Out of pocket due to Barclays payment problems? Here's how to get your money back

If you're a Barclays Bank customer who's been left out of pocket due to widespread delays sending or receiving payments, here's how to try and reclaim any associated costs you've incurred. Technical problems at the bank first began on Friday 31 January and have rolled on for several days.
The issues left some without January's wages, while others were unable to make essential payments, including their self-assessment tax bill ahead of the deadline, which was also on 31 January. The knock-on impact is that some have been pushed into the red and/or stung by related charges – for example, late payment fees and/or interest charges.
Barclays said on Monday 3 February that the issue has now been resolved and delayed payments processed, with customers once more able to use use their cards and withdraw cash, as well as to make payments via its app, online banking and phone services. It added, however, that it was continuing to "bring balances up to date" and "address any outstanding issues".
How to get your money back if you've incurred costs – and possibly compensation on top
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Firstly, keep a record and gather evidence of any costs incurred. This is so you can ask Barclays to put you back into the position you would have been in if it wasn't for the payment delays. Take screenshots and keep any relevant emails, letters or receipts. Barclays has said it is "sorry for any disruption and will ensure that no impacted customer is left out of pocket".
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Barclays says it is proactively contacting customers who may be vulnerable. Though it hasn't provided any more detail on this. Always be alert for scammers and if in doubt, end all communications and contact Barclays directly yourself.
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If you've not heard anything from Barclays, contact it directly and ask it to reimburse you. This includes those who've been hit by a daily interest charge of 7.25% after being unable to make payments towards their self-assessment tax bill by the Friday 31 January deadline. HMRC told us it won't offer refunds in this scenario given its services were still up and running.
You can contact Barclays by phone on 0345 600 2323 – though be aware that you might be waiting longer than usual to get through. You can also contact Barclays via its app or social media. -
Compensation may be offered on top, so explain the impact the outage had on you. For example, if you've suffered emotionally or been inconvenienced as a result. There are no guarantees you'll get anything, but Barclays told us it will review each customer's complaint on a case-by-case basis and will look at all options to resolve the issue, which may include compensation.
Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, wouldn't comment on Barclays specifically. But in general, it added that it expects firms to "proactively compensate customers" where "foreseeable harm" has been caused, and that firms should "competently, diligently and impartially" investigate complaints.
In the past, some providers have paid blanket compensation for outages. For example, in 2022, Nationwide paid 20,000 customers £60 each in compensation after a technical error saw their direct debits fail. -
If that doesn't work, raise a formal complaint. You can follow Barclays' official complaints process.
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As a last resort, escalate your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service. If Barclays doesn't respond to your complaint within eight weeks or you're unhappy with the response you do get, you can escalate it to the free and independent Financial Ombudsman Service. The Ombudsman can order banks to pay redress, as well as compensation for distress or inconvenience. For more info on this, see our Financial rights guide.
If you're not happy with Barclays' service, there are currently four banks paying up to £175 to switch
If you no longer want to stay with Barclays, you might want to consider switching to a different bank and right now, there are plenty of switching offers to choose from:
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First Direct – get a free £175 for switching, plus access to a 7% regular saver, fee-free spending overseas and a £250 0% overdraft. To get the free cash, you can't have ever had any account with First Direct, and you can't have had an account with HSBC since January 2018.
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Nationwide FlexDirect – get a free £175 for switching, plus 5% interest on up to £1,500, 1% cashback for 12 months and access to a 6.5% regular saver. To get the free cash, you can't have switched to a Nationwide account, or have received switch cash from Nationwide, since 18 August 2021.
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Santander Edge – get a free £150, plus access to a 6% easy-access saver and 1% cashback on bills. To get the free cash, you can't have had a switch bonus from Santander since September 2021, and you must be switching from a non-Santander, Cahoot or Cater Allen account. Go quick if you want this offer though, as you only have until 11.59pm on Wednesday 5 February.
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TSB Spend & Save – get a free £100, plus £10 a month cashback for six months, plus a choice of an extra reward in September. To get the free cash, you can't have had a switch bonus from TSB since 1 October 2022.
For full info, check out our Best bank accounts guide.