Partially upheld: Account administration errors complaint against American Express Payment Services Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Miss V complained that AESEL lost three payments she made in early 2022 (totalling less than £500) and incorrectly recorded adverse information on her credit file. While Miss V initially used an incorrect account number, AESEL directed her to send evidence to an unmonitored email address without informing her of this. The ombudsman found AESEL at fault for this procedural failure and ordered removal of late markers for the three payments, £100 compensation, and refund of late fees. However, the ombudsman upheld the default registration because Miss V owed a significant balance of over £4,000 regardless of the missing payments and failed to make required payments during the dispute.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Miss V did not use correct payment details initially, AESEL was at fault for not informing her that the email address was unmonitored. However, the ombudsman held that Miss V should have made required payments regardless of the dispute over the three missing payments. The default registration was justified because Miss V owed a significant balance of over £4,000 that was unrelated to the missing payments. The ombudsman considered both parties could have handled the situation more appropriately.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website