Not upheld: Irresponsible lending complaint against Mitsubishi HC Capital UK Plc (trading as Novuna Personal Finance)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S complained that Novuna failed to conduct proper affordability checks when providing him a £12,000 personal loan in July 2025, arguing he already had significant existing credit. Novuna verified Mr S's self-employed income of just under £34,000 against bank deposits, conducted credit searches showing no adverse history, and assessed his existing debts as not excessive relative to his income. The ombudsman found the checks were proportionate for a first loan and that Mr S had not provided evidence his actual expenditure exceeded the statistical estimates used. The complaint was not upheld as the ombudsman was satisfied Novuna did not lend irresponsibly and the monthly payments of £258.46 were likely affordable.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Novuna carried out proportionate checks appropriate for a first loan in the lending relationship. The checks included verification of self-employed income against bank deposits, credit searches showing no adverse history, and assessment of existing debts against validated income. The ombudsman concluded that the monthly payment of £258.46 was likely affordable and that Mr S had not provided evidence that his actual committed expenditure was significantly higher than the statistical estimates used. The ombudsman also noted that debt consolidation would likely improve Mr S's position by replacing higher-interest credit card debt with a lower-interest loan.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website