Not upheld: card declined / service failure complaint against Nationwide Building Society
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-6031825 of 2026-04-20T00:00:00+00:00. card declined / service failure complaint against Nationwide Building Society. Outcome: Not upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-6031825 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2026-04-20T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | Nationwide Building Society |
| Product | Current account |
| Claim type | card declined / service failure |
| Outcome | Not upheld |
| Remedy | No additional remedy ordered. Nationwide's £75 compensation payment was already made and accepted as reasonable. |
Summary
Mrs T complained that Nationwide treated her unfairly when her card was declined during a purchase in June 2025. After investigating, Nationwide could not identify a cause on its systems and suggested the decline was either a merchant error or due to incorrect PIN entry. Nationwide subsequently ordered a replacement card, but later apologised as this was unnecessary and paid £75 compensation. The ombudsman found that Nationwide had offered reasonable support and could not have done more, and therefore did not uphold the complaint.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman considered that Nationwide offered reasonable support by investigating the account, offering possible explanations for the decline, and confirming the decline was not Nationwide-directed. Although the firm subsequently acknowledged that ordering a replacement card was unnecessary and paid compensation, the ombudsman found the overall response to be fair and reasonable. The ombudsman noted that by August 2025, Nationwide could not have done more to resolve the matter.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| Nationwide Building Society, all decisions | 13,251 | 21% |
| Current account, all decisions | 45,590 | 19% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website