Ognibene v. Citibank, N.A.
New York City Civil Court, Small Claims
446 N.Y.S.2d 845 (1981)
- Written by Alex Ruskell, JD
Facts
Ognibene (plaintiff) fell victim to a scam while using his debit card at Citibank, N.A. (defendant). The scammer pretended to be talking to customer service on a payphone located between two Citibank ATMs. When Ognibene used his card to withdraw $20, the scammer asked if he could borrow Ognibene’s card to check whether the other ATM was working as per customer service instructions. Unbeknownst to Ognibene, the scammer had seen Ognibene’s code, and when Ognibene gave the scammer the card, the scammer withdrew $400 from Ognibene’s account. Ognibene sued Citibank to get his $400 back. The bank responded that it was only liable under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act for unauthorized withdrawals, and Ognibene had authorized the scammer to use Ognibene’s card when Ognibene let the scammer borrow it.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Thorpe, J.)
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