The LSB is pleased to announce the increased threshold of the Standards of Lending Practice for business customers (the Standards), two years after the launch of the Standards which applied to businesses with a turnover of £6.5m. The Standards will now protect businesses with a turnover of up to £25m, bringing consistency in treatment of SMEs.
Continuing the clear focus on good customer outcomes and renewing the commitment of the industry to voluntary self-regulation, in addition to the extended turnover threshold, the existing section on financial difficulty has been developed to include a set of Standards focussing on treatment of customers in business support units. Taking note of concerns around debt sale, the Standards also include an enhanced level of LSB oversight in this area.
The extended Standards will become effective on 1 November and the current Standards remain in place until this date.
This extension initially covers core products; loans, overdrafts, credit cards and charge cards, and we will be working to extend the Standards of Lending Practice for business customers – Asset Finance in due course.
A copy of the Standards of Lending Practice for business customers with a turnover of up to £25m can be found here.
