Affordability assessment (Affordability check)
An affordability assessment is a lender's check of whether a borrower can repay a loan sustainably out of their disposable income, without undue difficulty. It weighs verified income against committed and essential outgoings, rather than only asking whether they are creditworthy in principle.
Under FCA rules, affordability is distinct from creditworthiness: a borrower may have a clean credit history yet not be able to afford the repayments. Lenders increasingly use Open Banking to see real income and spending over time, instead of relying on declared figures or bureau data alone.
A robust assessment looks at income stability, essential costs, existing credit commitments, end-of-day balances and signs of financial stress, then sizes lending to what is genuinely sustainable.
Credit Canary builds affordability assessment into one platform for UK lenders, with the data and decisioning behind it.
Affordability ScoreSee affordability assessment in a working platform
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