Nationwide Building Society stepped in to make clear their rules on card payments which can take up to seven days to process. This came after a customer questioned why funds took so long to revert after a failed Deliveroo order.
They queried: “Why does it take so many days to get money back when a Deliveroo payment fails on an order?” They said there had been several issues with this over the Christmas period where and they had “up to £30 now hanging there waiting to return to my account. What if I needed it?”
The building society responded explaining: “When a card payment is put through, the merchant has up to seven days to take the payment which is why this can remain pending for the stated timeframe”. They further mentioned that the issue could be “resolved quicker” should the merchant opt to cancel the transaction at their end earlier.
However, the customer said this was “not acceptable in 2025”, saying the situation could have been a lot worse. They said: “Plenty of people will be in dire straits due to this. It has to stop”.
The person asked for a specific timeframe for the return of the funds, emphasising: “Can you give me any indication as to when it will return? This should not be a difficult question in a world ruled by technology.” The customer followed up the issue two days later as their funds had apparently still not yet been returned. Nationwide reiterated the standard timeframe for such transactions, assuring that it could take “up to seven days from the date of payment” unless the merchant cancels the transaction ahead of this period.
The individual further expressed their frustration: “I need the money. This is an issue which should be raised in Parliament. Must impact a lot of people.” Nationwide clarified that if funds couldn’t be returned sooner, they would come back “automatically around midnight on the seventh day”.
They also advised the customer could find out the exact date for the return of their funds by contacting them through the banking app, Internet Bank, or visiting the Nationwide website. The customer found it “pretty ridiculous” to have to wait seven days, especially when banks and building societies expect payments to be processed “straight away”.
Nationwide explained that it’s “normal” for payments to be pending for up to seven days while the company processes the claim. They added: “A payment will only show as pending if it was approved our end, so it does sound like there will have been an issue with the company if they’re unable to claim this. We can check your account specifically using our online chat options.”