Not upheld: irresponsible lending complaint against Lloyds Bank PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Miss A complained that Lloyds Bank irresponsibly provided her with a £12,130.68 loan in February 2024. The ombudsman found that while Lloyds Bank's initial checks could have been more proportionate given access to Miss A's bank statements showing higher commitments than declared, the bank was not required to do more. The ombudsman concluded that even with more thorough checks, the loan would not have appeared unaffordable given Miss A's verified income of £1,949 monthly, additional irregular payments of at least £1,000 monthly, manageable credit commitments of £810, and no adverse credit indicators. The complaint was not upheld and no remedy was ordered.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

Although Lloyds Bank's initial checks could have been more thorough given access to bank statements showing higher commitments than declared, the ombudsman concluded that proportionate checks would not have revealed the lending to be irresponsible. Miss A's credit file showed no serious adverse indicators, her overall indebtedness was not concerning at around £810 in monthly commitments, and despite a tight budget of approximately £287 for general living costs after essential expenses, the additional irregular payments of at least £1,000 monthly that Miss A received to help with costs meant there was no sufficient evidence the loan would be unaffordable or unsustainably repayable.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website