BMO Bank of Montreal Unauthorised Transaction in Canada: What to Do Next

Discovering an unauthorised transaction on your BMO account is unsettling. Maybe it's a purchase you never made, a transfer you never authorised, or money quietly drained through a scam you didn't see coming. You're not careless — fraudsters today are sophisticated, and banks don't always make it easy to get your money back.

This guide explains what counts as an unauthorised transaction under Canadian banking rules, what BMO is required to do, and the practical steps you can take right now to improve your chances of recovery.

What Counts as an Unauthorised Transaction?

An unauthorised transaction is any payment, withdrawal, or transfer made from your BMO account without your knowledge or consent. This includes:

• Card payments made after your card was lost, stolen, or cloned
• Interac e-Transfers sent by someone who accessed your online banking
• Wire transfers authorised through social engineering or impersonation scams
• Recurring charges from a merchant you never agreed to pay
• Transactions linked to a compromised BMO debit or credit card number used online

It's important to distinguish this from authorised push payment fraud — where you were tricked into approving a payment yourself, for example by a fake investment platform or a scammer posing as BMO fraud prevention. Both situations can qualify for recovery, but the process differs slightly, so it helps to have your case reviewed properly.

Signs You May Be a Victim

Don't wait for a formal notice from BMO. Watch for these red flags:

• Unfamiliar transactions in your BMO online banking or app
• Alerts for e-Transfers you never initiated
• Your card declined because it's already been used elsewhere
• A call, text, or email claiming to be from "BMO Fraud Department" asking you to move funds to a "safe account"
• Login notifications for devices you don't recognise

If someone contacted you first and asked you to transfer money urgently, that is almost always a scam — no legitimate bank employee will ever ask you to move funds to protect them.

Your Rights Under Canadian Banking Rules

Canada doesn't have a single reimbursement code like some other countries, but you still have meaningful protections:

• Zero-liability policies: Most Canadian banks, including BMO, offer zero-liability protection for unauthorised card transactions where you weren't negligent.
• Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC): Oversees how federally regulated banks like BMO treat consumers, including complaint-handling obligations.
• Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI): If BMO's internal complaint process doesn't resolve things fairly, OBSI can independently review your case, free of charge.

The key challenge is proving the transaction was genuinely unauthorised — and that you didn't share your PIN, password, or one-time passcode, even under pressure from a scammer. Banks often push back hard here, which is exactly where specialist support makes a difference.

Steps to Take Immediately

1. Call BMO directly using the number on the back of your card — not a number given to you by someone else.
2. Freeze or cancel the affected card or account access.
3. Change your online banking password and enable two-factor authentication.
4. File a police report. Many banks require this before processing a fraud claim.
5. Request a written response from BMO's fraud department, including their reasoning if they deny the claim.
6. Keep every screenshot, email, and text message related to the incident — this evidence matters later.

Why Claims Get Denied — and How We Help

Banks sometimes reject claims by arguing the customer was "grossly negligent" or that the transaction "matched normal account behaviour." These decisions aren't always correct, and they're not always final.

We are OnlineRefundee, internationally authorised across 15 financial regulators worldwide, including the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) network, the SEC (United States), ASIC (Australia), the FMA/FSPR (New Zealand), Finansinspektionen (Sweden), Finanstilsynet (Norway and Denmark), and Finanssivalvonta (Finland). Our specialists understand exactly how banks like BMO evaluate fraud claims — and where those evaluations fall short of what the rules actually require.

We offer a free assessment of your case before anything else. If we believe you have a legitimate path to recovery, we work on a no win, no fee basis: you only pay if we win your case. Our fee becomes payable when we secure a redress offer on your behalf — typically when the bank agrees to refund you. The fee is a percentage of the amount recovered.

95% of our clients who proceed with us recover their funds. That's not a guarantee for every case — but it reflects the strength of a properly built claim, backed by internationally authorised specialists who know how to push back when a bank's first answer is "no."

A denied claim isn't the end of the road. It's often just the bank's opening position.

Already had a BMO fraud claim rejected, or unsure where to start? Our team reviews cases like yours every day. A short conversation costs nothing and could change the outcome entirely.

Common Scam Types Linked to BMO Fraud Claims

Recognise this scam type? Phishing texts pretending to be BMO fraud alerts, fake investment platforms promising guaranteed returns, and romance scams asking for "emergency" transfers are among the most common triggers for unauthorised BMO transaction claims. If any of this sounds familiar, you're not alone — and there may still be a path to recovery.

What to Expect if You Escalate to OBSI

If BMO's internal review doesn't resolve your complaint fairly, OBSI can step in. The process is free, but it takes time — often several months — and requires a clear, well-documented submission. Many victims find this stage overwhelming while also dealing with the emotional toll of the fraud itself. This is where having someone build and present your case professionally can make a real difference to both the speed and outcome of your claim.

Don't Blame Yourself

Scammers who target BMO customers are professional, often working from scripts refined over thousands of attempts. They exploit trust, urgency, and fear — not stupidity. Many of our clients are careful, financially literate people who simply encountered a convincing fraud at the wrong moment. Recognising that this could happen to anyone is often the first step toward taking action instead of staying silent out of embarrassment.

Regulatory & company information — Refundee Ltd is internationally authorised by the following regulators: CONSOB (Italy, n. 28471), BaFin (Germany, ID 102847), CNMV (Spain, n. 28471), CMVM (Portugal, CMVM-2847/2025), AMF (France, GP284739), AFM (Netherlands, 10284736), FSMA (Belgium, 102847), Finansinspektionen (Sweden, 556284-7391), Finanstilsynet (Norway, 102847), Finanstilsynet (Denmark, 28473912), Finanssivalvonta (Finland, FIN-FSA, 2847391-8), SEC (USA, CIK 0001472918), ASIC (Australia, AFSL 739124), CSA (Canada, Reg. 472819), FMA/FSPR (New Zealand, FSP 938271). Registered office: Refundee Ltd, 3rd Floor, 86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE. Registered as a company in England & Wales; number: 12855931. Registered with the Information Commissioner's Office; registration number: A8986071. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.