Not upheld: CIFAS fraud marker lodgement; receipt of fraudulent funds complaint against Clydesdale Bank plc, trading as Virgin Money

Decision detail

Summary

Mr R, aged 18, opened a Virgin Money account in February 2024 and received a £2,580 payment that resulted from an impersonation scam at another bank. He made withdrawals and purchases from the fraudulent funds and retained approximately 45% of the money. When Virgin Money queried the source, Mr R falsely claimed it was from a cousin for a car. Virgin Money closed the account and lodged a CIFAS fraud marker. A year later, Mr R complained and provided chat evidence claiming he was groomed and acting under duress. The ombudsman rejected this claim, finding the chat evidence showed Mr R was an active and willing participant who knew the transactions were fraudulent, and upheld Virgin Money's decision to lodge the marker.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Virgin Money had reasonable grounds to lodge the CIFAS marker based on clear evidence that Mr R received fraudulent funds and knew this was the case. While Mr R claimed he was groomed and acting under duress, the chat evidence showed he was an active and willing participant who understood what was happening, asked what would happen if Virgin Money discovered he was lying, and retained 45% of the funds. The ombudsman rejected the grooming narrative, noting that Mr R's claims about earning money from investments were implausible, that he was aware of scams as a young person familiar with social media, and that his mental health difficulties did not negate his knowledge of the fraudulent nature of the transactions. The ombudsman concluded Virgin Money acted properly in accordance with CIFAS marker lodgement rules.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website