Not upheld: unauthorized disclosure of customer information / breach of confidentiality complaint against Lloyds Bank PLC

Decision detail

Summary

B, a sports club, complained that Lloyds Bank disclosed its account information to S's auditors without authorization. Lloyds had received what appeared to be a valid information request from professional auditors and charged a £90 audit fee. After Mr L queried the payment, Lloyds acknowledged the error and paid £200 compensation plus refunded the fee. Mr L claimed the disclosure damaged relations with S and forced expensive rebranding. The ombudsman found Lloyds did breach its duty of confidentiality but rejected the rebranding claim as not reasonably foreseeable, upholding that the compensation already paid was sufficient.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

Although Lloyds reasonably believed it had received a valid request from authorized auditors, it breached its contractual duty of confidentiality to B by disclosing information without actual consent. However, the rebranding costs claimed were not reasonably foreseeable consequences of the disclosure, as the information provided was limited and went to professional auditors connected to S. The compensation already paid was proportionate to the actual harm caused.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website