Not upheld: account opening delay and service failure complaint against Hampshire Trust Bank Plc
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-6056390 of 2026-04-09T00:00:00+00:00. account opening delay and service failure complaint against Hampshire Trust Bank Plc. Outcome: Not upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-6056390 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2026-04-09T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | Hampshire Trust Bank Plc |
| Product | Savings / ISA |
| Claim type | account opening delay and service failure |
| Outcome | Not upheld |
| Remedy | Hampshire Trust Bank Plc should pay Mrs D £50 compensation for distress and inconvenience caused by the account opening error and access issues, and £19.71 for lost interest representing two days of interest (the reasonable delay period). If tax is deducted from the interest award, Hampshire must provide a tax deduction certificate. |
Summary
Mrs D applied for a fixed interest bond with Hampshire on 31 May 2025 but the account was opened in an incorrect name due to initial identity verification failure. Hampshire requested identification documents on 4 June, which Mrs D provided the same day. The account was opened on 6 June with the incorrect name and corrected the following day. Mrs D deposited funds on 10 June but experienced online access issues on 11 June due to system maintenance. Hampshire offered £50 compensation for distress and inconvenience plus £19.71 for lost interest (two days only). The ombudsman upheld Hampshire's offer, finding the two-day delay was reasonable and rejecting Mrs D's claim for full interest from account opening to deposit date, as the account name had been corrected and she had been notified before making her deposit.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman found that Hampshire acted reasonably in requesting identification documents on 4 June (the first working day after the Saturday application) and that the earliest reasonable opening date would have been 5 June when Mrs D provided her correct name by phone. This represents only a two-day delay from what would have been reasonable. The ombudsman rejected Mrs D's claim for full interest from account opening to deposit date because the account name had been corrected several days before she made her deposit on 10 June, and Hampshire had notified her of the correction. Regarding the online access issues, the ombudsman found these were due to routine system maintenance during off-peak hours (midnight to early morning), which was clearly communicated to Mrs D, and Hampshire provided a contact number for further assistance.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| Hampshire Trust Bank Plc, all decisions | 21 | 19% |
| Savings / ISA, all decisions | 7,604 | 22% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website