Not upheld: liability for credit agreement following disputed delivery of financed goods complaint against Clydesdale Financial Services Limited (trading as Barclays Partner Finance)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr G purchased a phone for approximately £1,400 using a fixed sum loan from BPF. The courier delivered the package to Mr G's designated safe place (his front door) on 1 November 2025 at 09:34am, as evidenced by a photograph. Mr G claims he never received the package despite being at home all day. BPF relied on the delivery evidence to hold Mr G liable for the outstanding loan balance. The ombudsman found that on balance, the evidence supported successful delivery to the designated safe place and that BPF acted fairly in not cancelling the credit agreement, despite acknowledging the ultimate fate of the package remained uncertain.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the balance of probabilities standard given incomplete evidence. While acknowledging uncertainty about what happened to the package, the ombudsman found that the delivery photo showing the package at the designated safe place, combined with the delivery time being within the expected window, meant BPF had sufficient evidence to reasonably conclude the package was likely successfully delivered. The ombudsman noted that while the courier may not have knocked or Mr G may not have heard a knock, it would be unfair to conclude the courier acted inappropriately in leaving the package at the designated safe place. The ombudsman distinguished between what may have happened (theft by courier or third party) and what the evidence supports, finding the latter insufficient to hold BPF acted unfairly.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website