NEW DELHI: A consumer court in Dehradun has instructed a private bank to refund Rs 2.4 lakh to a customer, citing the bank's inadequate KYC verification that enabled fraudulent withdrawal from his account in 2016.
The court also directed ICICI Bank's branch on Rajpur Road to pay Rs 25,000 in compensation and litigation costs, as per TOI reports.
Ashutosh Vijan, employed in the merchant navy, submitted a grievance to the Dehradun district consumer commission regarding fraudulent activity on his NRI account.
Earlier on March 3, 2016, he was notified via SMS of a Rs 1 lakh debit. Despite rushing to the branch, additional transactions occurred before his arrival. Bank personnel suspended his account and began efforts to retrieve Rs 5 lakh transferred to various accounts.
Despite assurances of complete reimbursement within 30-45 days, no action materialised, and Vijan departed for his maritime duties.
Following 10 months without resolution, Vijan sought assistance from the consumer commission. He highlighted the bank's failure to verify KYC for recipient accounts and noted that four transactions amounting to Rs 5 lakh occurred within 13 minutes, violating the mandatory 30-minute interval requirement.
Upon examining the evidence, the commission supported Vijan's assertions. They observed that no senior official had provided an internal investigation report.
The investigation revealed that all recipient accounts were fraudulent without proper KYC verification. While the bank returned Rs 2.6 lakh, Rs 2.4 lakh remained outstanding. The commission mandated the bank to repay the remaining sum with 7% annual interest from the complaint date, along with Rs 20,000 as penalty and Rs 5,000 for legal expenses.
The court also directed ICICI Bank's branch on Rajpur Road to pay Rs 25,000 in compensation and litigation costs, as per TOI reports.
Ashutosh Vijan, employed in the merchant navy, submitted a grievance to the Dehradun district consumer commission regarding fraudulent activity on his NRI account.
Earlier on March 3, 2016, he was notified via SMS of a Rs 1 lakh debit. Despite rushing to the branch, additional transactions occurred before his arrival. Bank personnel suspended his account and began efforts to retrieve Rs 5 lakh transferred to various accounts.
Despite assurances of complete reimbursement within 30-45 days, no action materialised, and Vijan departed for his maritime duties.
Following 10 months without resolution, Vijan sought assistance from the consumer commission. He highlighted the bank's failure to verify KYC for recipient accounts and noted that four transactions amounting to Rs 5 lakh occurred within 13 minutes, violating the mandatory 30-minute interval requirement.
Upon examining the evidence, the commission supported Vijan's assertions. They observed that no senior official had provided an internal investigation report.
The investigation revealed that all recipient accounts were fraudulent without proper KYC verification. While the bank returned Rs 2.6 lakh, Rs 2.4 lakh remained outstanding. The commission mandated the bank to repay the remaining sum with 7% annual interest from the complaint date, along with Rs 20,000 as penalty and Rs 5,000 for legal expenses.
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