Bank will have to indemnify the customer for failure to make an international transfer

The 2nd Special Civil Court of Brasília ordered Banco do Brasil to pay compensation for moral and material damages to a customer, who had been harmed after a failure to remit amounts abroad.

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It remains undisputed in the records that the plaintiff, through the bank, remitted 9,200 euros abroad, equivalent to R$ 41,533.15, to be credited to a bank account in Spain, in order to pay for a technical course. However, the amounts were not credited to the recipient bank account and the defendant returned to the plaintiff's checking account, unjustifiably and in installments, R$ 34,986.88, as confirmed by the inserted statements.

Thus, it was proven that the Bank did not return the amount of R$ 6,546.27 to the plaintiff, nor did it show that the credit was made available in another bank account. Furthermore, "the defendant did not prove the existence of an extinguishing, modifying or impeding fact of the claimed right, (art. 373, II, CPC ), evidencing that the banking service provided was defective and inoperative". As a result, the Court considered the author's right to the full refund of the indicated amount to be legitimate.

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The author also proved other damages. As the amounts were not transferred by the bank, as requested, its obligation was fulfilled at a later date and to its detriment - which disbursed the amount of R$ 49,235.90 to settle the 9,200 euros, due to exchange rate fluctuations. "As demonstrated, it must be recognized that, in addition to the amount improperly withheld (BRL 6,546.27), the plaintiff supported the loss of R$ 7,702.75, as if the defendant had properly provided the contracted banking service, the plaintiff would have paid in advance its obligation, for the amount of R$ 41,559.18".

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Finally, the Court considered that the immaterial damage borne by the plaintiff was clear. "In this case, the banking service provided did not provide security and certainty, reaching the moral integrity of the BANK WILL HAVE TO INDEMNIFY THE CLIENT FOR FAILURE IN AN INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER, the plaintiff, who did not timely honor the commitment made to third parties". Thus, taking into account the compensatory, punitive and preventive purposes, in addition to the circumstances of the case - and according to the criteria of fairness, proportionality and reasonableness - the judge arbitrated the value of the pain and suffering in R$ 3 thousand.

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The sentence may be appealed.

Electronic Court Process (PJe): 0732999-86.2016.8.07.0016

BANK WILL HAVE TO INDEMNIFY CUSTOMER FOR FAILURE TO TRANSFER INTERNATIONAL. TJDFT. Available at:< http://www.tjdft.jus.br/institucional/imprensa/noticias/2017/marco/banco-tera-de-indenizar-cliente-por-falha-em-transferencia-internacional >. Accessed on: Oct 03, 2017.