This posting only applied to the UK.
I was sent this alert by the Consumer Action Group of which I am a member
The CAG is a very powerful group which deals with all kinds of consumer affairs and has lawyers and some very erudite members who give their time free to help with problems (much like this forum)
This ruling could open the door for more lengthy claims via CC companies if the card was used via Paypal
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CREDIT CARD users could be sitting on unclaimed millions of pounds following a County Court decision today that means consumers have more time to make a claim against their credit card company when a purchase has gone wrong.
QualitySolicitors Howlett Clarke, based in Brighton, has won a case for their client which means that consumers who used their credit card to pay for an item or service that later turned out to be misrepresented, for example, fraudulent, may have up to 6 yearsicon from when they notice the error inform their credit card company.
Until today’s decision, consumers only had 6 years from the purchase of the item or product to claim their money back from the credit card company. QualitySolicitors Howlett Clarke also secured interesticon for their client over the time lapsed.
Paul Tilley the QualitySolicitors Howlett Clarke lawyer involved in the case, said: “What this decision means is that there could be thousands of people out there who have purchased something on their credit card that was a misrepresented purchase – in our client’s case it was an investment that was fraudulent – but they are unaware that they can bring a claim against their credit card provider to recoup the money. The decision means that the 6 year clock to make their claim starts ticking from the point they notice the misrepresentation, not from the date they made the purchase.
“So someone who made a purchase more than 6 years ago, but today notices it was a misrepresented purchase may be able to make a claim against their credit card company as long as they inform the company of it. This applies equally where consumers have, for example, paid a deposit for an item using a credit card and paid the balance in cash or by cheque, such as transactions where a vehicle was purchased. While only the deposit is funded by the credit card, the full transaction price could potentially be recovered from the creditor.
“Few people realised before this case that credit card companies are liable for such purchases. It is a protection that debit cards do not offer. Credit cards just became even better with this case. People may have more time to check their credit card statements to see if there are any purchases that turned out badly. They could be able to get that money back with interest. With the spectre of Christmas debt preying on people’s minds there might be some respite from a purchase gone wrong hidden in a credit card statement somewhere.
Full judgment here:
Mal'ouf v MBNA Europe Bank Ltd (t/a Abbey Cards) [2014] EW Misc 1 (CC) (27 January 2014) 
Warning - uk court case gives buyers longer to bring credit card claims 
