Not upheld: scam / unauthorised payments / fraud prevention complaint against HSBC UK Bank Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs K complained that HSBC failed to reimburse two scam payments (£499 and £448) made to a money remitter after she received a fraudulent call impersonating HMRC. Mrs K claimed she declined the payments in her app, but they were processed anyway. HSBC treated the payments as authorised and offered £500 as goodwill. The ombudsman found that Mrs K's 'Y' response to HSBC's verification message about the second payment constituted authorisation, and this indicated she was aware of both payments. HSBC's fraud prevention measures were proportionate, and no chargeback would have succeeded. The complaint was not upheld, and no further remedy was required beyond the £500 already paid.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the Payment Services Regulations 2017, which establish that customers are liable for authorised payments and firms are liable for unauthorised payments. The key finding was that Mrs K's 'Y' response to HSBC's verification message about the second payment constituted a representation that she consented to that payment, making it authorised. This response also supported the inference that Mrs K was aware of and agreed to both payments being made, albeit under scammer pressure. The ombudsman found the payments were not suspicious given their low value and character relative to the account. HSBC's fraud prevention measures were proportionate, and there was no reasonable prospect of a successful chargeback claim since the money transfer service was genuinely provided.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website