Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 is one of the most powerful consumer protections in UK law — and one of the most misunderstood. These are the five errors that cause valid claims to fail.
Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 makes your credit card provider jointly and severally liable with the retailer for any breach of contract or misrepresentation. This means if the retailer cannot or will not resolve your complaint, you can claim directly against your credit card provider for the full amount — not just your card provider’s share.
This protection exists regardless of whether you paid the full amount on credit card. If you paid a £1 deposit by credit card on a £500 purchase and paid the rest by cash, you still have full Section 75 protection on the entire £500.
One of the most common mistakes is believing Section 75 only covers the amount actually paid on the credit card. This is wrong. The protection applies to the entire purchase as long as the credit card was used for at least part of the payment and the total transaction value is between £100 and £30,000.
The leading case is OFT v Lloyds TSB Bank plc [2007] UKHL 48, which confirmed that the debtor-creditor-supplier relationship — and the joint liability — applies to the whole transaction, not just the portion paid by card.
Section 75 applies to purchases made abroad as well as in the UK. Many credit card providers attempt to resist overseas claims by citing jurisdiction issues, but the Consumer Credit Act is clear — the protection extends to all qualifying transactions regardless of where the retailer is based. The Financial Ombudsman Service regularly upholds overseas Section 75 claims.
Section 75 is available whether or not the retailer is still trading. You do not need to show that the retailer is insolvent or that you have already tried and failed to get a refund from them. The joint liability means you can go directly to your credit card provider. In practice you should try the retailer first, but there is no legal requirement to exhaust that route before using Section 75.
Chargeback is a Visa/Mastercard scheme rule, not a statutory right. It is available for debit card and credit card transactions but has shorter time limits (typically 120 days from the transaction or from when the problem arose) and is at the discretion of the card scheme. Section 75 is a statutory right with a 6-year limitation period and cannot be taken away by the card provider.
Always try Section 75 if the transaction qualifies — it is stronger than chargeback.
Section 75 covers “goods or services” — this includes digital content, software, online courses, and services like holiday bookings. The restriction is on the transaction value (£100–£30,000) and the use of credit card, not on the type of product.
If your card provider rejects your Section 75 claim, escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS upholds a significant proportion of Section 75 complaints. They will look at whether the transaction qualifies (amount, credit card use), whether there was a breach of contract or misrepresentation, and whether the card provider followed correct procedures in assessing the claim.
You have 6 months from the card provider’s final response letter to refer to the FOS.
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