Not upheld: Fraud reimbursement (APP scams) complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S lost £28,330 to a cryptocurrency investment scam after being targeted via social media and guided by a scammer named 'Michael' to send funds through his own third-party bank account to a cryptocurrency wallet. He complained to Barclays for not reimbursing the funds. The ombudsman found that while Barclays has a duty to protect customers from fraud, the payments were to an established account in Mr S's name used since 2023, and any intervention would not have revealed the scam because Mr S had already received a detailed warning about this exact type of scam from his third-party provider yet continued making payments. The complaint was not upheld and no reimbursement was ordered.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while account providers have a duty to protect customers from fraud, the starting legal position is that customers are responsible for authorised transactions. The payments were to an established account in Mr S's name that had been used for two years, significantly lowering the risk profile. Even if Barclays had intervened, the ombudsman concluded it would not have meaningfully revealed the scam because: (1) Mr S had already received a detailed warning about cryptocurrency investment scams from his third-party provider that matched his exact situation, yet continued making payments; and (2) during that intervention call, Mr S was evasive about the investment details and misled the agent about whether anyone was helping him, suggesting he would have done the same with Barclays.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website