Not upheld: fraud reimbursement / investment scam complaint against Santander UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mr and Mrs B lost money to an investment fraud after responding to a social media advertisement and sending funds to accounts held in their name. When they attempted to withdraw their funds, they were blocked and asked to pay additional fees. After discovering the fraud, they claimed reimbursement from Santander, which declined. Santander intervened on two occasions when the complainants attempted large payments, asking questions and providing specific warnings about investment fraud involving crypto assets and account transfers. However, the complainants had been extensively coached by the fraudsters on how to respond to bank interventions and chose to believe the fraudsters over their bank's warnings. The ombudsman found that Santander had acted appropriately and proportionately, and that no further interventions would likely have prevented the complainants from proceeding with payments given their level of manipulation and trust in the fraudsters.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Mr and Mrs B authorised the transactions, Santander had a duty to identify risks and intervene appropriately. Santander did identify risks and intervened on two separate occasions, providing specific warnings about the exact fraud type the complainants were experiencing. However, the complainants had been subjected to extensive coaching and manipulation by the fraudsters, creating such strong trust and rapport that they chose to believe the fraudsters over their bank's warnings. The ombudsman concluded that no further interventions by Santander, including branch attendance or Banking Protocol invocation, would likely have prevented the complainants from proceeding with payments, as they would have been coached by the fraudsters and would have provided reassurances to bank staff as they had done over the telephone.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website