Not upheld: application rejection and inadequate customer service support complaint against J.P. Morgan Europe Limited (Chase)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr J applied for a Chase savings account in November 2025 but received a rejection message suggesting a credit file issue. He had submitted a photo of his computer screen showing his ID rather than the original document, contrary to the app's explicit instructions. When Mr J called to dispute the rejection, Chase failed to provide adequate support or investigation. The ombudsman found the rejection itself was reasonable given Mr J's non-compliance with submission requirements, but Chase should have investigated sooner when Mr J stated his credit score was not an issue. The ombudsman upheld Chase's £50 compensation offer as reasonable, rejecting Mr J's claim for £250, as the impact of the delayed support was not substantial.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

While Chase's rejection of the application was reasonable given Mr J's decision to submit a photo of a computer screen rather than the original document (which he was explicitly warned against), Chase failed to provide adequate support by not offering to investigate when Mr J stated his credit score was not an issue. However, the ombudsman found that Mr J bore responsibility for the risk he took by not following instructions, and that the impact of delayed support was not substantial. The £50 compensation offered by Chase was deemed reasonable to reflect the failure to explain the issue sooner.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website