Not upheld: unfair account terms change and fee introduction complaint against Santander UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

S, a limited company, complained that Santander unfairly migrated its free business account to a fee-paying account (£9.99 monthly) in October 2025 after promising 'free banking forever' when the account opened in 2010. Santander argued the account terms and conditions have always allowed changes with notice, it provided 60+ days notice, and regulatory changes since 2010 made free banking uneconomic. The ombudsman did not uphold the complaint, finding that contractual terms and conditions consistently permitted changes, adequate notice was given, and Santander is entitled to withdraw commercially unviable products.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while S was marketed 'free banking forever', the contractual terms and conditions have consistently allowed Santander to make changes by providing notice. The terms and conditions have contained change clauses for the entire 15+ year period. Santander provided adequate notice (60+ days) as required. Significant regulatory changes since 2010 have increased banking costs, making free business banking uneconomic. As a commercial business, Santander is entitled to withdraw unviable products. The ombudsman noted that fairness considerations supported the change as some customers had paid significantly more while others like S paid nothing.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website