Chandigarh: Bank told to compensate man for unauthorised transactions

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered the State Bank of India credit card branch to pay compensation of Rs 10,000 to a city resident for unauthorised transactions on his credit card.

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The commission has also directed the bank to refund Rs 29,709 to the complainant towards the two disputed transactions, along with interest @9% per annum.

It said the bank had failed to prove the fact that OTPs were delivered to the complainant on his registered mobile number and on receiving the same before the disputed transactions, the complainant had entered the same and only thereafter the disputed transactions had taken place.

In the complaint filed before the commission, Suraj Joshi said he had been using a credit card of the SBI for the past many years. On December 23, 2022, his father was unwell and was taken to Sohana hospital in Mohali for check-up. At around 12 pm, Joshi received a call for closing the SBI credit card. Subsequently, he received an email regarding transactions from the credit card. Joshi was shocked to find that an amount of Rs 29,709 had been debited from the card without sharing the OTP, from different locations on the same date and during the same passage of time.

Immediately after receiving the email, he called up the customer care number and informed executive concerned regarding the transactions and told him to stop the payment and block the subject card and sent an email in this regard. He also sent emails to police authority as well as the cyber cell for resolving the grievance. In this manner, he was a victim of the fraud as he had never shared any OTP and even after blocking the subject card and informing the customer care to stop the payment, the same were transferred to a third party without a warning.

Joshi also approached the customer care authority on time, but no action was taken. In this manner, the act amounts to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of OPs. OPs were requested several times to admit the claim, but, with no result.

On the other hand the Chief General Manager of State Bank of India Credit Card Division denied all allegations and claimed that the bank was not at fault at all.

The commission directed the bank to refund Rs 29,709 to the complainant towards the two disputed transactions, along with interest @9% per annum, and also to pay 10,000 to the complainant as lumpsum compensation for causing mental agony and harassment as well as litigation expenses.