When Abimbola Osinubi, a Kwara State resident, set out on December 10 to shop at Shoprite in Ilorin, she didn’t know Access Bank would seize her N33,127 for two months after an unsuccessful transaction.

Osinubi told FIJ she gave one of the mall cashiers her Access Bank card so she could pay for her groceries via a Point of Sale (POS) terminal.

According to Osinubi, the cashier could not process her payment. “The staffer returned my card alongside the receipt showing that the transaction was declined,” she said.

The Kwara State resident said she noticed that N33,127 had been deducted from her account despite the failed transaction.

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She also said that she had to transfer some money from another account to the Access Bank account, withdraw it through an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) and then pay for the groceries in cash.

“This was because I was only with my Access Bank card at that time,” noted Osinubi.

She initially thought the money would be reversed within a few days. When she did not receive any reversal 10 days after, she contacted the bank via a phone call.

FIJ learnt that the bank’s customer care representative told her the failed transaction would be resolved in no time when she reported the incident on December 20, but Access Bank declined her request for a refund through an email.

In an email sent on January 5, the bank claimed that Osinubi had got value for her money.

But refuting the bank’s claim, Osinubi said, “It’s a lie. I did not receive any value for my money. The transaction was declined, and they never returned my money.”

“On January 16, I sent an email to the consumer protection department of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to lodge a complaint about the incident, but they never responded.”

Responding to FIJ’s message, Access Bank said it would investigate the claim and respond within five working days.