was actually paying £166.59 monthly to car finance rather than the £11 initially recorded. The ombudsman upheld the complaint regarding the initial Aqua card approval and the December 2024 Marbles credit limit increase, finding these were irresponsible lending decisions. NewDay was ordered to remove all interest and charges from both accounts and either refund any credit balance with interest or arrange an affordable repayment plan for any remaining balance, while removing adverse credit file information.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman found that while NewDay's checks were reasonable and proportionate, the information gathered clearly showed Miss H could not sustainably repay the credit. With only £66.29 monthly disposable income after interest, any modest unplanned expenditure would cause difficulty. The ombudsman rejected NewDay's argument that positive credit history outweighed the lack of reasonable disposable income, and found the initial Aqua lending and December 2024 Marbles increase were irresponsible. The ombudsman noted Miss H's circumstances improved over time but this could not justify the initial lending decision.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| NewDay Ltd (trading as Aqua and Marbles), all decisions | 1 | 50% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website