Not upheld: failure to disclose APR / inadequate disclosure of interest rate complaint against Lloyds Bank PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Mr J complained that Lloyds did not advertise the APR of his £10,000 personal loan, discovering only after months of repayments that he was paying 28.1% interest. He stated the APR was not mentioned during his online application and that he could not access the credit agreement in his online documents. Lloyds argued the APR was shown on the credit agreement which Mr J signed before funds were released. The ombudsman examined the application journey and found that the APR was clearly displayed at step 2 of the 4-step process, Mr J was required to confirm he had read the loan agreement showing the APR, and he was given the opportunity to save and print it. The ombudsman also found evidence that Lloyds sent the agreement by post. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman examined the complete application journey and found that the APR was displayed at step 2 of the 4-step process, showing the personalised rate alongside the loan terms. Mr J was required to tick a box confirming he had read the loan agreement, which displayed the APR of 28.1% on its first page. The ombudsman concluded that Mr J would have been aware of the APR at the latest by step 2, and that he was given the opportunity to save and print the agreement. The ombudsman found no regulatory requirement for Lloyds to make the loan agreement continuously available online after Mr J had the chance to save it, and noted that Lloyds had also sent the agreement by post. The ombudsman could not hold Lloyds responsible for potential email delivery failures or postal issues outside their control.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website