How do I know if my lender acted irresponsibly?

• Lenders must carry out reasonable checks before agreeing credit.
• They should consider your income, regular expenses and existing debts.
• Repeat lending, constant top-ups or rollovers can be a red flag.
• Approving credit when you were already missing payments elsewhere may be irresponsible.
• You can challenge a lender's decision through their complaints process and, if needed, the Financial Ombudsman Service.

UK lenders are expected to lend responsibly. That means they shouldn't just check whether you meet basic criteria — they should also consider whether you can realistically afford to repay what you borrow without falling behind on other commitments.

Signs your lender may have acted irresponsibly include:

• You were approved for credit despite already having multiple high-interest loans or maxed-out cards.
• The monthly repayments took a large share of your income, leaving little for rent, food and bills.
• You had a history of missed payments, defaults or arrangements to pay that were visible on your credit file.
• The lender let you keep topping up or re-borrowing even though you hadn't cleared previous borrowing.
• Your credit limit was increased without checking whether your situation had changed.

If these sound familiar, you can:

• Ask the lender what checks they carried out when they agreed your loan or credit.
• Submit a written complaint if you believe the lending was unaffordable or the checks were inadequate.
• Take the case to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you aren't satisfied with their final response.

Sanderson Drake review lender decisions and evidence in irresponsible lending cases and can help you understand whether a complaint may be worth pursuing.