Danske Bank compensates 7,800 customers with final bill as high as €13.4m

Danske Bank is to compensate 7,800 customers to the tune of DKK51m (€5.1m) as a result of errors in its debt collection systems.

But the total could be as high as DKK100m (€13.4m), the Danish bank said in a statement on 3 November, after it reviewed "the four original root causes" of all cases.

"As the case has proved to be more complex and extensive than initially assumed, and we have on an ongoing basis identified additional issues, which we will continue to address and the customers affected will receive compensation on an ongoing basis.

Our work has been reviewed by the impartial reviewer, which has just submitted a partial report to the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (the Danish FSA) on the case.

As a result of the report, the bank has taken a number of additional measures to safeguard the interests of the affected debt collection customers. And until the matter has been resolved and the affected debt collection customers have received compensation, debt collection is suspended for all debt collection customers in Denmark."

The breakdown of payments for the 7,800 debt collection customers totalled about DKK 28m as a result of overcollection plus compensation of about DKK23m for the time that the money could have been at their disposal.

In addition, it further said, a large number of debt collection customers will have their debt reduced once the remaining issues have been resolved.

The bank also identified a number of additional issues, and while the number of debt collection customers expected to receive compensation is unchanged, "the total amount of overcollection for the additional issues may, on the basis of a very early estimate, exceed DKK 100m".

In order to minimise the risk of overcollection, the bank is suspending debt collection for the approximately 6,500 debt collection customers who have continued to repay debt. Interest accrual is still suspended for all its debt collection customers.