A British woman is trying to recover €1,000 after falling victim to a bank ATM and parking scam in south-east France.
Caroline Barrett, who splits her time between London and Alpes-Maritimes, was parked outside her local newsagents in Saint-Paul de Vence on July 25, when she was approached by a man who told her she needed a parking permit to stop there
“I said I had a permit but he told me the system had changed and he would show me,” she told The Connexion. “I thought this was a young chap being quite helpful.”
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Fraud distraction techniques
She followed him to the ATM at a nearby bank. He told her she had to put her card into the machine to get the parking ticket.
“I thought this was very odd but I got out my card and had a lot of stuff in my arms and was a bit flummoxed. I put my card in and he was standing beside me,” Ms Barrett said.
“I put the code in and in that kerfuffle he had obviously pressed reject on the machine and the card must have come out and he took it. I don’t know because I did not see any of it because I was saying ‘where has my card gone?’”
The man disappeared while she was trying to get her card out, thinking it was stuck in the machine.
Once she realised her card was gone, Ms Bennett went back to her car and phoned her bank. They told her to block the card using her mobile banking, which she did. She also reported the theft to her local police.
She checked her account all weekend and no money had been withdrawn. It was not until Monday that her account showed a withdrawal of €1,000.
She asked her bank, CCF, why this amount had been taken out when she blocked her card just minutes after the theft took place.
The cash had been withdrawn from an ATM in the next village.
Read more: Warning to drivers as parking meter scam back doing rounds in France
Fraud investigation
CCF has told Ms Bennett the case is “with the fraud department” but has given no indication when she might hear back from them.
When she visited her local branch, a bank manager told her that because she gave the man her code, she was unlikely to be reimbursed.
“I think they’re just playing it out to see how persistent I’m going to be with chasing them up,” she said.
“I don’t think I’ll get it back. I’m very cross with myself, I can’t afford to lose €1,000.”
Some banks will agree to reimburse stolen money, but could refuse to pay if it suspects the fraud was the result of “serious negligence” on the part of the account owner.
The Monetary and Financial code says bank clients should take “all reasonable steps to preserve the security of their personal security data”.
What to do if you are a victim of fraud in France
Knowing what to do to prevent fraud if your card is stolen is important. Acting quickly is vital to ensure the thieves have as little time as possible to use your card.
Notify your bank
The first thing you should do is tell your bank about the theft. It will block any transactions carried out without your knowledge, so the sooner you can inform the bank the better. Ideally, your card will be blocked before the thieves can use it. You can contact your bank by phone or online.
This procedure is irreversible, so you will need a new bank card.
The Ministry of Economics and Finance recommends people check their bank contracts – some require notification of stolen cards in person at a branch or in writing by certified letter.
Read more: France is worst country in Europe for bank card fraud: how to protect yourself
Check if any payments have been made
Next, keep a close eye on your accounts for any unusual activity to see if any payments have been made without your knowledge.
Check over the following few days as transactions can sometimes take time to show up on your account.
If you do see payments you do not recognise, authorities recommend you report it to the police.
Getting your money back
Your bank must reimburse you for any money stolen through fraudulent means, according to France’s economy ministry.
You have up to 13 months after the sum was taken to ask your bank for the money.
Note that your bank does not have to reimburse you if it can prove “negligence” on your part, for example, if you gave the fraudster your pin, or wrote your pin down where it could easily be seen.
If your bank cannot prove negligence, you will be fully reimbursed if your pin was not used.
If your pin was used, you will not be reimbursed for sums below €50.
You will be paid for sums exceeding €50, excluding the first €50. For example, if €500 was spent on your card, you would be reimbursed €450.
If your bank refuses to pay
If you cannot come to an agreement with your bank about a refund, you can contact the banking mediator for free. You will find the contact details of the mediator for your bank on its website. The mediator has 90 days in which to send both you and the bank a proposed solution.
If you do not agree with the mediator’s suggestion you can go to the local court for sums under €10,000 and the judicial court for sums more than €10,000.
Details stolen but not actual card
If your details have been stolen, but not your physical card, for example via a phone, text or email scam, you should still follow the first step and contact your bank to report the fraud. It will then block your card from making any more transactions.
You are also advised to report it on the Perceval platform.
Read more: Explainer: How to get reimbursed after a bank card fraud in France
