Over the past two years, we’ve helped readers get thousands back in refunds and outlined their rights in our Money Problem feature. Today’s problem is…
I wonder if you could assist with an issue I have with Nationwide. In a nutshell, we attended a local branch to make a major overpayment to my mortgage (£70,000). This was meant to be a really happy time and milestone moment as it would have reduced my mortgage by more than £800 a month. The joy was short-lived as the mobile app made no sense and after multiple calls by me, it was revealed they had simply “lost” my money and had no idea where it was. This dragged on for 10 days and untold stress, sleepless nights and anxiety. I had no idea where my money was. I was feeling physically sick. We attended the branch and had more calls and lots of talk but no actual action. It has all now been sorted and appears correct but it took 14 days. My gripe is the parsimonious offer of £200 compensation. They have upheld my complaint and admitted fault. My partner is disabled and had a flare-up during this episode and was prescribed steroids. This happened due to Nationwide and the trigger of the stress it caused. I am open to reasoned debate on the ridiculous amount of £200 in compensation but they will not budge and are now refusing to answer exactly where the money was for 10 days and how much interest they earnt while it was in their account and not mine.
Robert Milne
Money blog editor Jimmy Rice tackles this one…
Thanks for your email, Robert – we were sorry to hear about your case.
My first thought was that £200 doesn’t seem like a lot to compensate for the stress you and your partner went through.
It’s even less when you consider you could easily have earned more than £100 in interest on that money in a 14-day period.
Find latest tips and deals in the Money blog
I reached out to Nationwide about your case and they didn’t dispute most of the facts you presented – though they told me they’d reassured you the money was not lost.
After receiving my email, they called you again to apologise, you told me, but wouldn’t budge on the £200 compensation.
That might surprise some readers who sympathise with your case, given the building society was named Which?‘s Banking Brand of the Year 2025.
That said, others have clearly been dissatisfied with the customer service they get, given the 1.9 average from more than 7,600 reviews on Trustpilot.
‘This is a serious failure’
I talked through your case with consumer disputes expert Scott Dixon, who thinks it goes beyond the “service failures” for which banking staff typically hand out anything from £25 to £100.
“This was not a trivial error,” he told me. “Temporarily losing £70,000 is a serious failure. The stress, sleepless nights and impact on your partner’s health clearly exceeds the offer of £200 compensation.
“You are entitled to an explanation of what happened, repayment of interest Nationwide earned while the funds were misapplied, and compensation that fairly reflects the stress and harm caused.”
Dixon pointed to the Financial Conduct Authority’s Consumer Duty rules, which require firms to put customers’ needs first, act in good faith, avoid causing foreseeable harm and enable and support retail customers to pursue their financial objectives.
In my correspondence with you, Robert, you do not say that you suffered any discrimination in this case – but as a side note it’s worth discussing briefly.
All firms are bound by the Equalities Act 2010. The legislation talks about indirect discrimination: when an organisation creates rules and policies that have a worse impact on those with a protected characteristic. Designing rules and regulations that work against elderly and disabled people could be classed as indirect discrimination.
Regardless of this, Dixon thinks you have “clear-cut” case to take to the ombudsman.
“Nationwide has upheld your complaint and admitted liability,” he said.
Read more Money Problems:
‘Our subscription nightmare after Dad died’
‘Our assets are £1m – what inheritance tax will we pay?’
‘My car rental hell – please help’
His advice is to escalate your complaint and ask for a “final response” (otherwise known as a deadlock letter) from Nationwide, then refer your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) for a free review.
“Financial institutions don’t like complaints being referred to the Financial Ombudsman as it costs them money – up to £650 for each complaint,” Dixon said.
“The ombudsman takes a dim view on vulnerable customers being unfairly treated and fobbed off with derisory sums to close complaints, and are likely to award you with higher compensation.”
The FOS routinely awards £300-£750 for serious distress and inconvenience with major banking errors that caused stress and anxiety – here’s an example.
Higher awards (£750-£1,500) are made where there’s a clear, documented health impact, prolonged distress or repeated communication failures.
“I take the view that a fair and proportionate settlement would be in the region of £750-£1,000 plus interest while the money was missing,” Dixon said.
“I would put this to them and mention Consumer Duty and the Equality Act 2010 when you ask for a ‘final response’ (deadlock letter) to help them focus their minds a bit more closely on the gravity of your complaint.”
His final advice: Don’t give up and don’t be fobbed off. Perseverance breaks resistance every time.
What Nationwide said
This is what the building society told me: “We’re very sorry for any stress this may have caused our customer.
“Due to an error, there was a short delay in crediting their mortgage, but we reassured Mr Milne at the time that the funds were never lost and he would not be out of pocket as we would backdate the credit.
“We’ve also offered £200 as a goodwill gesture for the inconvenience.”
This feature is not intended as financial advice – the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:
