The Supreme Court declared the write-off of the money credited by mistake illegal

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation declared unlawful the decision of Unicredit Bank to write off funds that were accrued by mistake. The relevant ruling is published on the court's website.

So, in 2022, Tamara Shkuleva, who is a client of the bank, received a coupon income from the bonds, but the bank considered this transfer to be erroneous and, without the consent of the woman, debited more than 780 thousand euros from her account. Later, she appealed to the court with a demand to return the money, where she was denied the claim. The judge referred to the provisions of the Law on the Securities Market and pointed out that the plaintiff is an "experienced investor", that is, a professional participant in the securities market, and therefore was aware of the risks associated with conducting operations in this market.

At the same time, after appealing to the Supreme Court, the appealed court decisions were canceled, and the case was sent for a new hearing to the court of first instance, where the decision was approved in favor of the woman.

"The court's conclusion that the plaintiff is an "experienced investor", a professional participant in the securities market and bears commercial risks in carrying out brokerage activities does not in itself indicate the existence or absence of the Bank's right to the disputed funds and is not related to the unilateral write—off of funds," the document says.

The statement also states that the bank does not have the right to determine and control the funds of its clients and impose restrictions on the client's right to dispose of their finances.

Earlier, on April 11, the Supreme Court recognized the right of citizens to receive compensation for moral damage caused by spam calls with advertisements from banks. It was noted that a resident of Moscow, not being a client of a financial institution, received spam calls from the bank with an offer to apply for a loan. After that, the man went to court demanding monetary compensation of 5,000 rubles for constant inconvenience.