Faced with the refusal of reimbursement for bank fraud, the consumer defense association of Nancy assigns 12 establishments for “misleading commercial practices”.
Faced with the upsurge in litigation for unjustified refusals to reimburse bank fraud, the local association of UFC-Que Choisir Nancy has scrutinized no less than 64 reports sent to it between 2019 and 2022. Corroborating practices in violation of the law, identified by all the branches of the UFC-Que Choisir, the Federation files complaint against 12 establishments for misleading commercial practices: La Banque Postale, Crédit Agricole, Banque Populaire, BNP Paribas, Société Générale, CIC, LCL, Boursorama, ING, Nickel, Cetelem and Floa Banque.
At the same time, the local association of Nancy challenges parliamentarians on the urgency of establishing a framework guaranteeing the effectiveness of the right to reimbursement for victims of fraud.
64 reports of refusal of reimbursement screened
While the law requires banks to immediately restore the account of victims, except gross negligence, complaints from consumers for refusal of reimbursement flow to the local association of Nancy and its region. The association has thus analyzed 64 reports from 2019 to 2022 [1], and all of them are problematic. If at the top of the sad list of establishments that do not reimburse, we find traditional banks (La Banque Postale with 1/3 of disputes, Crédit Agricole with 15%) all are concerned. No customer is potentially spared since online banks, “neo-banks” or credit institutions also stand out.
In addition, more than half of the reports relate to fraud of more than 4,000 euros and which can go up to several tens of thousands of euros.
Deceptive commercial practices
While, according to the French Banking Federation (FBF), one in six frauds is not reimbursed [2]the association of Nancy and its region, through the multitude of unjustified refusals, updates a real strategy of the banks to free themselves from their obligation to demonstrate the personal negligence of their customers to refuse to reimburse them.
The most common method is to accuse the victims of “negligence”. An alibi which is not admissible, and even less so since the operation was validated with the only SMS. In second place comes the systematic refusal to reimburse in the event of reinforced authentication without the bank providing proof that its customer is at the origin of the payment. On the foot of the podium, other banks try to justify themselves by indicating that their insurance refuses any support.
It is by leading consumers to believe in this way that they have no right to reimbursement that banks are, in our view, guilty of deceptive commercial practices. They deceive them on the extent of their rights.
1.3 million households defrauded
The alert from the association of Nancy and its region corroborates those of all the local branches of the UFC-Que Choisir who have studied au total of nearly 4,300 reimbursement refusals between 2019 and 2022. This damning analysis demonstrates the industrial nature of banking practices aimed at misleading consumers into not reimbursing them while the rise in fraud is particularly worrying.
According to the latest Banque de France report, bank fraud amounts to more than 1.2 billion euros [3] and affects a growing number of victims. Not less 1.3 million households were defrauded in 2020 [4]an increase of 161% since 2010!
This drain on consumers’ purchasing power is all the more worrying as fraudsters are several steps ahead of the measures intended to prevent fraud. Indeed, they now go so far as to usurp the telephone number and identity of bank advisers to siphon off consumer accounts. [5].
Determined to make fully effective the right to reimbursement for victims of bank fraud, the association of Nancy and its region challenges parliamentarians on the urgency of establishing a framework guaranteeing the effectiveness of the right to reimbursement for victims of fraud.
In order to help the victims to assert their rights, the association reminds that it can accompany them and that the Federation of the UFC-Que Choisir:
UFC Nancy and its region: Meurthe et Moselle, Meuse, south Moselle, 76 rue de la Hache 54000 NANCY
[email protected]
09 52 19 48 23
[1] These reports concern consumer customers of banks with more than 92% of the current account market share.
[2] FBF reaction to the report of the Observatory for the Security of Payment Means, July 2021. This proportion relates to bank card fraud, which represents 90% of fraud. Due to a lack of transparency on the other reimbursement rates, we use this estimate for all means of payment.
[3] Annual report of the Observatory for the security of means of payment, 2021 edition, Banque de France.
[4] Insecurity and victimization: lessons from the “Living environment and security” survey, 2021 edition, Ministerial Statistical Service for Homeland Security.
[5] See the FBF Mediator’s 2021 activity report.
–
/i/2004917890.png?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1)