Not upheld: Irresponsible lending complaint against Hastings Financial Services Limited (trading as Hastings Direct)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr O complained that Hastings Direct irresponsibly provided him with a £12,500 loan in October 2025 requiring monthly repayments of £262.95 over five years. Mr O argued that Hastings Direct should have performed more detailed checks, particularly given that he had recently taken out another loan with the firm which was repaid during the right to withdraw period. The ombudsman reviewed Hastings Direct's affordability assessment and conducted an independent assessment using verified income of £2,550 net monthly and all available expenditure data. Finding that Mr O would have over £500 disposable income remaining after all essential expenditure and loan repayments, the ombudsman concluded the loan was provided responsibly and rejected the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the regulatory requirement for a reasonable and proportionate affordability assessment that is borrower-focused and considers whether repayments would be sustainable without causing difficulties. The ombudsman reviewed Hastings Direct's checks and conducted an independent affordability assessment using the higher mortgage figure available from the CRA. Finding that Mr O would have over £500 disposable income remaining after all essential expenditure and loan repayments, the ombudsman concluded there was nothing to suggest Mr O was likely to be unable to sustainably repay the loan. The ombudsman rejected the argument that the recent loan withdrawal required more detailed checks, as the right to withdraw meant that debt no longer existed.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website