Nationwide Building Society · DRN-6001673

THE COMPLAINT Ms A complains that Nationwide Building Society (“Nationwide”) will not reimburse her money she says she lost when she fell victim to fraud. WHAT HAPPENED The circumstances of this complaint are well known to all parties concerned, so I will not repeat them again here in detail. However, I will provide an overview. Ms A disputes several payment transactions made on or after 10 March 2025 using her Nationwide card, totalling £312.32. She says her estranged daughter made them without her consent. I will refer to these disputed payments as the “Transactions”. Ms A disputed the above with Nationwide. When Nationwide refused to reimburse her, she raised a complaint, which she then referred to our Service. One of our Service’s investigators considered the complaint and upheld it. She directed Nationwide to refund Ms A the Transactions, plus 8% interest. Ms A accepted this, but Nationwide did not. As Nationwide did not accept the investigator’s findings, this matter has now been passed to me to make a decision. WHAT I HAVE DECIDED – AND WHY I’ve considered all the available evidence and arguments to decide what’s fair and reasonable in the circumstances of this complaint. Having done so, I find that the investigator at first instance was right to reach the conclusion she did. This is for reasons I set out in this decision. I would like to say at the outset that I have summarised this complaint in far less detail than the parties involved. I want to stress that no discourtesy is intended by this. If there is a submission I have not addressed, it is not because I have ignored the point. It is simply because my findings focus on what I consider to be the central issues in this complaint. Further, under section 225 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, I am required to resolve complaints quickly and with minimum formality. Regulatory framework The regulations which apply in this matter are the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (“PSRs”).

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Key findings I emailed Nationwide on 11 February 2026 setting out why I agreed with the investigator’s findings and asking it to consider whether we could resolve Ms A’s complaint informally. Nationwide responded on 2 March 2026 disagreeing with my position. I sent a further email on 3 March explaining why my view remained unchanged. Nationwide replied on 17 March, and again on 20 March requesting additional time. On the same date, I confirmed that I would provide a final deadline of 27 March, after which I would issue a formal final decision. As I have not heard back from Nationwide, I see no reason to depart from the reasoning set out in my previous emails. I invite Nationwide to re-read them if necessary. My findings, in summary, are as follows: • I am satisfied that when Ms A telephoned Nationwide on 10 March 2025 to raise a dispute, its agent ought to have stopped and replaced Ms A’s card. While I acknowledge there was no guarantee the Transactions would have been prevented had the agent taken this action – given the way card schemes update their systems – there nevertheless remained a possibility. • In any event, I am satisfied that the Transactions were unauthorised for the reasons set out below. • I have considered the WhatsApp messages Ms A provided, which evidence a relationship breakdown between Ms A and her daughter. I have also taken into account that Ms A reported the Transactions to Nationwide as unauthorised on 10 March. Further, I have considered that Ms A has been candid and that her testimony has been consistent throughout. • Taking the above points together, I am satisfied that Ms A did not consent to the Transactions. That is, I am satisfied that she did not make the Transactions or provide authority to another person to do so. • It follows that I find the Transactions were unauthorised and should be refunded to Ms A by Nationwide in accordance with the PSRs. In my judgment, this is a fair and reasonable outcome in the circumstances of this complaint. MY FINAL DECISION For the reasons set out above, my final decision is that I uphold this complaint. Therefore, I direct Nationwide Building Society to refund Ms A: • The Transactions (which is said to be £312.32); and • 8% simple interest per annum on this amount from the date of loss to the date of settlement.

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Under the rules of the Financial Ombudsman Service, I’m required to ask Ms A to accept or reject my decision before 25 April 2026. Tony Massiah Ombudsman

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