Not upheld: Fraud reimbursement (APP scams) complaint against Barclays Bank UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mr S complained that Barclays failed to protect him from an Authorised Push Payment (APP) scam involving a property sale abroad. Mr S claimed he transferred £22,957 to a crypto exchange on 17 October 2021, which was then transferred to a friend's wallet and ultimately lost to a scam. The Ombudsman found insufficient evidence to establish that a scam occurred as described, noting discrepancies between the timeline of messages indicating the agreement had broken down (14 October 2021) and Mr S's payment (17 October 2021), and the absence of evidence confirming the final transfer from the friend's wallet. The complaint was not upheld as there was insufficient evidence to hold Barclays responsible for the claimed loss.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The Ombudsman found insufficient evidence to establish that Mr S suffered a loss due to a scam. While Mr S made payments to a crypto exchange and transferred crypto to another wallet, there was no clear link between the messages indicating the property sale agreement had broken down (by 14 October 2021) and Mr S's payment on 17 October 2021. Additionally, there was no evidence confirming the ultimate transfer from the friend's wallet or what happened to the funds thereafter. The Ombudsman could not conclude that the payments were made as part of a scam or that Barclays failed to take appropriate action.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website