Not upheld: unauthorized loan application / alleged fraud complaint against Bank of Scotland plc trading as Halifax

Decision detail

Summary

Mr A and Mrs A complained that Halifax was pursuing them for a £10,000 loan they claimed was not taken out by them. The loan was applied for on 13 March 2025, two days after Mr A's hospital discharge on 11 March 2025. Halifax's technical records showed the application originated from Mr A's device and IP address with no evidence of unauthorized access or credential changes, and confirmation notifications were sent to Mr A's verified email and phone. The ombudsman found that on the balance of probabilities, Mr A more likely than not applied for the loan himself, and therefore did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the balance of probabilities test to determine whether Mr A more likely than not applied for the loan. The technical evidence (device origin, IP address, no remote access, no credential changes) combined with the fact that Mr A was discharged two days before the application and the confirmation notifications sent to his verified contact details all pointed to Mr A having applied for the loan himself. Mr A's assertions that he did not apply for it were outweighed by the objective technical evidence and circumstances.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website