We name and shame the 85% of banks STILL not paying out on fraud
There's still no agreement on how fraud victims will be reimbursed after the end of this year
MAJOR banks STILL haven't worked out how to reimburse victims of fraud with just over a week until a new code of practice takes force.
Six of the UK's seven largest banks told The Sun they have signed up to a new code that takes force on May 28 that's aimed to better protect people from fraud.
Those banks are Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group - which includes Bank of Scotland, Halifax, and Lloyds Bank - Nationwide, RBS - which includes NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland - and Santander.
Currently, banks refuse to pay out if they believe that neither they or the customer is to blame for bank transfer scams, known as "authorised push payment (APP)" fraud.
The code, which has been worked on by members of the APP Scams Steering Group, is designed to ensure that victims will be reimbursed in this scenario.
But while member banks have agreed to cover the cost of fraud until the end of this year there's no agreement on how fraud victims will be reimbursed after this.
The code is also voluntary, which means there's nothing to force providers to sign up and to follow it, and nothing in place to punish them for rule breaking.
Around £1million a day is stolen through APP — where customers are tricked into moving money into accounts controlled by criminals.
It's seen people conned out of large amounts of cash and not seen a penny refunded, such as landscape gardener David Hunt who lost nearly £10,000 when scammers pretended to be from HMRC.
And grandmother Jo Wilson, who had her £40,000 life savings stolen by scammers posing as staff from NatWest.
There were a whopping 84,624 cases of bank transfer fraud reported in 2018 with an astonishing £354.3million stolen.
TSB is the notable exception from the code, saying it's still deciding whether to join.
How to protect yourself from fraudsters
ACTION Fraud recommends taking the following advice to stay safe:
- When making a purchase, be suspicious of any requests to pay by bank transfer or virtual currency instead of safer methods, such as credit card or payment services such as PayPal.
- Listen to your instincts: If something feels wrong then it is usually right to question it. Don’t pay for goods or services unless you know and trust the individual or business.
- Personal information obtained from data breaches is making it increasingly easier for fraudsters to create highly targeted phishing messages and calls - watch out for these.
- You shouldn’t assume the caller is genuine just because they’re able to provide some basic details about you.
- Always be suspicious of unsolicited requests for your personal or financial information.
One of the key reasons for its absence is because it's launched its own rules for scam victims that goes above and beyond what the code sets out.
As of April 15, TSB customers will be refunded if they've been a victim of fraud - even if it's a bank transfer scam - in a move the bank claims is a first of its kind.
This sees the bank refund victims of fraud with 14 days where the case is simple, although it may take longer if the case is complex.
TSB says the only scenarios where it wouldn't payout is where the customer has been complicit in the fraud or where a customer has been a victim of the same type of fraud time and time again and hasn't paid heed to warnings.
But sadly none of the other six banks we asked said they had any plans in place to follow TSB's lead.
HSBC told us it is making "significant investments" in technologies, processes, and people.
It adds that it's working telecoms companies to identify and address the techniques used by fraudsters, such as number spoofing - where they can replicate legitimate numbers - and smishing, which is where they try and get your details by text.
A spokesperson for HSBC said: “We believe the code will offer vital support and clarity to banks and consumers regarding their rights and responsibilities in the event that they are a victim of an APP scam.”
Santander meanwhile, says it is the first bank to introduce tailored fraud warnings back in 2018 that sees customers asked why they're making a payment.
It adds that it continues to run its in-branch "scam avoidance school" and says it has invested "millions of pounds" a year on both customer-facing and back-end fraud prevention.
A Santander spokesperson said: "We are committed to the new contingent reimbursement model and our customers can be confident that Santander will abide by the code."
Lloyds Banking Group told us it's set aside a "multi-million pound" sum of cash to invest in fraud protection over the next three years.
"As always, we will investigate and assess any instances of scams on a case-by-case basis.”
A Nationwide spokesperson added: "The code has been designed to ensure that consumers are offered this protection and we fully support the creation of the fund to reimburse ‘no blame’ cases."
A spokesperson for NatWest, which we revealed earlier this month is worst bank for helping fraud customers after massive rise in complaints, told us that it is a founding member of the code.
A spokesperson said: "We already look at each claim on a case-by-case basis and will reimburse customers where they have been the victim of a sophisticated scam.
"We are also a founding member of new industry guidelines which will make it easier for customers who have been the victim of an authorised push payment scam to get their money back.”
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