Not upheld: refund handling, chargeback process, Section 75 claim handling complaint against American Express Services Europe Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs G complained about AMEX's handling of her refund request for a £22,000 package holiday where she experienced quality issues with the hotel accommodation, food, and amenities. AMEX attempted chargebacks which resulted in a £4,000 refund from the merchant and declined to pursue further chargebacks or uphold a Section 75 claim. The ombudsman found AMEX fairly handled both the chargeback process by using the appropriate reason code and reasonably deciding not to pursue further claims, and the Section 75 claim by accepting that the £4,000 refund was proportionate given Mrs G had full use of most holiday services. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman considered both the chargeback process and Section 75 claim separately. For chargebacks, AMEX appropriately used the 'Not as Described' reason code and reasonably decided not to pursue further chargebacks after the merchant agreed to £4,000 refund, as the remaining chargebacks were unlikely to succeed given Mrs G had substantial use of the holiday services. For the Section 75 claim, the ombudsman found that while there were issues with hotel services, the £4,000 refund already received represented a fair remedy given that Mrs G received significant portions of the package without issues and remained at the hotel for the full duration. The ombudsman concluded AMEX was not unreasonable in declining further liability.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website