Not upheld: failure to monitor and prevent gambling transactions; alleged breach of duty of care complaint against HSBC UK Bank Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mr M complained that HSBC failed to monitor and prevent gambling transactions on his account after he relapsed into problematic gambling around June 2024. He believed HSBC should have intervened based on a duty of care, particularly given his previous gambling harm. HSBC responded that they had no knowledge of his gambling problems and their monitoring systems look for unusual or suspicious activity, not legitimate spending choices. The ombudsman found the complaint not upheld, determining that HSBC was not notified of the gambling issues, the account showed no signs of financial difficulty, and Mr M had multiple opportunities to disclose his problems but failed to do so.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that HSBC had no responsibility to monitor and prevent gambling transactions because: (1) Mr M did not disclose his gambling problems to HSBC; (2) the account showed no signs of financial difficulty that would trigger intervention; (3) gambling is a legal activity and banks cannot restrict accounts based on gambling spending within a customer's means; (4) Mr M had multiple opportunities to disclose his problems (in-person meeting, GAMSTOP registration, contact about unrecognised transactions) but failed to do so; and (5) there is a high level of personal responsibility on consumers to protect themselves from gambling harm.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website