Not upheld: scam / fraud - failure to prevent and recover funds complaint against Revolut Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs D was scammed by someone she met on a dating website who persuaded her to open an online shop that was actually a fraudulent platform. She made a £11,500 payment from her Revolut account to a crypto exchange, which was converted to cryptocurrency and transferred to the scammer. Revolut intervened by asking questions, but Mrs D provided inaccurate answers stating she was investing in crypto rather than disclosing the online shop connection, preventing Revolut from issuing a relevant warning. The ombudsman found that Revolut could not have prevented the scam and that a chargeback would not have succeeded since Mrs D received the cryptocurrency she paid for. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

While Revolut has obligations to monitor accounts and detect fraud risks, the firm did intervene in this transaction by asking questions. Mrs D provided inaccurate answers that prevented Revolut from issuing a relevant warning about the scam. By the time of the payment, Mrs D was fully convinced of the legitimacy of her actions. Additionally, a chargeback would not have succeeded because Mrs D received the cryptocurrency she paid for; the loss only occurred when she transferred it to the scammer. Therefore, Revolut cannot be held responsible for the loss.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website