1. Debts offset against balance account
366/11
The bank set off the complainant’s overdue debts against his unemployment allowance account balance of 636 € without prior notification. Following our intermediation, the said amount was refunded to his account.
2. Change of interest rate
121/09
According to the complainant’s housing loan agreement, changes in interest rates followed those of Euribor. However, between 2006 and 2009, the interest rate of his loan increased despite Euribor’s repeated decreases. H.O.B.I.S recommended the bank, based on applicable provisions , to properly apply the specific contract term and to refund the amount of interest which had been unduly paid.
3. Delay charges
1261/11
A customer’s account was debited with “delay charges” concerning the monitoring of his loan, due to overdue debts. Following our intermediation, in accordance with the applicable provisions, the bank refunded his account with the relevant amount. Moreover, the bank informed H.O.B.I.S. that the above charges were abolished.
4. Refusal to mortgage extinction
1372/11
Despite the full repayment of her housing loan, by depositing the relevant amount, the bank refused to consent to the extinction of the mortgage, demanding the repayment of a business loan which she had guaranteed. Following our intervention, the bank immediately proceeded to the extinction of the mortgage.
5. Card stolen by diverting the holder’s attention
1018/10
During a cash withdrawal at an ATM, the complainant’s card was replaced by another card by strangers, who diverted his attention. As they had already captured his PIN when he typed it, they subsequently made successive withdrawals of 2,200 € from his account. Given that this was not a case of electronic theft and the correct PIN was used, his request for refunding of the relevant amount was not granted.
6. Fraud “Lebanese loop”
1374/10
A bank customer tried, unsuccessfully, to withdraw cash from an ATM with his card because the ATM shut down and the machine retained his card. A stranger informed him that he had faced the same problem the day before. Despite the cardholder informing the bank of the problem within the next 10 minutes, 7 withdrawals, totalling 2,600 €, had been made from his account. The investigation revealed that he had been the victim of a common scam, often known as the “Lebanese loop”, where a fraudster tampers with the ATM so that it appears to “swallow” the customer’s card. And having carefully observed the customer using the machine, the fraudster knows his PIN. H.O.B.I.S. upheld his complaint and recommended the bank to refund the above amount. Accordingly the bank credited his account with 2,600 €.
7. Disputed card transactions
802/11
The complainant’s credit card was stolen from his bag in the subway. Until cancellation, the next day, the card had already been used for unauthorized transactions totalling 7,300 €. The bank refunded the amount of 3,147.48 € due to lack of supporting documents provided by the shops. After considering all the evidence, we recommended the reimbursement of the rest of the disputed transactions, on the grounds that there had been a split sale and the bank had not acted promptly to avert further fraudulent use of the card.
8. Phishing scam
1043/11
A debit card holder provided his card number and PIN by responding to a fraudulent e-mail message claiming to come from his bank. As a result her account had been debited with two withdrawals totalling 1,200 €, with a cloned card. The card issuer refused to remove the transactions. However, HOBIS recommended the bank to re-credit the above amount based on the fact that the said withdrawals were made using a cloned card.
9. Delay of loan disbursement
133/11
After singing, in August 2011, a loan agreement of 160,000 € for the construction of a photovoltaic power station and despite the presentation of all required documents, the bank delayed to disburse the said amount. As a result of our intermediation the bank disbursed the amount.