Not upheld: terms and conditions change; change of policyholder without consent complaint against Barclays Bank UK PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Mr and Mrs R complained that Barclays changed the terms of their Travel Plus Pack, removing coverage for certain pre-existing medical conditions that Mr R had previously been covered for, and changing the policyholder from joint names to Mrs R only. Mr R claimed he was unaware of these changes until checking prior to an overseas trip. Barclays argued it had contractual authority to make such changes and had provided proper notice. The ombudsman found that packaged accounts operate on a rolling monthly basis with standard industry practice allowing for changes with notice, that the Pack's terms explicitly permitted such changes with 30 days' notice, and that Barclays had provided 70 days' notice via post and digital upload. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that packaged accounts operate on a monthly rolling basis rather than fixed terms, making it standard industry practice to include change clauses. The Travel Plus Pack terms explicitly permitted Barclays to make changes with 30 calendar days' notice. Barclays provided 70 days' notice and sent letters via post and digital upload, satisfying its notification obligations. Although Mr R claimed he did not receive the letter, the evidence demonstrated Barclays took appropriate steps to notify both customers.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website