A legal remedy for ‘push payment’ fraud victims?

Ina significant recent judgment, the Supreme Court has put it beyond doubt thatUK banks owe a duty of care to customers not to process payments where there arereasonable suspicions about their propriety. Chris Robinson exploreswhat this means for the increasingly common phenomenon of push payment fraud.

ChrisRobinson, who lives inNorthampton, is a specialist corporate lawyer with Excello Law (www.excellolaw.co.uk).Contact him on crobinson@excellolaw.co.uk.

Authorised push paymentfraud is becoming increasingly sophisticated in the United Kingdom. The scams occurwhen customers are tricked into making payments to fraudsters – usually byimpersonation. Yet, because the customer did in fact authorise the payment,customers are often left out of pocket. UK banks have apparently had no legalobligation to reimburse victims of such frauds. However, a recent Supreme Courtdecision may assist the victims.