Not upheld: Card / payment disputes complaint against MONZO BANK LIMITED

Decision detail

Summary

Miss W purchased airline tickets for £140.99 using her Monzo debit card, believing she had selected a flexible ticket option. When she later discovered the tickets were not flexible and the booking confirmation was in a language she did not understand, she cancelled and received a partial refund of £101.46. She then raised a chargeback claim with Monzo for the remaining £39.53. Monzo raised the chargeback and provided a temporary refund, but the airline defended the claim, stating the booking had been cancelled by Miss W and the refund was provided in accordance with its policy. The chargeback was unsuccessful and Monzo reversed the temporary refund. The ombudsman found that Monzo acted fairly because Miss W provided no persuasive evidence that a flexible ticket option was actually purchased, and the airline's defence was valid under Mastercard scheme rules, making further pursuit unlikely to succeed.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman concluded that Monzo acted fairly in handling the chargeback because: (1) Monzo took reasonable steps by raising the chargeback and providing a temporary refund; (2) the airline's defence was valid under the scheme rules - Miss W had cancelled the booking and received a partial refund in accordance with the airline's terms; (3) Miss W provided no persuasive evidence that a flexible ticket option was actually purchased or that she was entitled to a full refund; (4) recollection alone is insufficient to establish that the flexibility service was included; and (5) without such evidence, there was no valid basis to challenge the merchant's defence under Mastercard scheme rules, making further pursuit unlikely to succeed.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website