Not upheld: scam reimbursement / fraud / irresponsible lending (failure to intervene adequately) complaint against Revolut Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mr T was scammed after responding to an advert and subsequently received threats of violence from scammers demanding payments. Between 21-22 December 2025, he made 8 payments totalling £5,227.03 from his Revolut account under coercion. Revolut intervened at various points with fraud warnings and pauses but ultimately allowed the payments to proceed. Mr T complained that Revolut should have done more to prevent the loss. The ombudsman found that while Revolut could have asked additional open and probing questions before payment six, such intervention would not have prevented the loss on the balance of probabilities, as the scammers were coaching Mr T at every step and he was under extreme duress from threats of violence to himself and his family. The complaint was not upheld and no remedy was ordered.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Revolut could have done more by asking additional open and probing questions via in-app chat before processing payment six, such intervention would not have prevented the loss on the balance of probabilities. The scammers were instructing Mr T at every step on what to say and how to respond, and he was under extreme duress from threats of violence to himself and his family. Even when Revolut paused payments, the scammers simply directed him to alternative payment methods. The ombudsman concluded that Mr T would likely have followed the scammers' guidance on how to respond to any additional Revolut questions, as he genuinely believed he had to pay to satisfy their demands and feared for his safety.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website