FNB stole R10k from me

I purchased a high-end item on 29 October 2025 using an FNB Virtual Card — the product they advertise as “secure, convenient and easy to manage.” The merchant later informed me the item was out of stock and processed a refund on 6 November 2025. I even received confirmation from Payfast that the refund was successful.

What happened between the purchase and the refund? My underlying debit card expired. Payfast therefore referenced the cancelled virtual card when paying the refund. That’s not unusual — it happens — but what shocks me is how completely unprepared FNB is to handle their own “world-class” technology when something goes wrong.

My experience trying to resolve this has been horrific:

My so-called Private Banker was unreachable for two days.

When she eventually responded, she could not tell me what FNB does with refunds that land on expired Virtual Cards. Private bankers are a ****, they are no experts.

The helpdesk transferred me from person to person until the call eventually dropped — multiple times.

I had to dig up my own dispute form online because nobody at FNB could provide a solution. The turnaround time? 14–21 business days — completely unacceptable from the most expensive bank in South Africa.

After submitting everything, someone from FNB called me and insisted the solution was for him to “give me a letter” with a card number so Payfast could pay it again — refusing to listen when I explained the funds were already with FNB. I had no option but to end the call.

Meanwhile, Payfast was extremely helpful — they provided a screen capture and system file proving the refund was successfully paid to FNB. The merchant was equally professional and provided a full transaction report. I forwarded all of this to FNB immediately.

Today marks 21 business days, and I am no further than I was on 29 October. No update. No resolution. No accountability. Not even basic communication.

For a bank that charges premium fees and claims to be technologically advanced, this has been an absolute failure in service, support, and competence. If zero stars were an option, FNB would have earned it.

Please help me, Peter — because FNB refuses to.