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Santander branch in London: three breakdowns in a year and a half
Photo: Hollie Adams / Bloomberg / Getty Images
Spanish bank Santander accidentally doubled monthly payments from 2,000 corporate accounts.
Because of a technical error, 75,000 account holders were transferred a total of 130 million pounds (around 155 million euros) too much, reports the "Times".
Accordingly, the institute is trying to get the money back in talks with the account holder's banks.
The company accounts were not damaged - the double amounts were therefore paid from Santander's reserves and were not debited from the company accounts.
"The double payments were the result of a scheduling problem that we quickly identified and fixed," a Santander spokeswoman told the newspaper.
"The recipients and the purpose of the payment will differ depending on the customer, but wages or supplier payments could also be affected."
A bank only wants to cooperate under certain conditions
It is a severe blow for the bank, especially since it is likely to be costly to get it back.
It is feared that some people have already spent the money or are now overestimating their financial situation.
For Santander in Great Britain it was the third breakdown in a year and a half: In May, several customers were unable to make payments for almost a day due to an IT error, and in August 2020, thousands were temporarily unable to use online banking.
An affected bank told the Times that it would not demand the money back on Santander's behalf if the accounts went into the red as a result.
In Germany there is a right to surrender in the event of incorrect transfers.
If the money is not paid back, there is a risk of legal consequences.
Santander belongs to the Spanish group of the same name and is one of the market leaders in Great Britain with around 14 million active customers and 20,000 employees.
apr / dpa
