A MAJOR outage at Barclays has left hundreds of Barclays customers unable to access their accounts on payday. Customers have reported difficulties logging into their mobile banking app and Internet banking services. Those needing to pay their bills or check that their salary had been paid into their bank account have been unable to do so as of 9.45am. According to DownDetector, over 1,139 users have encountered issues with the bank's online services.

Customers have said that they can't access their accounts or send payments. More than 50% of the reported problems related to difficulties with mobile banking, while 42% of users experienced trouble accessing Internet banking. Frustrated Barclays customers have taken to social media to express their concerns. One customer said on X (formerly Twitter): "Barclays is down again. I think it’s time to switch.".

Another said: "I'm trying to pay my tax and your online banking keeps crashing. "You did anticipate it being a busy day, right?". Responding to frustrated customers on social media, Barclays's UK Help team said: "We're aware of some issues which are being investigated as urgent.". Banks don't have to pay out compensation to customers if there has been a drop in service, unlike how telecoms companies have to.

But if you have incurred costs as a result of service issues, it's likely you could get your money back. For example, if a bill payment didn't go through as a result of an outage and you’ve been charged a fee for missing it, you should be able to claim that money back. If your credit rating has been affected by a service outage, because you got a late payment fee after being unable to make a transaction, for example, you should also keep a record of this.

If you spoke to anyone to try and resolve the problem, make a note of their name and when you spoke to them, as well as roughly what you discussed and what they advised you to do. You can find out more details about how to complain on the bank's website. It is worth gathering evidence of your problems so you can make a formal complaint to the bank directly. If you're unhappy with how the bank dealt with your problem, you can contact the free Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

It is an independent body that will consider the evidence you present and make a fair decision about the action a bank should take. The FOS can usually get involved 15 days after you've raised concerns with the bank. In the case of an IT system outage at a bank, the FOS says any compensation depends on your circumstances and whether you lost out as a result. If it thinks you did, it has the power to tell the bank to reimburse any fees, charges, or fines you were hit with, for example, if you were unable to make a payment on a credit card bill or to your mortgage provider.