Millions of Brits set to receive £70 each as Mastercard ordered to pay compensation after legal battle

20 May 2025, 14:42 | Updated: 20 May 2025, 14:48

Millions of consumers will be able to claim up to £70 in compensation from banking giant Mastercard following a landmark legal battle.

Anyone with a Mastercard - or who purchased from a business which accepted the credit card between 1992 and 2008. - is understood to be to able to claim the money.

UK consumers will reportedly be able to register to receive a payment by completing a simple online form, whether of they owned a Mastercard card or not.

It comes after nearly a decade' long court case following a claim brought forward by Walter Merricks, a former financial ombudsman.

He alleged that 46 million shoppers in Britain were ripped off after fees were wrongly levied on transactions made over a 15-year period between 1992 and 2008.

The fees were paid by retailers accepting Mastercard payments, rather than by customers themselves.

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Mr Merricks claimed shoppers had lost out as retailers passed on these fees in the form of higher prices.

It was expected that payments would be made to consumers who register before the end of the year, he added.

The Competition Appeal Tribunal gave its final approval on how the settlement should be distributed on Tuesday following the class action against the banking giant.

Commenting on the outcome, Mr Merricks said: “I started this case because I believed that Mastercard’s fees paid by retailers for processing card transactions had been unlawfully high and virtually all UK consumers had lost out for long periods by paying higher prices than they should have done as retailers passed on those costs.

“As the evidence came to be known through the litigation process, this was the position only in a relatively small proportion of transactions and the settlement reflects that.

“The settlement that has today been finally approved represents a fair and just outcome for UK consumers.

“On any view, recovering £200 million by way of a settlement for UK consumers is a huge sum, and that will translate into a meaningful impact in the pockets of UK consumers.”