An entrepreneur demands the return of 390,000 UAH that vanished from their PrivatBank card. What was the court's decision?

The woman is registered as an individual entrepreneur and has an account with JSC KB "PrivatBank." Subsequently, she learned about an unauthorized withdrawal of funds totaling 390 thousand hryvnias, which she seeks to recover. This is stated in the decision of the Desnyansky District Court of Kyiv, published on October 29, 2024.

On August 3, 2023, the woman received a message on her phone, from which she understood that an unauthorized financial transaction had been made from her bank account by an unknown person, resulting in a withdrawal of 390 thousand hryvnias from her current account. She reported this to the police, where her statement was registered in the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations. The citizen also submitted a corresponding application to the local branch of JSC KB "PrivatBank," to which she received a response letter dated September 3, 2023. The content of the response indicates that the transfer of funds on August 3, 2023, from her account was executed by creating a payment in the "Privat-24" application with a Smart ID signature, and the correct PIN code for the card was entered to carry out the transaction. These actions may have been performed using a financial phone and other private information. The financial institution refused to return the lost funds, emphasizing that the client is responsible for all operations accompanied by authorization.

"Regarding the transactions made on August 3, 2023, the bank established that the transfer of funds from the account was executed by creating a payment in the remote customer service system Internet Banking 'Privat-24.' Access to 'Privat-24' was carried out under the authorization of the plaintiff. In this procedure, the client enters their username and logs into 'Privat-24,' creating the necessary payment. The operation is signed with Smart ID. To perform transactions with the card, the correct PIN code was entered. These actions could only be accomplished using the financial phone number and other personal information. If there are suspicions of fraudulent actions regarding the withdrawal of funds, the bank recommended contacting law enforcement," stated PrivatBank.

What did the court decide?

The court ruled in favor of the woman. The commercial bank "PrivatBank" is ordered to return the amount of 390 thousand hryvnias to her.

"The plaintiff, as the owner of the cards, did not contribute to the loss or illegal use of the personal identification number (code) or other information that would allow initiating payment operations through her actions or inaction. The withdrawal of funds from the accounts did not occur at her request, and she should not bear responsibility for such transactions. Upon discovering the unjustified withdrawal (transfers, withdrawals) of funds, she informed the bank of this fact and contacted law enforcement, which leads the court to conclude that the claims should be fully satisfied. The absence of a verdict in the criminal case regarding the illegal appropriation of funds by unidentified persons using the card accounts opened in the name of the plaintiff does not serve as a basis for denying the claim. The court disregards the position expressed by the defendant's representative during the hearing regarding the closure of the case, asserting that the funds were withdrawn from the plaintiff's account as an individual entrepreneur, and therefore the matter is not subject to civil proceedings. The court finds this argument unfounded and unreasonable, as the plaintiff turned to the court to protect her violated consumer rights as an individual," emphasized the court.