Our use of cookies

Necessary cookies

We use necessary cookies to make our site work.

Analytics cookies

We'd also like to set analytics cookies to help us improve our website. Using this tool will set a cookie on your device to remember your preferences.

Read more about how we use cookies on our  cookies policy page

Policy version: 03

fos logo horizontal
Skip to content Open search Jump to navigation
Financial Ombudsman

Use Ctrl + / (or ⌘ + / on OSX) to open the search dialog from any page.

  • News and events
  • Decisions and case studies
    • Back
    • Decisions and case studies – overview
    • Ombudsman decisions
    • Case studies
  • Data and insight
    • Back
    • Data and insight – overview
    • Our insight
    • Quarterly complaints data
    • Half-yearly complaints data
    • Annual complaints data
  • FAQs
  • Contact us
  • Who we are
    • Back
    • Who we are - an overview
    • Our aims and values
      • Back
      • Our aims and values
      • Equality, diversity and inclusion
      • Diversity, inclusion and wellbeing report 2019/20
    • Our customer service
      • Back
      • Our customer service
    • How we make decisions
      • Back
      • How we make decisions
    • Governance and funding
      • Back
      • Governance and funding
      • Alternative Dispute Resolution
      • Annual reports and accounts
      • Board meeting minutes
      • Consultations
      • Strategic plans and budget
    • Our strategy
      • Back
      • Our strategy
    • Our work with other organisations
      • Back
      • Our work with other organisations
    • Meet our staff
      • Back
      • Meet our staff
      • Our board of directors
      • Our executive team
      • Our ombudsmen
    • Join us – careers at the ombudsman service
      • Back
      • Join us – careers at the ombudsman service
      • Join us as an apprentice
      • Join us as an investigator
      • Join us as an ombudsman manager
      • Life at the ombudsman service
      • Application process
  • For consumers
    • Back
    • For consumers – an overview
    • How to complain
      • Back
      • How to complain
    • What to expect
      • Back
      • What to expect
      • Who we can help
      • Time limits
      • How long it takes
      • Compensation
      • Compensation for non-financial loss
      • Compensation for financial loss
      • Tax on compensation
    • Who we’ve helped
      • Back
      • Who we’ve helped
    • Complaints we can help with
      • Back
      • Complaints we can help with
      • PPI
      • Fraud and scams
      • Covid-19 (coronavirus)
      • Banking and payments
      • Borrowing money
      • Insurance
      • Investments
      • Mortgages
      • Pensions and annuities
      • Other complaints
  • For businesses
    • Back
    • For businesses – an overview
    • Resolving a complaint
      • Back
      • Resolving a complaint
      • Before we get involved
      • Leaflet for consumers
      • How we handle complaints
      • Understanding compensation
      • Time limits for businesses
      • Case fees
    • Business support & engagement
      • Back
      • Business support & engagement
      • Technical desk
      • Voluntary jurisdiction
    • Complaints we deal with
      • Back
      • Complaints we deal with
      • PPI
      • Fraud and scams
      • Covid-19 (coronavirus)
      • Banking and payments
      • Insurance
      • Consumer credit
      • Mortgages
      • Investments
      • Pensions & annuities
      • Other complaints
  • Search
For consumers

Coronavirus update

Find out how our service is being impacted by Covid-19 (coronavirus), and what this means for your complaint.

Find out more
  1. Home /
  2. For consumers /
  3. Complaints we can help with /
  4. Banking and payments /

Disputed transactions

Last updated: 12th June 2020
Print this page
Share this page
  • Send by email
  • Tweet about this
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Facebook

On this page

  1. What are disputed transactions?
  2. Types of complaint we see
  3. What we look at
  4. How to complain
  5. Putting things right
  6. Case studies
  7. Detailed information for businesses

What are disputed transactions?

Most bank transactions are completed successfully, but sometimes things go wrong, and you may dispute having made or authorised a transaction. If you can’t settle the matter directly with your bank, we can take an independent look.

Generally, disputed transaction complaints fall into 2 categories:

  • those involving fraud and scams, such as where a consumer is persuaded by a third party pretending to be their bank
  • those where there’s a dispute about the payment for some other reason 

Below we talk about non-fraudulent types of disputed transactions. You can find out more about making a complaint about fraud or a scam on another page. 

Types of complaint we see

We see a range of complaints about disputed transactions. For example, consumers contact us about complaints where:

  • they tried to withdraw money from a cash machine but none came out – then the amount was debited to their account
  • they put money into a paying-in machine but the deposit didn’t appear on their account, or the wrong amount was credited
  • they gave their credit or debit card details to a supplier of goods and services (usually over the phone or online), which the supplier used in a way the customer didn’t expect or authorise
  • they asked their card issuer to refund them (through "chargeback") for an incorrect card transaction, but the card issuer hadn’t done it

We also see complaints from joint account holders, where one of them claims the bank or building society should have declined a transaction made by the other account holder.

What we look at

To help us consider a complaint fairly, we’ll ask you to provide some information. We’ll make our decision about what happened using evidence from you, the bank and any relevant third parties. Depending on the kind of transaction being disputed, you may need to provide information about your previous use of your card or a cashpoint or paying-in machine. 

In reaching a decision, we consider:

  • the relevant law
  • any regulations that applied at the time
  • any industry codes of conduct in force at the time
  • the terms and conditions of the account that the disputed transaction was made from

How to complain

The first thing you should do is explain to the business what’s happened and why you’re complaining. The quicker disputed transactions are noticed and queried, the greater the chance that they can be put right. We only look at complaints that a business has had a chance to look at first, unless both sides agree.

The business should look at the complaint within certain time limits and give you their final response, and within 8 weeks for most types of complaint.

If you’re not happy with their response, you can bring your complaint to us.

Find out more about how to make a complaint.

Putting things right

If we find you’ve been treated unfairly, we’ll ask the business to put things right. This usually involves putting you back in the position you’d be in if things hadn’t gone wrong. It will depend on the nature and type of complaint but it might include, for example, asking a business to refund a disputed transaction and consider the impact it had on you and your account, including interest and charges.

Case studies

Consumer complains that bank won’t refund transactions made in a club

Greg was about to turn forty, and he and some friends went abroad for a long weekend to celebrate. When he was back home, his bank got in touch with him to say that he had gone over his overdraft limit.

Fraud Disputed Transactions Banking

Read more 

Consumer complains that bank refused to stop repayments to payday lender

Clare gave her debit card details to the lender so they could take the repayment from her account at the end of the month. But as the repayment date approached, Clare realised she had less money than she’d thought. She asked her bank to stop the repayment leaving her account.

Payday Lending Consumer Credit

Read more 

Detailed information for businesses

If you’re a business looking for information to help you resolve complaints, detailed information about disputed transactions complaints can be found in the business section of our website.

Back to top
Print this page
Share this page
  • Send by email
  • Tweet about this
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Facebook

Call us

Our phone lines are open
8am – 5pm on Monday to Friday.
At times, you might need to wait
to speak to someone.




Get in touch

0800 023 4567

Connect with us

  • Follow us on Facebook
    Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on LinkedIn
    Follow us on LinkedIn
  • Follow us on Youtube
    Follow us on Youtube
  • Follow us on Twitter
    Follow us on Twitter
  • Accessibility
  • Join us: careers
  • Corporate information
  • Legal info
  • Cymraeg
  • Privacy policy
  • Freedom of information
  • Procurement
  • Other languages
  • Cookies
  • Data protection and SARs
  • The Modern Slavery Act

©2021 Financial Ombudsman Service