Not upheld: declined chargeback claim / failure to raise Section 75 CCA claim complaint against American Express Services Europe Limited (AESEL)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr U purchased a £750 designer t-shirt using his AESEL credit card from online retailer R. The courier claimed successful delivery, but Mr U reported finding no package upon returning home. AESEL raised a chargeback which R defended with photographic evidence and a delivery signature. AESEL declined to proceed with the chargeback, believing the evidence showed likely successful delivery. The ombudsman found AESEL should have raised a Section 75 CCA claim but upheld AESEL's decision, finding the evidence insufficient to prove the goods were not delivered to Mr U's possession on the balance of probabilities.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while AESEL should have raised a Section 75 CCA claim in addition to the chargeback, the evidence was insufficient on the balance of probabilities to establish that the goods were not successfully delivered to Mr U. The courier's evidence of attendance at the delivery address, photographic evidence, and delivery signature, though not conclusive, were persuasive enough that AESEL acted fairly in determining the chargeback had little prospect of success. The ombudsman acknowledged the evidence was incomplete and inconclusive but could not safely conclude that a breach of contract occurred under Section 29 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website