Not upheld: Irresponsible lending complaint against Lendable Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs S complained that Lendable lent irresponsibly when she applied for a £10,000 loan in March 2025, which she subsequently used for a cryptocurrency investment scam. Lendable verified her income of £2,105-£2,513 per month, reviewed her credit file showing 8 active accounts with £5,347 outstanding debt and no defaults in 36 months, and calculated monthly repayments of £251.25 as affordable. The ombudsman found the complaint not upheld, concluding that Mrs S applied for the loan herself and Lendable's affordability checks were proportionate, and that it was reasonable Lendable's credit check did not show other loans applied for during the same period as these take up to four weeks to appear on credit files.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Mrs S applied for the loan herself and therefore Lendable was fair to hold her liable, despite the funds being lost to a scam. The affordability checks were proportionate given the loan size of £10,000, 48-month term, and monthly repayment of £251.25. The ombudsman accepted that new loans take up to four weeks to appear on credit files, so it was reasonable that Lendable's credit check did not show the other loans Mrs S had applied for during the same period.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website