I fell for a bank impersonation scam: will I get my money back?

The phone showed your branch's number. The voice knew your name, your recent purchases, sometimes your adviser. It asked you to "block a fraud" by approving some operations, and your account was emptied. You were not naive: a bank impersonation scam relies on organised networks that are very well informed. A lawyer reviews your case in 20 minutes on Avocat20min.fr.

This article sets out what to do straight away, when the bank must refund you and what you can do if it refuses.

First steps, within the hour

Every minute counts. The people behind a bank impersonation scam often try to strike a second time.

1. Hang up if the call is still going. Never call back the number that appeared.
2. Block your card in your banking app or on 0 892 705 705, the interbank card-blocking line, open day and night.
3. Call your bank on the number printed on the back of your card or on its official website. Ask it to stop transfers, delete any payees that were added and reset your access.
4. Report the card fraud on Perceval, the gendarmerie's online service available through service-public. Banks often ask for it.
5. Confirm in writing your card block and your dispute, by registered letter or through the bank's secure messaging.

Keep every trace of the bank impersonation scam: statements, text messages received, screenshots of the app, the time and length of the call. These documents will be used by the bank, the police and, if needed, the judge.

How a bank impersonation scam works

The script rarely changes. Someone calls you pretending to be from your bank, faking its number with a technique called "spoofing". They report suspicious payments and offer to "cancel" them.

To do so, they ask you to approve notifications in the app, read out a code received by text message or add a "safe account". In reality, each approval authorises a payment or a transfer to the fraudster.

Remember the difference between a real adviser and a bank impersonation scam. A real adviser never asks you to approve one operation in order to cancel another. They never ask for your PIN or for a code received by text.

What the law says about refunds

The French Monetary and Financial Code (Code monétaire et financier) protects customers who suffer an operation they did not authorise. Three articles matter.

Article L. 133-18 requires the bank to refund an unauthorised operation immediately, and at the latest by the end of the first working day after it is reported. It can only avoid this if it suspects fraud on your part and tells the Banque de France in writing. If it is late, the sums owed carry interest at the legal rate plus five points, then plus ten after seven days and plus fifteen after thirty days.

Article L. 133-19 sets out the exceptions. The customer bears the whole loss if they acted fraudulently or failed, intentionally or through gross negligence, to protect their security codes. Conversely, they bear nothing if the bank did not require strong customer authentication.

Article L. 133-23 puts the burden of proof on the bank. The use of your codes, as recorded by the bank, is not enough on its own to show that you authorised the operation or were grossly negligent. The bank has to provide evidence.

You must report the operation without delay, and at the latest within thirteen months of the debit (Article L. 133-24). After that, the claim is time-barred.

Gross negligence: what the Cour de cassation says

After a bank impersonation scam, many banks refuse to pay on the ground of gross negligence. The courts do not always agree.

On 23 October 2024 (appeal No. 23-16.267), the commercial chamber of the Cour de cassation, France's highest court, upheld a court of appeal that had ruled out gross negligence. The number of the customer's usual adviser had appeared on screen, and the circumstances of the call had won his trust. The bank therefore had to refund him.

Each case is still judged on its facts. The judge looks at how convincing the call was, what the notifications said and how many approvals were given. A notification that clearly reads "approve a payment of €2,000" weighs more than an ambiguous screen.

A transfer you made yourself: a harder case

Everything changes when you typed and sent a transfer yourself, for example to a "safe account" supplied by the fraudster. In rulings handed down in 2025, the Cour de cassation held that an order given by the account holder through the agreed procedures is in principle an authorised operation, even when it results from deception.

The refund rule in Article L. 133-18 then does not apply. A claim remains possible based on the bank's duty of vigilance: it may be liable if the operation showed an obvious anomaly, such as an amount out of line with your habits, a new payee abroad or a series of transfers within minutes.

Situation	Applicable rule	Who must prove
Payment or transfer approved on a misleading notification	Unauthorised operation, refund within one working day (L. 133-18)	The bank, for gross negligence (L. 133-23)
Operation made without strong authentication	No loss for you, unless you acted fraudulently (L. 133-19, V)	The bank
Transfer typed and sent by you to the fraudster's account	In principle authorised, claim based on the duty of vigilance	You, for the obvious anomaly

Since 9 October 2025, banks in the euro area must check that the payee's name matches the IBAN before a SEPA transfer. If the app warned you of a mismatch and you went ahead, the bank will rely on it. If no warning ever appeared, keep a record of that.

Writing to the bank to get a refund

Your letter should be dated, precise and complete:

• the dates, times and amounts of each disputed operation;
• how the bank impersonation scam call unfolded, with the number displayed;
• a statement that you did not authorise these operations within the meaning of Article L. 133-18;
• a request for a refund by the end of the first working day after your report;
• the list of attached documents: statements, screenshots, receipt for your complaint or report.

Service-public stresses that you should alert the bank immediately. A police complaint is still useful, but the law does not make it a condition for a refund.

If the bank refuses, ask for a written, reasoned answer. Then contact its complaints department and, after that, the bank's ombudsman (médiateur), who is free of charge and whose details appear on your statements and account agreement.

Filing a complaint over a bank impersonation scam

A bank impersonation scam is fraud (escroquerie) under Article 313-1 of the French Criminal Code: five years' imprisonment and a €375,000 fine. Penalties rise to ten years and €1,000,000 when committed by an organised gang, which is common for these networks.

You can file a complaint at a police station or gendarmerie, which must record it. For online fraud, the THESEE service, available through service-public, often lets you file the complaint on the internet. You can also write to the public prosecutor (procureur de la République).

The time limit for criminal proceedings is six years from the facts for an offence of this kind (Article 8 of the Code of Criminal Procedure). Info Escroqueries answers free of charge on 0 805 805 817, Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6.30 pm. The 17Cyber portal, open since December 2024, also guides victims of online fraud.

Beware of the second scam

After a bank impersonation scam, fake "recovery services" sometimes contact victims. They promise to get the money back for a fee. That is another scam. Only your bank, the police, the gendarmerie or a lawyer you have chosen yourself can help you recover the funds.

If the loss leaves you unable to meet your bills, an over-indebtedness file can protect your budget while you get back on your feet.

Other money situations

Other money losses follow similar rules:

• someone close to you does not repay what you lent them: see money lent to a friend and not repaid;
• an online relationship led you to send transfers: see romance scam.

When a lawyer becomes useful

You can write to your bank and the ombudsman on your own. A lawyer becomes useful when the bank refuses to refund a bank impersonation scam, alleges gross negligence or treats the transfer as authorised. They examine the notifications, the connection logs and recent case law, then send the bank a formal notice or take the case to the judicial court (tribunal judiciaire).

No lawyer can promise a refund: it all depends on the facts and the evidence. They can tell you whether your case holds up and what defending it will cost. Legal aid (aide juridictionnelle) may cover the fees depending on your income. A banking law lawyer answers within 20 minutes.

The official page on fraud and the steps open to victims also lists the reporting options.