Not upheld: chargeback handling and refund dispute complaint against Vanquis Bank Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr M purchased digital add-ons for a dating application using his Vanquis credit card and attempted to cancel within 14 days, but three purchases totalling £159.97 were not refunded. He asked Vanquis to raise a chargeback, but Vanquis declined without evidence of cancellation. The ombudsman found that Vanquis acted fairly because Mr M's chargeback claim lacked reasonable prospect of success under VISA scheme rules: the content was provided and used, it was not misdescribed, and Mr M was not entitled to a refund under the merchant's policy as content delivery had commenced. A Section 75 Consumer Credit Act claim was unavailable as each purchase was under £100. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman determined that chargebacks are governed by strict VISA scheme rules and are only available under limited circumstances. Mr M's claim did not meet the conditions for a successful chargeback because: (1) the content was provided and used by Mr M; (2) there was no evidence the products were misdescribed; and (3) Mr M was not entitled to a refund under the merchant's policy as content delivery had commenced. Additionally, a Section 75 Consumer Credit Act claim was unavailable as each purchase was under £100. Therefore, Vanquis acted fairly in not progressing a claim with no reasonable prospect of success.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website