Not upheld: credit limit reduction and customer service failures complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC trading as Barclaycard

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S complained after Barclaycard reduced his credit card limit from £20,000 to £2,950 in May 2025, triggered by negative information on his water utility account. He was initially told an 'emergency alert' from a CRA had caused the reduction and a HRAM marker was applied to his account. After multiple exchanges and a manual underwriting review, Barclaycard maintained their decision. The ombudsman found Barclaycard acted fairly in their lending decision based on legitimate CRA information, though acknowledged poor initial customer service. The £100 compensation already paid was deemed appropriate, and the HRAM marker was confirmed as removed from the system.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Barclaycard could have provided better customer service and support initially, they acted fairly in their lending decision. The negative information on Mr S's water utility account was a legitimate basis for Barclaycard to reduce the credit limit, and lenders are entitled to rely on CRA information without investigating every entry. The ombudsman acknowledged limitations on her powers to interfere with commercial lending decisions. The £100 compensation was deemed appropriate to recognise the poor initial customer service, though the ombudsman noted this would not have changed the outcome.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website