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TSB launches refund guarantee for fraud victims
TSB has promised to refund customers who lose money through any type of fraud under its fraud refund guarantee.
At the moment, banks are only obliged to refund scam victims when the fraudulent transaction was made without the customer's authorisation.
So if someone's tricked into making a payment to a fraudster themselves – known as 'authorised push payment' (APP) fraud – banks don't need to give a refund.
But TSB's new fraud refund guarantee means that the bank will refund any money which was lost through fraud on or after Sunday 14 April, even if the payment was authorised. The exception will be if a customer repeatedly ignores safety advice.
The scheme closely mirros a new voluntary code, which takes effect in May and has been signed by other major banks, and also means victims of APP scams will be refunded unless they were grossly negligent.
For help on how to protect yourself from fraud, see our 30+ Ways to Stop Scams guide.
What is the fraud refund guarantee?
The new guarantee means fraud victims will be refunded for all types of fraud, including APP scams. Refunds for authorised transactions will be capped at £1 million.
The guarantee won't be applied retrospectively though, so victims may not be refunded for money lost through APP fraud before 14 April.
TSB customers can report fraudulent activity on their account by calling 0800 096 8669.
However, the bank's warned that customers who abuse the guarantee – for example, by repeatedly ignoring account safety advice – could be blocked from future refunds.
What does TSB say?
TSB's executive chairman Richard Meddings said: "The vast majority of fraud claims across UK banking are from innocent victims of fraud, who have been targeted by criminals and organised gangs. However, all too often these customers must fight to be refunded and are not treated as victims of crime.
"We want to provide peace of mind to our customers, that's why we're proud to announce the TSB fraud refund guarantee. If a TSB customer innocently suffers a fraud loss on their account after being targeted by a criminal, we'll cover it."
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