Upheld: Card / payment disputes complaint against American Express Payment Services Limited
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-4027240 of 2023-03-16T00:00:00+00:00. Card / payment disputes complaint against American Express Payment Services Limited. Outcome: Upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-4027240 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2023-03-16T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | American Express Payment Services Limited |
| Product | Current account |
| Claim type | Card / payment disputes |
| Outcome | Upheld |
| Remedy | AEPSL to pay 8% interest on £14,372.04 from the date the payment should have been returned to F to the date it was actually returned (March 2022). AEPSL to continue communicating with K on a best endeavours basis to recover remaining missing payments from September 2019 to February 2020, contingent on F providing detailed receipts in a readable format. |
Summary
F, a limited company, complained that AEPSL failed to return funds that were incorrectly routed to a third party's merchant account (K) due to an incorrect merchant ID on F's payment terminal between August 2019 and September 2020. AEPSL ultimately returned £14,372.04 relating to payments from February to September 2020 and offered 8% interest. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding AEPSL's handling reasonable but requiring payment of the 8% interest as compensation for delays. The ombudsman noted F's failure to notify AEPSL within the required 90 days prevented earlier recovery, and further missing payments from September 2019 to February 2020 would require F to provide detailed receipts for AEPSL to pursue on a best endeavours basis.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman found no sufficiently persuasive evidence that AEPSL was responsible for the incorrect merchant ID entry, which was more likely the installer's error. Critically, F failed to notify AEPSL of missing payments within the required 90 days, preventing AEPSL from taking corrective action earlier. Once AEPSL became aware through K's contact, it acted reasonably by requesting documentary evidence and ultimately returning the identified payments. The delay in returning funds was partially attributable to F's late provision of receipts. The 8% interest offered is proportionate compensation for the delay, particularly given F is a limited company rather than an individual consumer.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| American Express Payment Services Limited, all decisions | 33 | 33% |
| Card / payment disputes, all decisions | 14,085 | 18% |
| Current account, all decisions | 48,245 | 19% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website