Fraud victim awarded €1,000 after bank made him 'feel like a liar'

As well as being ordered to refund more than €7,000 lost from the unauthorised transactions, the Ombudsman ordered that an additional €1,000 be paid to the complainant for a failure to provide an appropriate level of customer service.

The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman has ordered a bank to pay out €1,000 in compensation to a customer for "less than helpful" customer service during a fraud claim.

In a decision handed down on 30 January, Deputy Financial Services Ombudsman MaryRose McGovern substantially upheld a claim brought by a complainant regarding unauthorised transactions on their current account in late 2015 and 2016.

As well as being ordered to refund the Complainant more than €7,000 lost from the unauthorised transactions, the Ombudsman ordered that an additional €1,000 be paid to the complainant for a failure to provide an appropriate level of customer service.

The Complainant was on holidays abroad around Christmas time in 2015, and used his debit card to purchase a tablet for €145 in a local store. However, the Complainant believes his chip and PIN card was “cloned” by the merchant, as three subsequent transactions were made using the card to a total of €7,084.

The Complainant said these transactions were unauthorised, but in January 2016 the current account Provider declined to refund the €7,084, saying that his card could not have been cloned, and he must have authorised the transactions himself.

Siding with the complainant, the FSPO determined that it is not impossible to tamper with or misuse a chip and PIN card, and that there was no evidence that the unauthorised transactions were a result of the Complainant’s intentional or fraudulent actions, or gross negligence.

The Ombudsman ruled that the complainant was entitled to a full refund of €7,084 (less the €75 which he was liable to pay himself under the account terms and conditions).

The Complainant said in relation to his dealings with the Provider about the fraud claim, “never in my life have I ever encountered such unhelpful, narky individuals”, adding that the provider “failed to protect me, made me feel like a liar from the outset, and has done nothing to help me get my money back”.

In particular the Complainant noted that he was told to go to his local branch to meet a manager to deal with the claim. He believed this to be the bank where the bank account was held, in the Republic of Ireland, which was a 90-mile round trip from his home in Northern Ireland.

The Complainant said he left work early to visit the branch, but when he arrived there was no manager available, and the appointment had actually been booked in a branch in Northern Ireland just three miles from his home.

The Ombudsman ruled that the Provider’s dealings with the Complainant on the phone were “less than helpful” and “strained at times”, follow up letters did not fully engage with the Complainant’s arguments or address his questions, and that there could have been greater care in guiding the Complainant about attendance at the appropriate branch.

In light of the failure to provide an “appropriate” level of customer service, together with a failure to immediately refund the Complainant in 2016, the Ombudsman ordered the Provider to pay an extra €1,000 compensatory payment to the Complainant.