Unfair Lending Claims
Recover premiums deducted from your compensation
If you were given credit you couldn’t afford, hit with hidden fees, or pressured into signing, Complex Law can challenge the lender. We’ll review the agreement end‑to‑end, identify regulatory breaches, and pursue refunds of interest and charges, balance write‑offs, credit file corrections, and compensation for distress.
The Facts
What is unfair lending?
Unfair lending practices usually boil down to one issue: you were not fully informed about the loan or credit you signed up for. This could be because the lender failed to assess affordability properly, was unclear about all the fees that apply, or was aggressive in persuading you to sign up. The most common claims involve credit cards, store cards, personal or guarantor loans or “buy-now-pay-later” schemes.
The law
Lenders have a duty to correctly assess affordability and creditworthiness before approving a loan or increasing your credit limit. They are also required by the FCA to provide you with clear information, including full terms, fees and details of any commission, before you sign up – and they mustn't pressure you into making a decision. If they fail in any of these obligations, you may have grounds for a complaint or claim.
Your rights
Depending on the conduct of your lender and the specific breaches of the Act, you may be entitled to a refund of any fees paid and interest charged, removal of any negative markers on your credit history, and potentially a write-off of the balance owed. In some cases, borrowers may also be able to seek compensation for distress and inconvenience via the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Next steps
Gather any relevant evidence, such as credit agreements, statements, pre‑contract information, emails or chats, affordability forms, and records of calls or payment demands. Download a credit report to check for any negative markers. Then speak to Complex Law. We’ll review your documents, and if you have a valid claim, we’ll request your data from the lender and plan the next steps.
How Complex Law can help
Our specialists' consumer claims team will assess your case in detail, explain the options available to you in plain English, and work with you to identify the most effective route to redress.
Affordability failures and limit increases
We can analyse your income and expenditure to show patterns of harmful repeat lending, and challenge loans or credit limit increases that were approved by lenders without proper affordability checks.
Hidden costs, commissions, and add‑ons
Our specialist team will uncover any undisclosed fees, bundled insurance, or hidden commission, and detail how these practices created an unfair relationship, giving us grounds to seek redress.
Collections and credit file harm
We can challenge unfair default charges and improper collection practices, as well as help you to successfully obtain removal or correction of adverse credit markers – restoring your credit rating to what it should be.
Cost control and transparency
Depending on your case, we may offer fixed or staged fees for the review and complaint stages. We’ll agree on clear budgets before litigation, always seeking the most cost-effective route to recover your money.
Do you have a claim?
Unfair lending happens when a lender or broker fails to follow rules designed to protect borrowers. Do any of the points on our checklist apply to you?
If so, you should speak to Complex Law to discuss your situation in more detail and explore the options available to you.
Claim checklist
Your lender didn’t check affordability or repeatedly raised your limit.
You were charged hidden or unclear fees, or sold add‑ons you didn’t need.
You felt pressured to sign or to roll over/refinance to keep up.
You suffered defaults or credit damage after unaffordable lending.
The lender or broker failed to explain costs, risks, or alternatives.
Legal services tailored to your needs
Our practice is focused on three areas of law: Consumer Claims, Individuals, and Businesses (Complex 360), making it easy to match your legal issue with the right team and strategy.
Consumer Claims
If you’ve been missold a loan or targeted by fraudsters or scammers, you don’t have to face the fallout alone. We’ll represent you on a no-win, no-fee basis.
What Others Say
Hear from our past clients
We’re proud of our success rate. Over the last four decades, we’ve helped thousands of clients secure the judgments, compensation, settlements, or resolutions they were seeking.
Excellent rating
Paul W
Ridiculously easy to check and apply. All the searching is done for you in literally one minute. A soft credit check is required but doesn't impact your score. Go and claim what’s rightly owed!
Kathleen H
This is the first time I have contacted Complex Law. It was easy and I got a quick response. I was shocked how many finance companies they found within half an hour. There was no way I would have remembered these companies.
Sidali S
Really pleased with how easy it was to fill out the complaint form. The layout was clear, and the steps were simple to follow, which made the whole process quick and stress-free. It’s great to see such an efficient and user-friendly system in place.
Frequently asked questions
If you don’t find the answer to your question here, get in touch with us and we’ll be happy to help.
Documents that you should gather if you have access to them include credit agreements, statements, pre‑contract information, and any affordability assessments or income/expenditure forms you completed. It’s also useful for us to have copies of any emails, messages, or call notes relating to the loan or credit, particularly any communication pressuring you to sign, increasing credit limits or mentioning additional charges or fees.
Yes, time limits apply to these types of claims, and they are usually calculated from the date that you can be reasonably assumed to have been aware of the issue – rather than the date you first reported it or sought legal advice. Complaints must be raised with the lender first, then escalated to the Financial Ombudsman Service, and, if necessary, to the courts – and each stage has fixed deadlines. It’s therefore important to act as soon as you realise there is a problem.
Yes, you are still entitled to make a claim regarding a fully paid-off loan or credit card if the original lending practices were unfair. If successful, you may be able to recover interest and fees paid on the loan, and have negative markers removed from your credit file.
We would advise that you don’t stop or cancel payments before seeking legal advice, as it may cause you additional issues. However, if you choose to work with Complex Law, we can contact the lender to agree a hold on further payments or fees while the claim is being assessed to minimise further financial impact.
Yes, you can still bring a claim even if the credit was arranged through a broker or comparison site. Hidden commissions, pressure selling, or failure to explain costs and risks can contribute to an “unfair relationship” and support redress against the lender and, where appropriate, the broker. We’ll obtain your data from both parties, examine commission arrangements, and challenge any practices that inflated costs or bypassed proper affordability checks.
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