Upheld: account access failure, technical issues with two-factor authentication, failure to provide adequate customer support complaint against American Express Services Europe Limited (AESEL)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr R complained about being unable to log into his British Airways American Express credit card account due to SMS authentication code issues and an incorrect contact number on his profile. AESEL initially rejected the complaint as mirroring a previous one, but later offered to remove the incorrect number and pay £50 compensation, which Mr R declined as the SMS issue remained unresolved. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding AESEL should have proactively assisted Mr R rather than simply referencing the previous complaint, and ordered AESEL to correct all contact details, ensure successful login and SMS authentication, and pay £100 additional compensation.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman agreed with the investigator that AESEL could have done more to help Mr R resolve the issues, particularly given that Mr R had followed AESEL's previous advice but the problems persisted. Rather than simply referencing the previous complaint, AESEL should have proactively offered to remove the incorrect information and ensure all contact details were correct. The prolonged lack of online access caused Mr R distress and inconvenience, warranting compensation of £100 in addition to the £50 already offered.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website