Upheld: Account closure without notice complaint against Deel Payments UK Ltd, trading as Atlantic Money

Decision detail

Summary

L, a limited company, held a business account with Atlantic Money used for regular international supplier payments. Atlantic restricted and suspended the account in September 2025 without notifying L. When L attempted to pay for an order on 5 November 2025, it discovered the account was closed. Due to lack of notice, L had insufficient time to arrange alternative payment services and the supplier order was cancelled, forcing L to purchase goods elsewhere at a higher cost, resulting in a £1,250 loss. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding Atlantic's failure to provide notice directly caused the financial loss and ordered Atlantic to pay £1,400 in total compensation.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

Although Atlantic was contractually entitled to restrict the account, it was obligated to notify L of the decision. The ombudsman found that had L been notified in mid-September 2025, it would have had approximately seven weeks to arrange alternative payment services before needing to pay for the October order. The failure to provide notice directly caused L's inability to pay on time, resulting in order cancellation and financial loss. The ombudsman rejected Atlantic's argument that it bore no responsibility because it did not hold or delay L's money, finding it would be unfair for Atlantic to escape liability when its breach of duty directly caused the loss.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website