Not upheld: failure to renew savings bond; provision of incorrect information complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Mr O complained that Barclays Bank UK PLC failed to automatically renew his one-year savings bond at maturity in December 2024 and sought compensation for lost interest. Barclays had previously frozen Mr O's accounts due to sanctions concerns and sent a November 2024 letter incorrectly stating the bond would automatically renew. The ombudsman found that although Barclays made an error in the letter, no financial loss resulted because Mr O's accounts were frozen and he could not have accessed or reinvested the funds elsewhere. The ombudsman also determined that Barclays' decision to freeze the accounts was reasonable based on confidential evidence regarding sanctions compliance. The complaint was not upheld and no compensation was awarded.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

Although Barclays made an error in providing incorrect information about automatic renewal, the ombudsman found no financial loss resulted from this error. Had Mr O been given correct information that his bond was frozen and would not renew, he would not have been in a better position because his accounts were frozen and he could not have invested the funds elsewhere. The ombudsman also found that Barclays' decision to freeze the accounts was reasonable at the time based on confidential evidence regarding sanctions concerns, and therefore Barclays did not act wrongly in preventing the bond renewal.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website