Nigerian Woman Becomes N23m Richer After Suing 4 Banks Over N3m Debits on Her Account
- A Nigerian man has won a legal case against four Nigerian banks after dragging five to court over unauthorised debits
- She had approached the court seeking compensation, claiming that 5 banks failed to protect her account and allowed unauthorised withdrawals
- The court found negligence and lack of duty of care against the four banks but dismissed the claim against the fifth bank
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Legit.ng journalist Dave Ibemere has over a decade of business journalism experience with in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian economy, stocks, and general market trends.
A Nigerian woman has been awarded over N23 million after successfully suing four major Nigerian banks over unauthorised debits from her account
The woman, Dr. (Mrs) Oluwatosin Sanu, took five banks to court, demanding N53 million compensation, alleging that they failed to protect her account and allowed unauthorised withdrawals to occur.
Source: Getty Images
The Nation reports that Justice Oluwatoyin Odusanya of an Ikeja High Court only ordered four banks to pay N23,050,237.54 to Sanu.
The 5th bank was exonerated as she failed to prove the case of negligence.
Breakdown of the payment
Delivering her judgment, Justice Odusanya awarded N3 million (N3,050,237.54) as special damages and N20 million (N20,000,000) as general damages against the banks.
The banks were also ordered to pay interest on the unauthorized withdrawal amounting to N3,050,237.59 at the prevailing bank rate from September 6, 2013, till August 5, 2014, and thereafter interest on the judgment sum at 10% per annum from February 2, 2024, to the date of payment.
However, the court declined the claimant’s request for exemplary damages in the sum of N25 million.
How it all started
Sanu told the court through her lawyer that a total sum of N3,050,237 was transferred to various purported beneficiary accounts through the bank’s Internet banking transactions without her authorisation.
She said she was not in the country and never carried out such a transaction.
The case, which has been ongoing since 2014, was finally put to rest as Justice Odusanya, citing several decided cases, held that superior courts have established that:
"A bank has a duty under its contract with its customer to exercise care and skill in carrying out its part regarding the operations of the contract with its customers.
The duty to exercise reasonable care extends over the whole range of banking business within the contract customers."
The judge also said this duty applies to interpreting, ascertaining and in accordance with the instructions of the customer.
After listening to the two opposing counsels' argument, the judge said all the defendants(banks) failed to comply with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN ) Regulation were negligent in account opening of their customers and failed to exercise the requisite duty of care.
CBN sets deadline
Meanwhile, in another report, the CBN has issued a 30-day ultimatum to Nigerian banks to close bank accounts without BVN.
According to the apex bank, the directive aims to promote safer, more reliable, and more efficient banking and payment systems.
Data from the NIBSS showed that 57.39 million customers' accounts had been linked to their BVNs as of April 8, out of over 190 million bank accounts.
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Source: Legit.ng
