Not upheld: Card / payment disputes complaint against First Rate Exchange Services Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Miss I booked sightseeing tour tickets for 172 Swiss Francs on her FRES debit card but realised her mistake within 22 minutes and requested cancellation. The tour operator refused a refund citing its cancellation policy. Miss I asked FRES to raise a chargeback, but FRES declined on the grounds that the Mastercard scheme has no category for purchases made in error and the service was available. The ombudsman upheld FRES's decision, finding that even alternative chargeback codes would have failed because Miss I had agreed to the cancellation terms. Although FRES delayed informing Miss I of its decision until she called in February, the ombudsman found this caused no material detriment and the £20 compensation already offered was fair.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that FRES correctly applied the strict rules of the Mastercard chargeback scheme. The Mastercard scheme has no category for purchases made in error. While Miss I argued for a 'services not provided' chargeback, the ombudsman agreed with FRES that the service was available and Miss I had agreed to the tour operator's cancellation terms when booking. Even if FRES had attempted a chargeback under alternative codes, it would have failed because the service was available and the cancellation policy clearly stated no refund was due for same-day cancellations. The ombudsman accepted that FRES failed to communicate its decision promptly but found this caused no material detriment to Miss I, as the tour operator had already refused a refund before FRES became involved.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website