Affordability complaints have become increasingly common in the UK, particularly where lenders rely heavily on automated credit checks.
Recently, I raised an affordability complaint about a loan issued by Lendable. I’m sharing the experience here because it highlights how lending decisions are made, what can go wrong, and what your options are if you believe a loan should never have been approved in the first place.
This isn’t theory. This is a real complaint that has now been referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
The Loan
In April 2025, I was approved for a £9,705 personal loan over 60 months.
At the time the loan was approved, my financial situation already looked stretched:
- Around £26,000 in existing unsecured debt
- Several recent defaults within the previous few years
- High credit card utilisation
- An arrangement to pay on another account
Despite these warning signs, the loan was approved.
The lender relied primarily on data from TransUnion to assess my creditworthiness.
Why I Raised an Affordability Complaint
After reviewing my credit report and the circumstances around the loan, I became concerned that the lending may not have been responsibly assessed.
Under the FCA’s responsible lending rules, lenders must carry out a reasonable and proportionate affordability assessment before granting credit.
That means they should consider whether the borrower can repay the loan sustainably without experiencing financial difficulty.
In my case, several factors suggested that additional checks may have been appropriate:
- Significant existing debt levels
- Recent adverse credit history
- Evidence of financial difficulty through arrangements to pay
- Heavy use of revolving credit
For a £9,705 loan over five years, it’s reasonable to question whether a deeper affordability review should have taken place.
The Lender’s Response
In their final response to my complaint, Lendable stated that their decision was based on the information available at the time of application.
According to them:
- My income was verified.
- My debt service ratio was calculated at 24%
- Their lending policy allows up to 40%
- No active arrangements to pay were visible on the credit reference agency data
- No accounts had recent defaults within the previous 12 months
Based on those factors, they concluded that their checks were reasonable and proportionate and declined to uphold the complaint.
Where the Dispute Lies
After obtaining my own credit report from February 2025 (two months before the loan was approved), several discrepancies became apparent.
These included:
- An arrangement to pay marker recorded within the relevant period
- Multiple recent defaults visible on the file
- A significant difference in the balance reported on one credit card account
There is also a question around whether information from another lender within the same corporate group should have been considered during the assessment.
Taken together, these factors raise an important question:
Was relying primarily on automated credit bureau data sufficient for a loan of this size and term?
That is ultimately what the Ombudsman will now decide.
Escalating the Complaint
Because the lender declined to uphold the complaint, the case has now been referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
The Ombudsman will review:
- What checks were carried out
- What information was available at the time
- Whether the lending decision was reasonable
If the Ombudsman decides the loan should not have been approved, potential outcomes can include:
- Refund of interest and charges
- Adjustment of the outstanding balance
- Correction of credit file entries
Each case is decided on its own facts.
What This Means for Borrowers
Many lending decisions today rely heavily on automated credit scoring systems.
That doesn’t mean lenders can ignore clear signs of financial difficulty.
If you believe a lender approved credit that was clearly unaffordable, you have the right to challenge it.
The typical process looks like this:
- Submit an affordability complaint to the lender
- Wait for their final response (up to 8 weeks)
- Escalate the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman if necessary
In some cases, borrowers have successfully recovered thousands of pounds in interest.
Why I’m Sharing This
I’ve spent much of my adult life dealing with debt, sometimes well and sometimes badly.
One thing I’ve learned is that understanding how lending decisions work makes it easier to challenge them when something doesn’t look right.
This case is still ongoing, and I’ll update this post once the Ombudsman reaches a decision.
Until then, it’s a useful example of how affordability complaints actually work in the real world.
