After several months of waiting, my affordability complaint against Lendable has finally reached its conclusion.
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has issued its final decision and, unfortunately, my complaint was not upheld.
While this wasn’t the outcome I had hoped for, I think it’s important to share the result just as openly as I’ve shared every other stage of this journey. Too often, people only write about successful complaints. Sometimes complaints are rejected, and that’s equally valuable to understand.
If you’ve been following my previous articles about this case, this is the final chapter.
A Recap of the Complaint
In April 2025, I took out a £9,000 personal loan with Lendable, repayable over 60 months at £351.25 per month.
Later, I complained that the loan should never have been approved because I believed it was unaffordable and that Lendable had not carried out sufficient affordability checks before lending.
At the time I applied, my financial circumstances included:
- A substantial amount of existing unsecured debt.
- Multiple defaults recorded during the previous few years.
- A history of debt management arrangements.
- Numerous active credit accounts.
- Significant existing monthly credit commitments.
My argument was that these factors should have prompted greater scrutiny before another £9,000 of borrowing was approved.
What the Financial Ombudsman Decided
The Ombudsman accepted that Lendable had carried out proportionate checks before approving the loan.
According to the decision, Lendable:
- Verified my income.
- Asked about my living and housing costs.
- Reviewed my credit file.
- Assessed my existing credit commitments.
- Calculated whether the repayments appeared affordable.
The Ombudsman also noted that although my credit history contained historic defaults and previous payment arrangements, my credit file showed that I was managing my active accounts at the time the application was made.
The decision also highlighted that:
- There were no recent missed payments.
- There were no recent defaults.
- There were no County Court Judgments (CCJs).
- There was no Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) or bankruptcy.
- My verified income was around £60,000 per year.
Taking everything together, the Ombudsman concluded that Lendable had acted fairly and reasonably when approving the loan.
My Thoughts on the Decision
Although I respect the Ombudsman’s decision, I still have some reservations about the reasoning.
For me, affordability is about much more than simply being up to date with payments.
Someone can continue making payments while still being under considerable financial pressure.
I also felt that more weight could have been given to the wider financial picture, including:
- The overall level of debt.
- The number of active credit accounts.
- Recent defaults.
- Previous debt management arrangements.
- Whether taking on additional borrowing was likely to improve or worsen someone’s financial position.
Ultimately, however, the Ombudsman reached a different conclusion based on the evidence available.
Why I’m Drawing a Line Under It
This decision is final.
The only remaining option would be to pursue the matter through the courts.
After thinking carefully about it, I have decided not to take the complaint any further.
Court action would involve additional cost, time and uncertainty, and I don’t believe it would be the right use of my energy.
Sometimes you have to accept that you’ve presented your case, an independent body has considered it and reached a decision, even if it isn’t the one you hoped for.
While I remain disappointed, I also recognise that not every complaint will succeed.
What I’ve Learned
One positive from this experience is that I’ve gained a much better understanding of how affordability complaints are assessed.
The Financial Ombudsman looks at far more than just whether someone had adverse credit. They also consider:
- Income.
- Verified expenditure.
- Current payment performance.
- Existing credit commitments.
- The overall likelihood that repayments could be made sustainably.
Whether you agree with the conclusions or not, the process has given me a better understanding of how these decisions are reached.
My Advice to Anyone Considering an Affordability Complaint
If you’re thinking about making an affordability complaint, don’t assume it will automatically succeed because you had defaults or a large amount of debt.
Equally, don’t assume it’s not worth pursuing.
Every complaint depends on its own facts, the evidence available and what the lender knew—or ought reasonably to have known—at the time the lending decision was made.
Even though my complaint wasn’t upheld, I don’t regret making it. It gave me the opportunity to have an independent review of the lending decision, and there was always a chance that the outcome could have been different.
My thoughts on my Lendable Complaint
Although this complaint hasn’t ended the way I hoped, it does bring the journey to a close.
I’ll continue writing about debt, affordability, credit reporting and consumer rights because understanding how lending decisions are made can help people make better financial choices.
Not every complaint is successful, and I think it’s important to share those experiences too.
If this series has helped even one person better understand the affordability complaint process, then writing about it has been worthwhile.
For me, it’s time to close this chapter and focus on the future.
