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Businesswoman Stefanie Marr loses nearly $90k in bank scam

An Australian businesswoman has lashed out at the National Australia Bank which she says offered her an insulting compensation figure when her ultrasound practice was scammed by nearly $90,000.

Stef Marr, whose ultrasound business lost almost 90,000 in a NAB bank scam. Picture: Patrick Woods.
Stef Marr, whose ultrasound business lost almost 90,000 in a NAB bank scam. Picture: Patrick Woods.

A Queensland businesswoman is fuming after her ultrasound practice lost almost $90,000 in a bank scam.

And she’s even angrier at how the scam happened in the first place, the National Australia Bank’s handling of the “nightmare” and “insult” compensation offers of $250 and then $2000.

Stefanie Marr said she had been through hell since the scammers somehow accessed her business account and drained it, spending tens of thousands of dollars at a local pub, on shopping, cabs and online betting.

The drama began in March as she was rushing out the door to drop her kids at school and head to work, and received a phone call from her frantic accountant telling her: “I think we’ve been hacked”.

“It wasn’t a hacking, rather it was an in-person draining of our accounts,” she said.

“I immediately called NAB, with multiple phone calls and hours of delays. It’s been horrendous.”

Ms Marr said she finally established that the fraudsters had somehow managed to activate a new card for the account and used it to set up a new internet banking profile, allowing them to transfer funds.

All up, they stole $87,000 from the business, leaving her “scrambling” to pay her almost 50 staff.

Ms Marr said she had never previously used a card with the account and NAB could not explain how or why it was sent out and then apparently intercepted by the scammers.

She was also furious that NAB cards had internet banking identity numbers printed on them and the fraudsters had been able to change her phone number and email to create a fake profile.

Stef Marr, whose ultrasound business lost almost 90,000 in a NAB bank scam. Picture: Patrick Woods.
Stef Marr, whose ultrasound business lost almost 90,000 in a NAB bank scam. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Ms Marr also questioned why red flags were not raised at the bank when her business account was used by the scammers at a local tavern at 2am.

To rub salt into her wounds, she said she was hung up on when she called NAB to try to sort out the scam after failing the identification process.

In a letter after Ms Marr complained to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, NAB said it had sent out a new card due to a suspicious transaction she reported last December - a call she says she never made.

She also said she never received subsequent letters the bank said it had sent advising it had cancelled her old card because of the suspicious transaction and issued a replacement.

“I want to again sincerely apologise on behalf of NAB that you have been a victim of ID take over,” a customer service staffer wrote.

“NAB have taken this matter extremely seriously, and I know this has had an immense impact on you and will continue to.”

Ms Marr said the $87,000 was refunded in full and police were investigating, but the scam had taken a huge toll, including having eight online betting accounts opened in her name.

She said she had received only one phone call from NAB and had declined offers of compensation because they were “an insult”.

Ms Marr said she was “flabbergasted” that NAB printed customer identity numbers on bank cards which she believed could be easily exploited by scammers.

“Once NAB have given access and allowed these criminals to gain more information, the fraudulent activity and long term implications from a physical and an emotional perspective are endless,” she said.

“NAB has failed to secure my identity and haven’t taken this seriously.”

A NAB spokesman said the bank could not comment on individual cases but “we are in the midst of a scam and fraud epidemic”.

“These criminals are ruthless, have no moral compass, aren’t bound by jurisdictions and do not care about the people they hurt,” he said.

“While there is still more to do, we are committed to taking action, lifting education and raising awareness to scam red flags.

“We always investigate when a scam or fraud is reported to us and our team makes every effort to get money back for our customers when it is stolen.”

Originally published as Businesswoman Stefanie Marr loses nearly $90k in bank scam

Original URL: https://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/news/queensland/seq-businesswoman-stefanie-marr-loses-nearly-90k-in-bank-scam/news-story/ce2b838f180d8e3eb12a9d23c2294c1f