Not upheld: account blocking and fund return following fraud claim complaint against Nationwide Building Society

Decision detail

Summary

Mr E complained that Nationwide unfairly blocked his account and returned £1,100.27 of a £3,600 payment he received from selling USDT on a cryptocurrency platform. Nationwide had received a fraud report regarding the incoming payment and an indemnity claim requesting the funds be returned. The investigator upheld the complaint, finding Mr E's evidence persuasive and recommending the funds be returned with interest and compensation. However, the ombudsman reversed this decision, finding that while Mr E may be a victim, he should have verified the transaction given multiple warning signs including the third-party payment source, the platform's explicit warnings against such payments, and the suspicious payment reference. The ombudsman concluded Nationwide acted reasonably in returning the funds in accordance with its regulatory obligations.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Nationwide is obligated to take indemnity claims seriously, there is no automatic assumption that funds must be returned. However, the ombudsman was not persuaded that Mr E's evidence supported his claim to be a victim. The ombudsman noted several concerning factors: USDT is primarily used for ease of movement and price stability rather than investment; the sale price appeared poor value; Mr E had prior experience with the platform and should have known to verify third-party payments; the platform explicitly warned against accepting third-party payments; the payment reference 'vW car' should have alerted Mr E to potential issues; and Mr E immediately dispersed the funds. The ombudsman concluded Mr E had a responsibility to verify the transaction and should have reasonably been aware of the issue.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website