Not upheld: irresponsible lending complaint against Brent Shrine Credit Union Limited trading as My Community Bank (MCB)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S complained that MCB lent to him irresponsibly when providing two personal loans (£11,000 in November 2022 and £6,000 in February 2024). Mr S later entered a debt management plan in September 2025 and claimed the repayments were unaffordable. MCB had carried out affordability assessments using verified income, credit checks, and ONS data for estimated spending, finding the loans affordable. The ombudsman found that MCB's checks were thorough and reasonable, the lending decisions were fair based on available information, and there were no red flags suggesting MCB should have investigated further. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that MCB's lending policy was required to protect members' interests by assessing both creditworthiness and affordability. MCB carried out thorough checks including income verification, credit checks, and affordability assessments using ONS data for estimated spending. These methods are widely used across the UK lending sector. The ombudsman was satisfied the checks gave MCB a good understanding of Mr S's financial circumstances. At both loan stages, Mr S's total payments to creditors appeared manageable (less than 30% of income), his credit file showed good payment history, and he had reasonable headroom on credit cards. There was no reason for MCB to investigate further or suspect he was borrowing from family and friends. The ombudsman rejected the argument that MCB should have obtained actual bank statements, noting that each complaint must be assessed on its own merits.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website