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Unauthorised alteration of automatic payment – bank apology
Mrs M was surprised to find on her bank statement that a regular automatic payment to the Inland Revenue Department, for about $80, had been amended by her bank without her knowledge or consent, and had been increased to $2,006. To her consternation, Mrs M noted that two such payments had been made. When she complained to the bank, it was unable to find any authority for changing the amount of the automatic payment. It promptly took steps to recover the funds, and to credit Mrs M’s account. While the bank had also apologised orally to Mrs M, she was concerned that it may not have viewed this substantial error with the seriousness it deserved. She complained to the Banking Ombudsman.
My investigator requested the bank to provide all its records about the automatic payment, and confirmed that there was indeed no evidence to show who had requested the bank to change the amount. Fortunately no other transactions had been unpaid as a result of the bank’s error, and therefore the customer’s credit record had not been adversely affected.
I advised the bank of my concern that an error of this magnitude could occur, in contravention of the bank’s own internal procedures for changes to automatic payments. The bank then responded to my proposal to provide Mrs M with a formal written apology, which she accepted.