A man has told how he’s been left out of pocket after a stranger put £110,000 into his account and his bank accidentally told him he could keep it.
Russell Alexander, 54, was surprised when huge sums of money – up to £50,000 at a time – started popping up in his account.
Barclays immediately reacted to his query. After initially receiving no response, he was finally told that the money came from an inheritance. He was allowed to keep it.
The grandfather from Sutton, Norfolk, used other money from his separation to buy a £237,500 doer-upper new home – expecting to use the new windfall to fund the extensive repairs.
But nine months after the cash started hitting his account, Barclays realised their mistake and took it all back – including an extra £6,000 of Mr Alexander’s own money.
Russell Alexander, 54, says he has been left out of pocket after a stranger put £110,000 into his account and his bank accidentally told him he could keep it
Alexander was planning to renovate the doer-up home he had purchased, but Alexander says he is now in an uncertain position.
The handyman blames his bank, claiming he has been left with a semi-derelict house without heating and no renovation funds.
Barclays admits that money was mistakenly transferred to another sender – Mr Alexander was incorrectly advised that he could keep them.
Shocked Mr Alexander said: ‘I’m totally outraged at their offer of £500 compensation.
“I’ve been loyal to them for more than 40 years. They clearly informed me twice how much money I could spend.
“I had planned to renovate my house in order to rent rooms out on Airbnb. But I will need to make the money now and work for years.
“I would not have bought it without the additional money.” Barclays has taken my future plans away and made me feel like a homeless person.
Inside the house that Russell Alexander bought with the £110,000 he was accidentally given
Mr Alexander was surprised to notice a payment of £30,000 land in his account on December 29, 2020.
Alexander did not understand the reference to the transfer as ‘last mums’.
In December, he messaged Barclays chat via their website two times, without receiving a response.
Another payment of £30,000 and one of £777 landed in his account on January 15 2021, so he queried them on the phone that month.
A few weeks later, he said that a bank worker called him to inform him that the transfer looked like inheritance payments and that he could use it.
Mr Alexander moved into his project house on June 23, after he and his ex-fiancée sold their seven-bed B&B property.
It is necessary to rewire his home throughout. He also claims the heating system and plumbing need to be replaced.
Another £50,000 landed in his account in August.
However, in September, Mr Alexander received a call from a former client and he confessed that he was the one who accidentally gave the money.
Mr Alexander called Barclays who confirmed they had made a mistake and offered him £500 compensation, he said.
On September 29, they took money from the account.
He replied, “It didn’t make sense when it just arrived. But I double-checked with my bank and checked with an accountant. All of them said to spend it.
‘I took the house apart and intended to make it better, but the bank has taken it back. I now have to live alone in an abandoned house.
Mr Alexander had plans to convert the doer-up property into a B&B after £110,000 mysteriously landed into his account
“I have been suffering from insomnia for several weeks.” Barclays has been confusing me. It is not the best way to manage a bank.
“I am disgusted at the way they treat their loyal customers. For 40 years, I have banked with them.
‘After giving me nine months of false hope their £500 compensation is a total insult. They are worth billions of pounds per year.
“It has been sitting there for nine months, and they told me if it was spent they wouldn’t be able to do anything. But because it wasn’t, they just took it back.
Alexander had a client who called him in September to confess that he accidentally gave him the money.
Barclays spokesperson said, “We are sorry about the experience of this customer.”
It is obvious that the sender selected an incorrect recipient when filling out the online payment instructions.
The verification page is displayed for customers to validate that their details are correct and valid before they proceed to make payment.
The recipient requested clarification regarding unexpected funds received into his account. However, he was wrongly informed that the funds could be kept.
“Subsequently, the funds were taken from the account after a claim by the original sender.
‘However due to our error an additional £6,000 above the intended sum received was incorrectly removed. We will return this to you along with any lost interest.
Customers were urged to immediately report any unplanned funds and regularly remove one-off payments from their app or online bank site.