Loss of ATM card gets worse for users

Jan 02, 2012 - Nidhi Sethi |

Age Correspondent

If you lose your ATM card and fail to get it immediately blocked, then don’t blame the bank in case it’s misused. A district consumer forum recently said that a person cannot claim damages from bank if he fails to immediately block his lost card and money is unauthorisedly withdrawn by using the card and the bank will only be liable if the withdrawal of money takes place after blockage of the card.
However, users feel that bank should undertake some responsibility and help them. Marketing executive Ansh Kapoor recalls, “Though I have not lost my ATM card ever, one of my friends was unfortunate enough to go through this experience. Once her card got stolen, she failed to immediately get it blocked. This resulted in the thief hacking into her account and withdrawing a substantial sum. When she turned towards the bank, it refused to compensate her with the lost money. According to me, the bank should hold some level of responsibility in case of ATM theft and pay some form of damages to the account holders.”
Consumers also complain that sometimes when they request the machine for the withdrawal of money, the transaction happens but the ATM doesn’t dispense money and a deduction is done from the bank account. “It happened to me last year and it was a nightmare getting my money back. Most of the times, the CCTVs don’t work at the ATM outlets and there is literally no way to prove to the bank that the money didn’t come out. In such cases, it is a Herculean task to convince the bank and recover your money. Banks should be little considerate and ensure that the cameras are in order,” says businessman Sanjay Gupta.
Recently a B-school executive Suparna Chatterjee lost her debit card while travelling in the Metro. But she immediately got her card blocked and lodged a complaint with the Delhi Metro Police. She was assured that her card will not be misused and after a written application, she finally got her new card. “I feel imposing liability on the bank for the negligence of all ATM cardholders is not justified. And it will only encourage fraudsters to claim money from the bank. Intimating the bank immediately after the loss or theft of the card is only the way to prevent it from being misused.”

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