Not upheld: account closure and fraud reporting (CIFAS marker) complaint against NewDay Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs A complained that NewDay Ltd unfairly closed her credit card accounts and reported her to CIFAS fraud prevention agency after she raised chargeback claims on two payments. NewDay investigated and found Mrs A's explanations evasive and inconsistent, particularly when she initially denied knowing the merchant (later revealed to be her husband's business). The ombudsman found NewDay had grounds for more than mere suspicion of facility misuse based on the pattern of chargebacks, Mrs A's false statements during investigation, and lack of supporting documentation. The ombudsman upheld NewDay's decision to close the accounts and file the CIFAS marker, finding both actions fair and reasonable.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that NewDay had grounds for more than mere suspicion based on: (1) the circumstances matching an identified fraud pattern; (2) Mrs A's evasive answers during the investigation call; (3) Mrs A providing information she knew to be untrue (claiming not to know the merchant when it was her husband); and (4) the lack of supporting documentation. The ombudsman rejected Mrs A's later explanations as unconvincing and found NewDay's interpretation of events and CIFAS reporting to be fair and reasonable.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website