Not upheld: Unfair decline of Section 75 CCA claim - limitation period and threshold complaint against Clydesdale Financial Services Limited, trading as Barclays Partner Finance

Decision detail

Summary

Mr K purchased a Fractional Club timeshare membership in October 2011 for £64,648, borrowing £7,635 from the Lender to help finance the purchase. The loan was repaid in full by June 2016. In April 2024, Mr K complained that the membership had been misrepresented as an investment with exclusive holiday access, and that the Lender should have paid his Section 75 CCA claim. The Lender declined the claim as being outside the limitation period. The Ombudsman found the Lender fairly relied on the Limitation Act 1980, as the claim was made over 12 years after the purchase date, outside the six-year limitation period. The Ombudsman also noted the purchase price exceeded the £30,000 threshold in Section 75(3)(b), which would exclude the claim from Section 75 protection regardless.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The Ombudsman found that the Lender fairly relied on the Limitation Act 1980 to decline the claim, as Mr K made his claim in April 2024, which is outside the six-year limitation period from the October 2011 date of sale. The Ombudsman rejected arguments that Sections 14A or 32(1) of the Limitation Act extended the time limit, finding the professional representative's submissions on these points were insufficiently detailed and unconvincing. Additionally, the Ombudsman noted that even if the limitation period had been extended, the purchase price of £64,648 exceeded the £30,000 threshold in Section 75(3)(b) of the CCA, which would exclude the claim from Section 75 protection regardless.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website