Not upheld: scam protection and fraud liability complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Miss S lost £4,642.92 to a sophisticated employment scam in July 2025 after being contacted unexpectedly about a job involving video reviews and cryptocurrency payments. Barclays refunded 100% of payments to two money transfer services but only 50% of payments to two others, citing shared responsibility. The ombudsman upheld this decision, finding that while Barclays could have implemented better fraud protections, Miss S should have recognised multiple warning signs including unsolicited contact, no formal recruitment, implausibly high earnings, and upfront payment requirements before withdrawing funds.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman acknowledged Barclays' duty to protect customers from fraud through monitoring and additional checks, and accepted that Barclays could have done more. However, the ombudsman found multiple red flags that should have caused Miss S significant concern: unexpected contact without prior application, no recruitment process or employment contract, implausibly high earnings for simple work completed in days, and requirements to pay substantial upfront amounts before completing or being paid for work. The ombudsman concluded that while sympathising with Miss S as a scam victim, she should have done more to satisfy her concerns about these warning signs, and therefore it was fair for her to bear some responsibility for the loss alongside Barclays.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website