Upheld: Account administration errors complaint against NATIONAL WESTMINSTER BANK PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

Decision detail

Summary

Mr B complained that NatWest debited £54.99 from his account in June 2025 without permission, claiming it was reversing a temporary refund he had never received. Despite Mr B's explicit email objections to the debit, NatWest proceeded with the transaction on 30 June 2025. NatWest subsequently refunded the amount twice and offered £150 compensation. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding NatWest's error was unjustified given Mr B's clear objections, but determined £150 was fair compensation considering the prompt refund, minimal financial impact, and short timeframe to resolution.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

While NatWest's error was caused by human error and the firm promptly refunded the amount twice, the key issue was that NatWest proceeded with the debit despite Mr B's explicit objection via email replies. Although the emails stated not to reply, Mr B reasonably believed his correspondence would be received and actioned. The ombudsman found £150 fair compensation given the limited financial impact (Mr B had sufficient funds and no evidence of financial difficulty), the prompt refund, and the relatively short timeframe (23 June to 3 July 2025) between the problematic email and resolution.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website