Bank failed to disclose phonecall recording

IRISH Life and Permanent’s Trustee Savings Bank (PTSB) failed to act in good faith by concealing the existence of a taped telephone conversation with a customer, a High Court judge said yesterday.

Mr Justice John MacMenamin said that PTSB’s failure to provide a transcript of the tape, or at least disclose its existence, led to a fundamental flaw in the decision-making process of the Financial Services Ombudsman in rejecting an appeal by Thomas and Claire Ryan against the interest on a €1 million-plus mortgage tied to their Wexford home and a property in Dublin.

Judge MacMenamin said the Ombudsman’s decision, that the Ryans had failed to prove their complaint against the bank, was impaired for two reasons: The bank’s failure to disclose the tape recording and an error in the Ombudsman’s request to the bank for discovery of documents.