Bank fraud

GingerFurball_2

Two likely explanations:

1. The hotel has made an error in taking a payment
2. You haven't read the terms and conditions and they're taking a payment you have agreed to

Sean473

That's why I always pay for everything with a credit card, especially Hotels! At least you have protection!

masonic

Sean473 wrote: »

That's why I always pay for everything with a credit card, especially Hotels! At least you have protection!

Yes, and this is why I only keep enough money in my main current account to cover expected expenses, with readily accessible funds available at a different bank should they be required.

robatwork

I wonder how many times a post on this forum with the word "fraud" in the title has ended up being fraud?

Or "bank stole....."

Tim_from_Brighton

So learning points here are:
- Never use a debit card for online transactions
- Once a payment is requested by a retailer, banks will set that money aside and not allow their customer access to it even if the money is still in their customer's account.
- Banks will only tell the customer money has been put aside and that they are effectively overdrawn if the customer asks. It does not show up on the customer's statement.
- Banks will always honour requests from a retailer whether they are legitimate, fraudulent or in made error.
- If this happens, the customer is powerless to prevent their money being moved and will have to wait for the bank to decide what it wants to do and when it wants to do it.
- You can not rely on the bank's T&Cs or the FCA requirements on banks covering unauthorised payments to protect you (see the FCA web page covering unauthorised-payments)
- Always ensure you have several thousand pounds in savings to draw upon in case money is requested from your account either fraudulently or in error, so you have something to live on while the bank decides what it will do
- Never use a debit card for online transactions

PeacefulWaters

Paranoid nonsense.

Yorkshire_Pud

Load of old tosh OP.

The amount is just a way that the hotel ensures the guest won't do a runner at the end of their stay so the pre authorisation is an amount large enough to cover wrecking the hotel room, eating everything in the restaurant, using all facilities and services, laundry etc etc.

You make it sound like the hotel is about to debit the money from your account. They are not. The amount is their insurance against non payers. There's a reason why they do it:cool:;)

You still have access to funds because you can go overdrawn and the account hasn't been debited anyway.

So what's the problem?

JuicyJesus

Tim_from_Brighton wrote: »

So learning points here are:
- Never use a debit card for online transactions

Nowt wrong with online transactions. Just hotels.

- Once a payment is requested by a retailer, banks will set that money aside and not allow their customer access to it even if the money is still in their customer's account.

The other option being that they allow the customer access after, say, they purchase a massively expensive item, and then the customer spends the same money multiple times leaving the bank with an enormous debt the customer has no means of repaying.

- Banks will only tell the customer money has been put aside and that they are effectively overdrawn if the customer asks. It does not show up on the customer's statement.

Different banks do this in different ways. HSBC doesn't show pending transactions online - Halifax, Lloyds and TSB (for some) do.

- Banks will always honour requests from a retailer whether they are legitimate, fraudulent or in made error.

Palpably not true as fraud detection algorithms do decline certain transactions. However, this probably isn't fraud, and otherwise why should a bank not authorise transactions up to the available funds on the account (or any unplanned overdraft they care to grant)?

- If this happens, the customer is powerless to prevent their money being moved and will have to wait for the bank to decide what it wants to do and when it wants to do it.

Or the expiration of the authorisation hold, which is within 5-7 working days usually or whenever a matching transaction is debited - one or the other. Either way, your beef is with the hotel. Not the bank.

- You can not rely on the bank's T&Cs or the FCA requirements on banks covering unauthorised payments to protect you (see the FCA web page covering unauthorised-payments)

An authorisation hold is not a payment, and the hold could well be authorised.

- Always ensure you have several thousand pounds in savings to draw upon in case money is requested from your account either fraudulently or in error, so you have something to live on while the bank decides what it will do

Or use a credit card for hotels.

- Never use a debit card for online transactions

GOTO 10.

masonic

Tim_from_Brighton wrote: »

- Never use a debit card for online transactions

It will probably transpire that this was a chip and pin transaction, and that you authorised the transaction by entering your pin.

The learning point should be, never rely on just one current account.

Tim_from_Brighton

Thanks for the helpful responses. As far as the less helpful or just plain ignorant ones go, well that's life!