Not upheld: Fraud reimbursement (APP scams) complaint against ICICI Bank UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S complained that ICICI Bank UK Plc refused to refund him £7,000 after he was the victim of an investment scam involving cryptocurrency. Mr S claimed the payment was out of character and above £5,000, suggesting ICICI should have intervened. The ombudsman found that while Mr S may have been scammed, the transaction was not sufficiently unusual for his account to have prompted intervention, as he had made occasional large payments previously and the account remained well-funded. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Mr S may have been a victim of a scam, the £7,000 transaction to his own digital wallet was not sufficiently unusual for his account to have prompted intervention. The account showed occasional large payments, remained well-funded after the transaction, and there was no pattern of suspicious transactions to the digital wallet. The ombudsman also noted that Mr S had indicated to another bank he would proceed with the payment despite warnings about risks.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website