How to Tell if Your High-Interest Credit Card Was Irresponsibly Lent to You

If a lender gave you a high-interest credit card, or increased your credit limit, without properly checking whether you could afford the repayments, you may be able to complain and ask for a refund of interest, fees and charges. These are often called irresponsible lending claims, and they can apply to credit cards as well as payday loans, guarantor loans and other regulated credit products.

This is not about regretting a purchase. It is about whether the lender carried out proper affordability checks before lending to you or increasing your limit.

A familiar pattern

You apply for a card with a modest limit, perhaps £1,200. A few months later, the lender raises the limit to £4,000. You did not ask for it. You were already paying only the minimum each month, the balance was barely reducing, and your other debts were growing.

A year later, you owe more than you expected. Most of each payment is swallowed by interest, and the lender has increased your limit again.

That pattern can support a complaint. The issue is not simply that you used the card. The issue is whether the lender should have seen that giving you more credit was unaffordable or likely to cause financial harm.

What irresponsible lending means

The FCA’s Consumer Credit sourcebook, known as CONC, requires lenders to carry out a reasonable creditworthiness assessment before entering into a regulated credit agreement or significantly increasing a credit limit.

Creditworthiness has two sides. The first is credit risk, which is the chance that the lender will not be repaid. The second is affordability risk, which is whether you can make repayments sustainably without having to borrow more, miss essential bills or suffer financial difficulty.

A lender should consider enough information to make a fair decision. That may include your income, existing debts, credit file, repayment history and signs of financial pressure. The guide on high-interest credit cards and affordability checks explains this in more detail.

Signs your card may have been irresponsibly lent

No single factor decides a case, but these warning signs often matter:

• Your credit limit was increased more than once without you asking

• You were only making minimum payments for long periods

• You used the card for essentials such as food, fuel, rent or bills

• You had payday loans, overdrafts, other cards or arrears at the time

• You missed payments or paid late, but the lender still increased your limit

• You had a default, County Court Judgment or debt management plan when the card was approved

• Clearing the balance over a reasonable period would have taken an unrealistic share of your income

The list of repeat borrowing red flags explains how debt cycles develop when lenders keep extending credit to someone already under pressure.

Credit limit increases deserve special attention

A credit limit increase is a new lending decision. If your limit went from £1,500 to £6,000 while your income stayed the same and your balance kept rising, each increase can be questioned.

The original limit may have been affordable. The later increases may not have been. This is one of the most common reasons high-interest credit card complaints succeed.

What you could get back

If a complaint succeeds, the usual remedy is not always the cancellation of the whole debt. More often, the lender is told to refund interest, fees and charges on the borrowing that should not have been provided.

For example, if the lender should not have increased your limit above £2,000, you may be refunded interest and charges applied to balances above that level. The lender may also be told to correct or remove negative credit file information linked to unaffordable borrowing.

For complaints referred to the Financial Ombudsman before 1 January 2026, interest on refunded sums was commonly 8% simple per year. For complaints referred from 1 January 2026, the usual default interest rate is based on the time-weighted average of the Bank of England base rate plus 1 percentage point, unless a different approach is fair in the circumstances.

The article on refunds for interest and charges explains how these figures are usually built.

For context, the Financial Ombudsman can require a firm to pay up to £455,000 for complaints referred from 1 April 2026 about acts or omissions on or after 1 April 2019. Most credit card refunds are much smaller, but the limit shows the system has real force.

How the claim works

The process is usually straightforward.

First, you complain to the lender. Explain that you believe the credit card, or later credit limit increases, were unaffordable and ask for a refund of interest, fees and charges.

The lender usually has 8 weeks to issue a final response.

If the lender rejects the complaint or offers less than you think is fair, you normally have 6 months from the date of the final response to take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

You can do this yourself for free. Some people prefer to use a regulated claim management company UK borrowers can rely on because gathering statements, drafting the complaint and dealing with the lender can take time. Claim First works on a no win, no fee basis, meaning there is no upfront fee and nothing to pay if the claim does not succeed.

