Summary of this article
Delhi consumer commission ordered Rs 59,600 payout over failed Rs 10,000 ATM withdrawal.
Bank failed to prove cash was actually dispensed despite marking transaction successful.
Commission awarded refund, delay compensation, mental agony damages and litigation costs to customer.
An ATM transaction may show as successful even when no cash comes out. In such cases, the amount debited from the customer's account has to be reversed within the prescribed time. A Delhi consumer commission has ruled on a case where an Rs 10,000 ATM transaction remained unresolved for months. The customer said the money was debited from his account, but he did not receive any cash.
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-VIII (Central), Delhi, passed the order on August 27, 2026, on a complaint filed by Jitender Singh, an account holder of Punjab & Sindh Bank. ANI reported that the bank was ordered to refund Rs 10,000 and pay compensation and litigation costs, which makes the total payout Rs 59,600.
What Happened In The Failed ATM Transaction?
Singh tried to withdraw Rs 10,000 from an Axis Bank ATM on December 5, 2022. The transaction went through on his account, but the ATM did not dispense any cash.
He said a colleague later used the same ATM and withdrew Rs 20,000 successfully. Singh approached Punjab & Sindh Bank on December 7 and filed a written complaint on December 19, asking for the amount to be restored.
The bank maintained that its records showed the transaction as successful. He approached the bank again in January 2023 and paid Rs 590 for another investigation, but the issue was not resolved.
Punjab & Sindh Bank had forwarded the complaint to Axis Bank, which also rejected the claim on the grounds that the transaction was successful. After further investigation, the matter was referred to the ATM Cell/Arbitration, but the transaction was again treated as successful.
The consumer commission found that the bank had not provided enough evidence to show that the ATM had actually dispensed the cash. The records did not include the ATM journal, cash-balancing report, electronic journal, CCTV footage, switch-level reconciliation report or another reliable technical record confirming that Singh received the money.
The commission observed, “merely showing the transaction as successful in the electronic system could not conclusively establish that cash had actually been dispensed.” It also rejected the argument that the transaction took place at an Axis Bank ATM. According to the commission, the customer could not be made responsible for resolving a dispute between the card-issuing bank and the bank operating the ATM.
How Much Compensation Was Ordered For The Failed ATM Transaction
The Reserve Bank of India's framework says that when an account is debited, but cash is not dispensed, the transaction should be reversed within a maximum of T+5 calendar days.
A delay beyond this period attracts compensation of Rs 100 per day. The commission counted 296 days of delay until Singh filed the complaint on October 16, 2023. It awarded Rs 29,600 as compensation for the delayed reversal.
The bank was also asked to pay Rs 10,000 for mental agony, harassment and inconvenience, along with Rs 10,000 towards litigation expenses. Including the Rs 10,000 refund, the total amount came to Rs 59,600. The bank has 45 days from receiving the order to make the payment. If it misses the deadline, the outstanding amount will carry interest at 9 per cent per annum from the date of default until realisation.
The commission did not accept Singh's separate claim of Rs 1.5 lakh for alleged professional or pecuniary loss, as he had not submitted sufficient documentary evidence to establish the loss.
