The LSB is unable to respond to customer enquiries or complaints about our registered firms. Contact details for organisations who can help with enquiries can be found below.
The Standards for business customers
The Standards of Lending Practice for business customers provide protections for SMEs with a consolidated turnover of up to £25 million across loan, commercial mortgage, overdraft and credit card products.
The Statement of Lender and Borrower Responsibilities is a document which sets out registered firms’ responsibilities to borrowers and what firms ask of their customers. A further document, the Statement of Commitment and Borrower Responsibilities, sets out the responsibilities of registered firms undertaking debt collection activities and what those firms ask of their customers.
Both statements have been developed to sit alongside the Standards of Lending Practice.
The relevant statement is also available on registered firms’ websites and customers may wish to read the Standards for business customers alongside these.
The Standards for personal customers 2016-2025
The Standards of Lending Practice for personal customers set out standards of good practice in relation to overdraft, credit card, chargecard and unsecured loan products and services provided to consumers.
Following an LSB consultation which took place over the course of 2024, the LSB retired the Standards of Lending Practice for personal customers with effect from 31 March 2025.
The 2024 consultation identified demand from financial services providers and others for new bespoke consumer finance focused guidance. The LSB will be providing this guidance, alongside new customer outcomes testing and benchmarking for personal lending, in due course.
The personal Standards remain accessible on this page for reference.
A summary of the 2024 consultation can be found here, and the full consultation outcome can be found here.
The Statement of Lender and Borrower Responsibilities is a document which set out registered firms’ responsibilities to borrowers and what firms ask of their customers. A further document, the Statement of Commitment and Borrower Responsibilities, set out the responsibilities of registered firms undertaking debt collection activities and what those firms ask of their customers.
Both statements were developed to sit alongside the Standards of Lending Practice.
The relevant statement is also available on registered firms’ websites and customers may wish to read the Standards for personal customers alongside these.
Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams 2019-2024
APP scams occur when a customer is tricked into authorising a payment to an account they believe belongs to a genuine payee, but is in fact held by a scammer.
The Lending Standards Board provided oversight of the CRM Code until 7 October 2024 to ensure that its protections were applied by signatory firms.
The Payment Systems Regulator’s statutory reimbursement framework was introduced on 7 October and the CRM Code was retired.
Read more about the impact of the CRM Code here.
If you are worried that you have been a victim of a scam it is important to make contact with your payment service provider immediately, using the number on the back of your debit, credit or prepaid card or by visiting their website.
If you don’t have access to any money because it’s all been taken, tell your bank as they may be able to help. You can also contact the Citizens Advice consumer helpline: 0808 223 1133 or visit their website.
If you are finding it hard to recover from the experience, contact Victim Support on 0808 1689 111.
The Financial Ombudsman Service is responsible for handling complaints between financial service providers and their customers.
Useful information and support for customers
The LSB is a member of the UK Regulators’ Network (UKRN), which has put together three helpful documents containing important information for consumers to help them tackle cost of living challenges. Read more below.
Cost-of-living: Getting extra help
Essential services: Getting extra help
Essential services Northern Ireland: Water, Gas and Electricity