If you miss a personal loan payment in the UK, the account falls into arrears and the miss can affect your credit score. FCA rules require the lender to treat you with forbearance and due consideration, and its guidance says an occasional missed payment should normally be allowed to be made up within the loan’s original term.
This is an evergreen question. This desk read CONC 7.3 and 7.7 in the FCA Handbook, and two lenders’ own loan pages, on 4 October 2026. Both Handbook sections show a last-updated date of 26 June 2026.
What do UK lenders say happens if I miss a personal loan payment?
| Lender page read | What it says happens | Fee amount stated? |
|---|---|---|
| Tesco Bank | Missed by under 14 days on Direct Debit: retried within 10 to 14 days. Over 14 days: pay by the usual methods. Extra payments clear arrears first. | No |
| HSBC UK | A missed payment or default “can impact your credit score” and make future borrowing harder. | No |
Neither page, as read here, states a missed-payment fee, so this piece gives no figure. Tesco Bank applies extra payments to arrears first, so an overpayment on a loan in arrears goes there before anything else.
What must a lender do when you miss a payment?
CONC 7.3 is the FCA’s section on customers in or approaching arrears. Its rule at 7.3.4 says a firm must treat such customers with forbearance and due consideration, and 7.3.4B says the firm must take your individual circumstances into account. You count as approaching arrears, in the guidance at 7.3.4A, when you tell the lender you are at risk of missing a payment.
The guidance at 7.3.5 gives examples of forbearance: suspending, reducing, waiving or cancelling further interest or charges; deferring payment of arrears; and accepting no, reduced or token payments for a reasonable period. These are examples a lender may use where appropriate, not entitlements.
On charges, CONC 7.7 says a firm must not claim debt-recovery costs without a contractual right to them, nor make you believe you owe costs you do not.
Missed payment questions answered
What happens if you miss one payment on a personal loan?
At Tesco Bank, a Direct Debit payment missed by less than 14 days is taken again automatically within 10 to 14 days, and you can contact the bank to pay sooner. The FCA’s guidance says a lender should normally let an occasional missed payment be made up within the original term of the agreement.
How many missed payments before a loan defaults?
No rule this desk read sets a number. StepChange’s guide says a default usually follows two or three missed payments. The FCA’s guidance names ending the agreement as one exception to letting a payment be made up within the term: the lender should reasonably believe termination will reduce the harm to you, and explain that to you first.
Can a lender charge a fee for a missed loan payment?
Only within limits. Where a lender has a contractual right to default charges, the FCA’s guidance says the credit agreement must state them and their conditions. The FCA’s rules say charges on a customer in arrears must be no higher than needed to cover the lender’s reasonable costs. Neither lender page read states a fee amount.
Loan Herald is a publisher, not a lender or broker, and is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority; nothing here is advice. HSBC’s page points borrowers who are struggling to Citizens Advice and StepChange for free support, and if you would rather clear the loan, our piece on the 58 days’ interest in a settlement figure explains that charge.