Overdraft

Lenders must carry out proportionate affordability checks before providing credit and must ensure lending remains sustainable over time.

A lender must inform a borrower in a timely manner of all available options to renew or extend a facility before expiry, to allow the borrower a fair opportunity to apply.

Banks must monitor customer overdraft accounts for signs of actual or potential financial difficulties and take appropriate action under FCA CONC rules.

A bank must process agreed capital repayment holidays promptly and monitor its systems to identify when agreed payment holidays have not been processed, and must act reasonably in correcting resulting credit file damage.

A lender must not continue to provide an overdraft facility when a consumer shows signs of financial difficulty and sustained heavy reliance on the overdraft with no realistic prospect of recovery.

Financial services providers must provide appropriate support and avoid discrimination when customers with vulnerabilities and difficult circumstances request help, and must not apply charges in a manner that causes financial hardship witho

A lender must ensure overdraft limit increases are based on a borrower-focused assessment of affordability, considering the customer's wider financial situation including bank statement evidence of over-reliance on credit and unsustainable

A lender must stop charging overdraft interest and fees when a customer shows signs of financial difficulty and sustained hardcore borrowing, and must offer forbearance rather than continue lending on the same terms.

Banks are entitled to apply their normal commercial lending terms, including requiring personal guarantees, when a government-backed scheme facility expires and a customer applies for a new facility.

A consumer bears responsibility for monitoring their account to verify that pending transactions have been debited before spending funds, particularly when the available balance may be misleading.

A lender must carry out reasonable and proportionate affordability checks to ensure the consumer can repay the loan sustainably without further borrowing.

Lenders must carry out proportionate affordability checks before lending, assessing the borrower's ability to repay sustainably without causing financial difficulty.

A lender must carry out proportionate affordability checks before lending, with the level of scrutiny depending on factors such as loan size and borrower circumstances.

A lender must conduct reasonable and proportionate affordability checks before providing credit, but is not required to obtain bank statements or investigate evidence of gambling if the standard checks show no signs of financial difficulty.

A bank must identify and monitor customers with a pattern of repeat overdraft use and take appropriate action when there are signs of actual or potential financial difficulties, but may continue providing credit where the customer has not r

When a joint account holder enters an IVA, the lender may default the entire account and recall any arranged overdraft without notice to the other parties, as they are jointly liable under the account terms.

A bank may remove an expired overdraft facility without providing additional notice if the expiry date was clearly communicated to the customer.

A bank is not acting unfairly in relying on the address held on its business profile for sending important notices, even if that address is outdated, where the responsibility for updating business details rests with the customer.

A missed payment can be accurately reported when an account exceeds an agreed overdraft limit for more than 30 days, even without an explicit fixed repayment date, provided the consumer was notified of the requirement to bring the account w

A bank may fairly load a default on a credit file if the consumer has been clearly notified of the debt, the deadline for repayment, and the intention to report to credit reference agencies.

A lender can withdraw an overdraft facility in accordance with the terms of the account agreement, provided it acts reasonably given the circumstances.

A lender's creditworthiness checks must be reasonable and proportionate to the type and amount of credit, and approval of overdraft limit increases is not unreasonable if the consumer's circumstances have not changed materially during a sho

Lenders are obliged to report accurate information to Credit Reference Agencies, including unarranged overdrafts reported as missed payments, and customers have responsibility to monitor their accounts and stay within agreed limits.

A lender's relationship with a borrower is only unfair under s140A Consumer Credit Act 1974 if the lender irresponsibly provided credit or allowed unsustainable use without taking action to remedy it.

A lending relationship may be unfair under s140A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 if the creditor irresponsibly provided credit or allowed continued use where the facility became unsustainable or harmful.

Firms must communicate information to customers in a way which is clear, fair and not misleading (FCA Principle 7), including notice of intention to register a default on a credit file.

Banks are entitled to apply their lending policies consistently and implement automated fraud prevention measures without unreasonable interference.

A bank is not automatically obligated to intervene with vulnerable customers absent clear request for support or explicit evidence of harm from specific account behavior.

A bank must not lend irresponsibly or allow a customer to use an overdraft facility in a way that becomes unsustainable or harmful, as this would render the lending relationship unfair under section 140A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

A lending relationship under s140A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 is unfair if the creditor's exercise of rights or actions caused detriment to the debtor, assessed across the whole history of the relationship.