ATM fraud: Victim wins case against PNB after 10 years

AN RPF (Railway Police Force) constable recently won an ATM fraud case against Punjab National Bank (PNB) after battling it for 10 years in the district consumer commission in Delhi, reports Economic Times.

The matter relates to 2013 when the victim lost ₹80,000 in eight transactions between June 28-30. Incidentally, ₹70,000 was already reversed by the bank but ₹10,000 was still due.

The district consumer court has ordered the bank to give ₹10,000 to the victim plus 9 per cent per annum from June 30, 2013. The state lender has also been ordered to pay ₹25,000 as compensation.

It is not unusual to get the money deducted while trying to withdraw money in an ATM without receiving the sum.

But usually, the money gets reversed barring some exceptions. This above-mentioned case was an exception.

What would you do if you happened to be one of such exceptions?

Customer’s liability

It is vital to note that if you are the victim of any such fraud, you should report the same within three working days. In such a case, there would be zero liability.

But when the fraud is reported within 4 to 7 working days, the liability would be the transaction value or the amount mentioned in the below table whichever is lower.

After seven working days, the customer's liability would be the bank's board-approved policy.

Time taken to report the fraudulent transaction

Within 3 working days              No liability
Within 4-7 working days     Transaction value or amount in Table (below) whichever is lower
Beyond 7 working days                          As per bank’s Board approved policy
(Source: RBI)

The liability of a customer can range between ₹5,000 to ₹25,000 based on the type of account. For instance, in a basic savings bank deposit account, the maximum liability is ₹5,000.

In case of credit cards which have more than ₹5 lakh limit, the maximum liability can be ₹25,000
It is vital to note that when fraud or negligence or deficiency lies on the bank, the customer is entitled to zero liability whether or not the transaction is reported by the customer.

And when the loss happens because of the customer's negligence, the customer will bear the entire loss until he reports the unauthorized transaction to the bank but any loss occurring after the reporting will be borne by the bank.