If you want to understand similar affordability arguments, read what a refund for interest and charges can look like and guarantor loans gone wrong.

The time limits you need to know

There are two main time limits. The Financial Ombudsman usually cannot look at a complaint referred more than 6 years after the event you are complaining about. If that period has passed, you may still be in time if you complain within 3 years of when you became aware, or ought reasonably to have become aware, that you had cause to complain.

You should also usually refer the complaint to the Ombudsman within 6 months of the lender’s final response.

Older cards are not automatically out of reach. Check the dates before assuming you are too late. The guide on time limits for finance complaints in the UK explains the same timing principles across finance complaints.

A realistic example

Daniel opened a card in 2018 with a £900 limit. By 2021, it had been increased to £5,500. His salary had not changed. He was paying around £140 a month, much of it interest, on an APR close to 40%. He also had 2 payday loans and was using an overdraft.

A complaint in a case like this would look at whether the lender should have seen the strain before increasing the limit. If the later increases were unaffordable, the likely remedy would be a refund of interest and charges on the borrowing above the affordable limit, plus appropriate interest, and correction of the credit file where needed.

How this fits alongside other claims

Irresponsible lending is one part of a wider picture. If money went into a fake investment or cloned trading platform, that is a different route, handled through no win no fee scam recovery. Warning signs are covered in the pieces on fake investment platforms, recovery room scams, scam recovery after a fake broker scheme, and whether money sent by bank transfer, card, or crypto can be recovered.

Car finance is another area where affordability and disclosure issues may arise, which is why mis-sold PCP claims remain important. Useful guides include what compensation might look like in car finance cases, what a complaint does to your credit file, the difference between a flat rate and an APR, the evidence that helps a finance claim, choosing the right solicitor, how the complaint process splits between dealer, lender, and broker, negative equity roll over, whether you can still claim on a settled deal, and joint car finance agreements.

The same firm also handles housing repair claims for tenants living with damp, mould, leaks or unsafe wiring. If that applies to you, start with what tenants can realistically expect from private landlords, social housing disrepair, electrical hazards in rented homes, and extra duties owed to vulnerable tenants.

You can browse everything through the payday loan refund guides, scam recovery section, car finance section, and housing disrepair section.

Frequently asked questions

Can I claim for irresponsible lending on a credit card?

Yes. Credit cards and credit limit increases are covered by affordability rules. If the lender did not check properly, or lent despite clear signs you could not afford it, you can complain.

How do I prove the lending was irresponsible?

You build a picture using limit increase dates, statements, bank records, other debts, missed payments and minimum-payment history. The lender also holds key data. The guide on the evidence that strengthens a finance complaint explains what usually helps.

How much compensation could I get?

It depends on how much interest, fees and charges were applied to the unaffordable borrowing. Some refunds are modest. Others can run into thousands.

Will making a claim hurt my credit score?

The act of complaining should not harm your credit score. A successful complaint may lead to negative markers linked to unaffordable borrowing being corrected or removed.

Is there a deadline?

Usually 6 years from the lending decision, or 3 years from when you realised you had cause to complain, whichever is later. You also usually have 6 months from the lender’s final response to go to the Ombudsman.

What is the difference between affordability and creditworthiness?

Creditworthiness is the overall assessment. Affordability is the part that asks whether you could keep up repayments without hardship or needing to borrow more. A lender can think you are likely to repay but still fail to check whether repayment is sustainable.

Ready to check your card?

If these patterns feel familiar, it costs nothing to find out where you stand. You can start your claim online in minutes, or get in touch with the team if you would rather talk it through first. You can also read about the people behind Claim First, browse the frequently asked questions, and see stories from people already helped before you decide.

Everything is handled on a no win, no fee basis, so there is no upfront cost and nothing to pay if your claim does not succeed.