Not upheld: scam / fraud - refund claim complaint against Revolut Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mr Y purchased shoes from an online marketplace seller and made a £70 payment via Revolut that he believed was fraudulent when the shoes were not delivered and the seller became uncontactable. Revolut declined to refund, classifying it as a civil dispute. The ombudsman considered whether the Payment Systems Regulator's 2024 Reimbursement Rules applied but found that even if the circumstances constituted a scam, the £70 payment fell below the £100 excess Revolut could apply, resulting in no reimbursable amount. The complaint was not upheld as Mr Y was not deemed vulnerable and Revolut had no obligation to prevent the payment.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the Payment Systems Regulator's Reimbursement Rules framework. Although the circumstances could potentially constitute a scam, the £70 payment falls below the £100 excess that Revolut is entitled to apply under the rules. The excess can only be waived if the consumer was vulnerable in a way that materially affected their ability to protect themselves from the scam. Mr Y was not deemed vulnerable at the time of payment; his subsequent financial distress was a consequence of the scam rather than evidence of pre-existing vulnerability. Additionally, the payment would not have appeared suspicious to Revolut as it was a one-off, modest transaction, so Revolut was not required to conduct additional fraud checks.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website