Not upheld: account activation failure, service delays, and disputed financial loss claim complaint against Halifax Share Dealing Limited trading as Lloyds Bank Direct Investments

Decision detail

Summary

Mr K complained about problems activating a newly opened Lloyds Bank Direct Investments Account between December 2025 and January 2026, including inability to set a password, delayed temporary password delivery, and failed internal transfers. He sought compensation for trouble caused and financial loss from a delayed Greggs shares trade. Lloyds upheld the complaint regarding trouble caused and paid £50 compensation with an offer of an additional £50, but disputed the financial loss claim. The ombudsman found the £100 total compensation fair and reasonable given the short duration of the problem and Lloyds' prompt response, and rejected the financial loss claim because Mr K provided no evidence of an earlier attempted purchase and could have used his functional Halifax account to trade earlier.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Lloyds promptly acknowledged the activation problem and arranged for a temporary password to be sent by post without undue delay. The postal delay was not Lloyds' responsibility, particularly given the Christmas/New Year holiday period. The account transfer and funding issues were dependent consequences of the activation problem rather than separate wrongdoings. Lloyds made reasonable attempts to contact Mr K when requested. The entire matter was relatively short-lived (28 December to early January). Regarding the financial loss claim, the ombudsman found insufficient evidence that Mr K attempted to purchase Greggs shares at an earlier date or was obstructed from doing so, as the Halifax account remained functional and could have been used as an alternative means to invest pending resolution of the Lloyds account activation issue.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website