Not upheld: chargeback handling and dispute resolution complaint against J.P. Morgan Europe Limited trading as Chase

Decision detail

Summary

Mr V complained that Chase unfairly declined his chargeback claim for approximately £460 paid to a pool club abroad for drinks and service charges. Mr V alleged poor service, non-delivery of his prepaid package, and coercion into making the payment. Chase declined the claim and paid £20 for misinformation about the claim status. The ombudsman found Chase acted fairly because the dispute involved conflicting accounts of service quality that would be difficult to evidence through the chargeback process, and the card scheme would unlikely have ruled in Mr V's favour. The ombudsman upheld Chase's offer of £75 additional compensation for the misinformation.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Mr V provided detailed testimony and correspondence, the nature of the dispute made it difficult to evidence. The pool club's defence contradicted Mr V's account, creating a stalemate. The ombudsman concluded that even if Chase had submitted a chargeback, the card scheme would likely not have ruled in Mr V's favour due to lack of supporting evidence for claims about defective or non-delivered services. Chase was not obligated to make detailed enquiries with third parties as it was reliant on evidence the customer could provide. The £75 compensation was appropriate for misinformation about the chargeback status.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website