FNB *****

I am a long-standing FNB customer of over 10 years and hold my home loan with the bank. I have always intended to grow my relationship with FNB, which makes this experience especially disappointing.

In April 2025, I was the victim of a **** and authorised a payment of R25,429 into a third-party account held at Standard Bank. I reported the ***** to FNB the following day.

What followed was an extremely frustrating process:

Communication from the assigned ***** analyst was minimal, with long periods of silence.

On recorded calls with FNB’s ***** department, I was told that the funds had been “secured”, which later turned out to be incorrect. This created false hope during an already stressful situation.

I repeatedly followed up and, at one point, felt compelled to contact the beneficiary bank myself just to try get feedback.

When I eventually lodged a HelloPeter complaint due to the lack of communication, the response I received was dismissive rather than supportive.

After weeks of delays, FNB issued a goodwill (ex-gratia) payment offer. I queried the offer and asked whether full compensation could be considered, given the circumstances. The offer later expired and was not reinstated despite further requests.

I escalated the matter to the National Financial Ombud, submitting emails, call recordings, and timelines. The Ombudsman ultimately accepted the bank’s position that, although there may have been service or communication shortcomings, the funds had already been withdrawn by the time the ***** was reported, and therefore no liability could attach to the bank. The file was then closed as final.

The end result is that:

I lost R25,429.

FNB accepts no responsibility for the handling of the case.

The Ombudsman accepts that poor communication and incorrect information do not matter if the loss is technically attributed to the **** itself.

I am sharing this experience so other FNB customers understand what to expect if they become victims of an authorized payment ****. Even as a long-standing customer with major products at the bank, there was no meaningful urgency, transparency, or accountability once the transaction had cleared.