What the standard requires
The consumer standard of caution has four elements. You must: report the fraud to your bank within 13 months of the last payment, cooperate with reasonable requests for information from your bank, consent to the bank reporting the scam to the police, and take reasonable care when making payments (paying attention to bank warnings).
Importantly, ‘reasonable care’ does not mean you can never be deceived. These are professional criminals — the standard acknowledges that.
What counts as meeting the standard
If you reported the fraud to your bank, provided information they requested, didn’t object to police involvement, and weren’t deliberately reckless with your money, you likely meet the standard.
The standard is assessed based on your individual circumstances. Vulnerable consumers — including those with health conditions, limited digital literacy, or who were under emotional manipulation — are given additional consideration.
Vulnerability and the standard of caution
If you were particularly vulnerable to the specific type of scam — due to age, health, emotional state, digital literacy, or any other factor — the standard of caution is adjusted in your favour.
Vulnerable consumers also cannot be charged the £100 excess on their reimbursement. If your bank has not properly assessed vulnerability as part of your claim, this is grounds for challenge.