Credit Card Dishonor and Damages: The Rule from Aznar v. Citibank
A Philippine Supreme Court ruling on whether credit card dishonor alone can make a bank liable for damages, and what a cardholder must prove.
A credit card declined abroad can be humiliating — but is the issuing bank automatically liable for that embarrassment? In Aznar v. Citibank, N.A. (Philippines) (G.R. No. 164273, March 28, 2007, 548 Phil. 218), the Supreme Court ruled that dishonor of a credit card, without proof that the bank breached its obligation, will not support an award of damages.
The Case in Brief
Emmanuel Aznar was a businessman in Cebu holding a Citibank Preferred Mastercard with a P150,000.00 credit limit. Before an Asian trip with his wife and grandchildren, he deposited P485,000.00 with the bank
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