Bombay High Court Orders HDFC Bank to Refund Fraud Victim

The Bombay High Court has ordered HDFC Bank to refund Rs 38 lakh to Subodh Korde, a businessman from Pune, who fell victim to digital fraud. Citing the Reserve Bank of India's guidelines on zero liability for customers in fraudulent cases, the court determined that Korde was not at fault.

The Bombay High Court has ruled in favor of a Pune businessman who lost Rs 38 lakh to digital fraud, ordering HDFC Bank to reimburse the amount. The court found Subodh Korde, the account holder, to be free of liability according to Reserve Bank of India guidelines.

The scam involved unauthorized online transactions from Korde's account and a fraudulent SIM swap, which diverted essential transaction OTPs. Korde reported the case promptly, asserting he received no OTPs due to network issues and was unaware of the added beneficiaries and heightened transaction limit.

Judges Bharti Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande noted that the burden of proof for customer negligence lies with the bank. The court directed the bank to refund the amount with 6% annual interest, increasing to 8% if delayed beyond eight weeks.

(With inputs from agencies.)