Not upheld: Card / payment disputes complaint against Santander UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Miss S purchased a treatment for £170 using her debit card but had to cancel due to a family emergency, providing over 30 hours' notice. The merchant refused to refund her money, citing its cancellation policy. Santander declined to pursue a chargeback, and Miss S complained about both the chargeback decision and Santander's poor communication. The ombudsman found that the merchant's terms and conditions permitted it to retain the full payment upon cancellation, meaning a chargeback would have had no reasonable prospect of success under card scheme rules. Although Santander's communication could have been improved, the ombudsman upheld Santander's decision not to pursue the chargeback and found the £20 compensation for poor communication to be fair.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman considered whether Santander acted fairly by declining to pursue a chargeback. Under card scheme rules (not consumer law), a chargeback requires grounds for success. The evidence showed the merchant's terms and conditions permitted it to retain the full payment if an appointment was cancelled. Although Miss S provided over 30 hours' notice and had a family emergency, the terms did not guarantee a refund or require rescheduling. Neither the 'refund not processed' nor 'goods or services not provided' chargeback codes would have had a reasonable prospect of success given the merchant's contractual right to retain the funds. Therefore, Santander did not act unfairly in declining to pursue the chargeback. The ombudsman acknowledged Santander's communication could have been better but found the £20 compensation fair.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website