Dubai court orders woman to return Dhs100,000 mistakenly transferred to her account to a man

An Asian national mistakenly deposited Dhs100,000 into a woman's account via an ATM after incorrectly entering the beneficiary's account number, but she did not return the amount despite acknowledging the incident and contacting the bank to return it.

Consequently, the Dubai Civil Court ordered her to return the amount, along with a legal interest of 5% per annum from the date of the judicial claim until full payment.

The details of the case date back to an earlier time when an Asian national filed a lawsuit before the Civil Court in Dubai, demanding that a woman be ordered to return Dhs100,000, explaining that in January 2025, he deposited the amount via an ATM but made a mistake in entering the beneficiary's account number, which led to the transfer of the amount to the appellee's account.

The plaintiff indicated that he contacted the account holder, who acknowledged the incident and stated that she was outside the UAE and that her account was blocked. She also told him that she later sent a letter to the bank requesting the return of the amount to its owner, but it was not returned, which prompted him to resort to the court.

The court appointed an expert to examine the incident, and his report concluded that the plaintiff deposited Dhs100,000 into the appellee's account by mistake.

The court added that it was also found that in February 2025, the appellee issued an authorization to the bank requesting the transfer of the amount to the plaintiff, and then in July 2025, she submitted a telegraphic transfer request to return the amount, but the amount was not actually returned.

The court affirmed that the appellee was still liable for the disputed amount, as the documents lacked any proof of payment, and she did not attend the sessions to present her defence and deny the plaintiff's right, noting that whoever takes possession of another's money is legally obligated to return it.

The court ordered the appellee to return the plaintiff Dhs100,000, with legal interest of 5% per annum from the date of the judicial claim until full payment, in addition to the lawsuit fees, expenses, and attorney fees.