By Otaru Oshiokeh, Abuja
Bank customers have expressed frustration over the unending failed transactions with the use of e-payment platforms since its introduction into the financial system by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over 10 years ago.
Findings by ThisNigeria indicated that failed transactions paint a negative picture of the challenges faced by bank customers daily.
From being debited for unsuccessful transactions to enduring prolonged delays for reversal, customers express frustration and anxiety about instances of failed transactions at Point of Sales (PoS) terminals to inter-bank transfers.
Despite efforts to seek redress, customers encounter obstacles in their quest for resolutions.
Sometimes, contacting customer care lines often proves abortive with long wait times and disconnections that further exacerbate the situation.
Promises of resolution within a specified timeframe frequently go unfulfilled while customers’ sense of disillusionment and despair continues.
It is, however, on record that the first quarter of 2024 saw a remarkable spike in e-payment transactions across the country reaching a staggering N234trn.
This figure represents an 89.3 per cent increase when compared with the corresponding year of 2023 as reported by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBBS).
Social media platforms, particularly the X handle, a washed with complaints of disgruntled customers to the larger public. This collective outcry reveals the magnitude of the issue with several affected individuals sharing similar tales of woes.
Stories of significant sums losses in transit underscore the seriousness of the problem as businesses and individuals alike suffer serious consequences of unresolved transactions.
Some affected customers especially women, who spoke with This Nigeria, alleged that they have lost huge sums of money via the e-payment transactions using either PoS, ATM, or bank applications.
An Abuja-based businesswoman who has an account in one of the banks in Abuja, Mrs Joke Maimuna, said her bank application failed recently when it was time to remit a loan she obtained from a microfinance bank, and for over two weeks the money has not been reverted.
She lamented that the cash she wanted to transfer had yet to be reversed, adding that the delay had caused her embarrassment and loss of creditworthiness.
“This will hurt my chances of getting more loans in the future,” she lamented.
A Lagos resident, Chidi Obi, lamented that a N60,000 failed transaction on the PoS terminal had yet to be reversed to his account nearly one month after the failure.
He said, “I went to buy fuel at a filling station in Ikeja, the PoS declined the transaction but I was debited. I have gone to my bank several times to lodge complaints, but the money has still not been refunded.”
Another Abuja-based businesswoman, Mrs Lara Opeyemi, said in April she lost over N200,000 in less than 12 hours after she lost her telephone to hoodlums.
She noted that she rushed to her bank the next day to block the account, but the money had been removed and the bank said there was nothing they could do about it.
“My brother, I lost my phone in a commercial vehicle on my way to Gwarinpa from Central Business Area–Abuja, unfortunately, it was around 9pm, I was shocked that when I got to the bank to block my account, all the N200,000 was withdrawn just like that.
“All efforts to recover same proved abortive as the said bank blamed me for negligence. My next step is to close the account, go ahead to open the current account, and insist on continuing to make use of cheques for all transactions. Banks do not bother to help their customers on how to trace stolen funds and when you go to the police station, they make it worse by demanding for bribe before they will act.”
Another victim, Chief Oyakhide Adelogie, who lost N430,000 to bank fraudsters, said he followed up on the matter with the apex bank before he got back his money.
Recently, the House of Representatives appealed to the CBN to instruct banks to enhance their systems to minimize cases of failed transactions and to promptly reverse such transactions even without customer interventions.
The Legislative body called on the apex bank to ensure that banks return customers’ funds within the designated time frame, regardless of whether the customers have complaints. The call came following the adoption of a motion at a recent plenary session initiated by Hon. Emmanuel Ukpong-Udo regarding the necessity to prevent commercial banks from delaying fund reversals beyond the CBN- prescribed deadlines.
At the session, Ukpong-Udo referenced data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc indicating that over 135,500,000 million Nigerians currently utilize bank services.
*CBN urges affected account holders to direct complaints to consumer protection department
Commenting on the subject matter at a forum in Lagos, the President, of the Bank Customer’s Association of Nigeria (BCAN), Dr Uju Ogubumka, said the delay concerning non-reversal of failed transactions has several negative impacts including fear and lack of trust in electronic payment channels.
At a recent media parley with a journalist in Abuja, the CBN Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Hakama Sidi Ali, told journalists that the apex bank guideline for the resolution on ‘failed on ATM transactions when customers use their cards on their bank’s ATM shall be from the current timeline of three days.
When instant reversal fails due to any technical issue or system glitch, the timeline for manual reversals shall not exceed 24 hours.
“Refunds for failed ATM transaction [where customers use their cards on other banks’ ATM shall not exceed 48 hours from the current 3-5 days,” she said.
She, however, advised that customers are expected to notify their banks of such failures within the timeframe.
“If the banks fail or delay reversals, the customer is expected to charnel such complaints to CBN Customer Protection Department via the apex bank’s online mails for resolution,” she explained.
