Accumulated interest on incorrect credit card charge

housebuyer7

Hello,

On 11th September 2025 I was charged £2760 on my credit card by my fertility company. I believed this charge was correct at the time. On 13th March 2026 they wrote to me and told me that I had already paid this fee during a previous package payment and I had been incorrectly charged. They refunded me on this date.

As I had paid by credit card and did not pay it off, I accumulated interest on that charge. My bank have not been very helpful in identifying what the exact amount of interest is because I also made other spending on the card and was also paying off bits at a time. However, they estimate the interest was around £321.

I have contacted my fertility company and asked to be reimbursed this. They have replied:

“Unfortunately, we’re unable to refund the interest accumulated as the charge was applied by your credit card provider rather than by us. The interest charge when using credit cards is unfortunately outside of our control, and we’re therefore unable to reimburse this amount.

We completely appreciate that this may not be the answer you were hoping for, and we’re very sorry that we’re unable to assist further on this occasion.”

It doesn’t seem right to me that I should incur financial loss as a result of their error. I don’t think my bank will refund this to me either but could try that direction if people think this is correct?

Please may you advise if I should consider this lost money I can’t recover, or if the bank or fertility company should be refunding me?

Aylesbury_Duck

I would speak to your card provider in the first instance. They may agree to waive it, and problem solved. When I had a disputed transaction in the past, they suspended interest accrual on the sum involved. This isn't exactly like that, but it is clearly an error not of your creation.

If that doesn't work, then a formal complaint to the fertility provider is in order. You have incurred cost as a result of their mistake. Had you paid the sum by debit card you would have missed out on earning interest on the sum for six months. I don't see the difference in principle, although of course the interest rates between a credit card and a bank account will differ greatly.

sheramber

The bank basically lent you the money from September until it was paid off or until the refund on March 26.

Interest was charged accordingly.

I do not see the bank being due to refund that interest charge.

Your claim against the fertility company is for costs incurred due to their error rather than calling it ‘bank interest.’

housebuyer7

OK that’s what I thought. If I continue to pursue and send letter before action etc… do you think this could cause issues? I feel bad as I’m currently pregnant so their treatment worked for me (£10,000 later) and they do have one embryo of mine in the freezer. Like could they refuse to work with me again?

Aylesbury_Duck

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82147358#Comment_82147358

That was going to be my next question: How important is the ongoing relationship? I wouldn't start a legal process for the sake of £321. Yes, any retailer can refuse to deal with you, as long as they're not discriminating against you on the basis of a protected characteristic.

I would put together a nicely-worded complaint letter. You've been a valuable customer of theirs, and they may make a goodwill payment that approximately covers your loss. Or perhaps commit to a discount on a future procedure.

Alderbank

Fertility companies in the UK are extremely tightly regulated by the HFEA. The clinic must at all times comply with the HFEA Act 2008 and the Code of Practice 9th edition 2023, which includes (17.3) 'Centres should not restrict storage of embryo consent to tie in with payment or funding arrangements.'

There are some regulated circumstances in which they could refuse to work with you again such as certain medical/clinical policies or welfare/consent issues, but disputes about payments are not among them.

Woodstok2000

Complain to your bank - as its a credit card there may be an avenue under s75...

housebuyer7

My only difficulty was my bank couldn’t even figure out what the proper amount was due to other spending and payments going in. They just didn’t want to seem to want to help at all (the credit card department).

Alderbank

Your original service cost £2,760. Since it was between £100 and £30,000, under the terms of the Consumer Credit Act your credit card provider is jointly and severally liable for any breach of contract or misrepresentation by the clinic. Overcharging you constitutes a clear breach of contract. Even though the clinic has already repaid the core overcharged amount, your card issuer remains legally responsible for restoring you to the financial position you would have been in had the breach never occurred. Section 75(1) does not just cover a refund of the base purchase price; it explicitly covers foreseeable "consequential losses" that flow directly from the breach.

Go back to your card issuer and tell them that you are submitting a formal claim under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 for consequential financial losses. If they reject the claim or fail to resolve it within 8 weeks, you can escalate the dispute to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

FOS routinely expects banks to refund any interest or charges added to a credit card account as a direct result of an erroneous or disputable transaction. Because the clinic's overcharge sat on your balance for 6 months and generated £321 in interest, that cost is a direct financial loss.

Go for it.