Money Box Life: Lending to Loved Ones

When someone you love needs financial help, lending them money can seem like the easiest way to support them. And when you're the one facing financial difficulties, turning to someone close to you for a loan can feel like the most natural solution.

Around 1 in 4 of us borrow from family and friends when times are tight according to a survey from the not for profit, Fair4All Finance. It found many of those people were asking for smaller amounts of money of around £250 or less to help pay for essentials like food and bills. However, for some, it could be for a loan of tens of thousands of pounds, like children asking for money for a house deposit.

The tension is, that if you don't get it right, you could damage relationships with people you care about.

So what are the rules and what happens when things don't go to plan?

Joining Felicity Hannah is Melinda Giles, a partner at the law firm Giles Wilson who specialises in family law and Peter Tutton, Director of Policy at the debt charity StepChange.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Sarah Rogers
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior Editor: Sara Wadeson

(This episode first aired on Wednesday the 9th September, 2026).