Not upheld: unauthorized subscription charges and refund dispute complaint against Revolut Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs L complained that Revolut upgraded her account to a premium subscription without her knowledge and charged her £7.99 monthly from April 2024 until she discovered it in December 2025. Revolut refunded four months of fees (£31.96) but refused a full refund. The ombudsman found that Mrs L had actively enrolled in a two-month free trial via email invitation in February 2024, with clear terms explaining automatic charging after the trial period. Despite making over 50 account transfers during the 20-month charging period, Mrs L did not notice or query the charges until nearly two years later. The ombudsman upheld Revolut's position that it acted fairly and did not direct any further remedy beyond the £31.96 already refunded.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Mrs L actively enrolled in the premium trial by clicking a button in the email invitation, rather than being enrolled by Revolut without her permission. The emails clearly explained that monthly fees would automatically apply after the trial period unless cancelled, and provided instructions on how to cancel. Although Mrs L claimed she did not read the emails due to marketing clutter, the ombudsman held that Revolut cannot be responsible for Mrs L not reading her emails. Additionally, Mrs L made regular use of her account with over 50 transfers during the 20-month period, meaning she could have seen the £7.99 monthly deductions if she had reviewed her transactions. The ombudsman concluded that Revolut acted fairly and the £31.96 refund of four months' fees was reasonable.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website