Not upheld: fraud and account security; account closure complaint against Bank of Scotland plc trading as Halifax

Decision detail

Summary

Miss T complained that Halifax failed to protect her account from fraud, allowing a fraudster to access and take over her account and open a fraudulent joint account. Halifax detected the fraudulent activity, blocked the compromised account, and wrote to Miss T explaining the actions taken. Miss T's current account was unblocked the next day and subsequently switched to another bank. The ombudsman found that Halifax acted quickly and fairly in responding to the fraud, its systems effectively detected and stopped the fraudulent activity, and Miss T was not left without banking facilities. The complaint was not upheld and no compensation was awarded.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Halifax's systems worked effectively to detect and stop fraud, as evidenced by the quick action taken when fraudulent activity was noticed. The account was blocked and Miss T was promptly informed. The current account was unblocked the next day, so Miss T was not left without banking facilities. Halifax acted in line with its terms and conditions and banking requirements. While the situation was undoubtedly stressful for Miss T, the ombudsman found no evidence that Halifax acted unfairly or unreasonably. Requests for specific system upgrades fall outside the ombudsman's remit and should be directed to the FCA.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website