A couple fear they have lost their £20,000 house deposit after sending it to the wrong account by mistake.
Mark Leighton was transferring the funds from his Santander account to a joint one he shares with his girlfriend Laura Maddison.
But he accidentally entered the wrong sort code, meaning the money never arrived.
Mr Leighton, of Gateshead, claims the mystery recipient has already spent £9,000 of the deposit.
Mark Leighton (pictured) was transferring the funds from his Santander account to a joint one he shares with his girlfriend Laura Maddison (right). But he accidentally entered the wrong sort code, meaning the money never arrived
He told Chronicle Live: ‘It was a deposit on a house and a large amount of money.
‘I put in the right account number but the wrong sort code.
‘I realised the mistake the next day.
He continued: ‘It’s a bit of a nightmare. Someone has managed to get hold of some of the funds.
‘This person has already spent £9,000.
‘I don’t understand why Santander didn’t put a stop to it earlier. I have logged a complaint.’
‘It is now going through the Best Endeavour process at Santander, which might take 20 days, but it does not fill me with a lot of confidence.
‘I feel as if I am in limbo.’
The couple received a letter from the bank to say they are investigating but they had been ‘so far unable to recover the funds from the other bank’.
The customer complaints worker added: ‘You have confirmed that the wrong sort code was entered but you were advised it would take up to 20 working days to attempt to recover the funds.
‘The 20 working days has now lapsed and you still don’t have your funds returned to yourself.
The couple received a letter (pictured) from the bank to say they are investigating but they had been ‘so far unable to recover the funds from the other bank’
‘I am sorry for the stress and pressure this is putting yourself and family under.’
A spokesman for Santander said that now the couple’s complaint has been officially lodged, the money will be ‘protected’ by the recipient’s bank.
They will ask the incorrect recipient’s permission to retrieve the money and give it back to Mr Leighton.
But the person could refuse and if they manage to provide evidence they’re ‘entitled’ to the money, it could be theirs for good.
A Santander spokesman told the newspaper: ‘Whilst we cannot comment on the specifics of the case, once a claim has been raised regarding a payment made in error, the funds will be protected by the recipient bank (placed in withholdings).
‘The recipient bank will then contact their account holder requesting their consent to debit their account within two business days of the receipt of the query.
‘If the account holder consents, the funds will be returned to the sender, however, if consent is not provided or they can provide evidence that they are entitled to the funds, the sending bank will be notified that the claim has been rejected.
‘Customers will be advised of the outcome of their claim within 20 working days.’
A spokesman for Santander said that now the couple’s complaint has been officially lodged, the money will be ‘protected’ by the recipient’s bank. They will ask the incorrect recipient’s permission to retrieve the money and give it back to Mr Leighton (pictured with girlfriend). But the person could refuse and if they manage to provide evidence they’re ‘entitled’ to the money, it could be theirs for good