POS Payment Failed but Money Deducted in Pakistan: Wait 24 Hours, Then Complain

Give it 24 hours. If it has not come back, complain. Here is who to complain to.

Bank complaint lines

Taken from each bank's own site on 24 August 2026. Meezan Bank's and Bank Alfalah's numbers were unchanged in November 2026.

Two of those publish their own deadlines, which is useful to quote back. Meezan commits to responding within 7 to 15 business days. Bank Alfalah commits to acknowledging within 48 hours with a final response in 5 working days.

For any other bank, find the number on your own bank's site rather than in a search result, for the reason set out in our piece on fake helpline numbers.

The mistake that doubles the problem

The shopkeeper will offer to swipe again. This is the moment that decides whether you have one problem or two.

A declined machine frequently means the shop was not paid while your account was debited. The transaction reached your bank and failed on the way back. Running the card again can take the amount a second time, and now you are chasing two payments instead of one.

So:

1. Do not let them swipe again until you have checked your own balance, not their machine.
2. Pay another way if you must pay now. Cash, a different card, or a wallet transfer.
3. Keep the declined slip and photograph the machine screen if there is an error on it.
4. Keep both slips if a second attempt did happen, because you will need to show two charges.

One thing worth being clear about: a shop receipt is not proof your bank was paid, and the absence of one is not proof it was not. Your own bank statement is the evidence that matters.

Why 24 hours, and why it is not a rule

Card payments generally settle in batches rather than instantly. A failed authorisation usually clears out of your account as the batch reconciles, which is why waiting a day so often solves this without anybody doing anything.

But be clear about what that is. It is how the system normally behaves, not a guarantee anybody has given you.

So 24 hours is our practical advice about when to stop waiting, not a deadline you can hold a bank to.

The deadlines you can hold a bank to start when you complain, and they are set by SBP rather than by the bank. Acknowledgement within 48 hours, disposal within 15 days, and 30 days where fraud is involved. Those are set out with their source in our guide to money deducted when a payment fails.

Which is the practical reason not to wait a week hoping: waiting does not start any clock. Complaining does.

If your bank does not fix it

There are two escalation routes above your bank: the State Bank's Sunwai system and the Banking Mohtasib.

SBP runs a complaint system called Sunwai, at sunwai.sbp.org.pk, and as an app, "Sunwai Customer Complaint", published on the store by the State Bank of Pakistan.

The Banking Mohtasib is the independent statutory route. Its website prints these contacts:

• Phone: 021-99217334, fax 021-99217375
• Email: info@bankingmohtasib.gov.pk
• Post: 5th Floor, Shaheen Complex, M.R. Kiyani Road, Karachi

The full escalation process, including the wait required before the Mohtasib will take a case, is in our Banking Mohtasib guide.

What to say when you complain

A complaint that contains the right five things moves faster than a long one that does not. Ask the shop for a printed receipt of the failed attempt too; in Punjab, restaurants and marriage halls must issue bills through PRA's system, as explained in PRA EIMS receipt rules.

The date and exact time of the attempted payment.

The exact amount, to the rupee.

The merchant name as it appears on your statement, which is often not the shop's signboard name.

What the machine said, declined, timed out, or no response.

That the amount was debited and not reversed after 24 hours, with your statement line as evidence.

Put it in writing. Email or the bank's own complaint form both leave you holding a reference number. A phone call leaves you holding nothing, and the reference is what the deadlines attach to.

Be careful with contacts found online

Each bank contact above was read on that bank's own website on 24 August 2026.

Be wary of the named complaint managers and direct lines that circulate online. Several appear to come from an SBP list of politically exposed persons focal contacts rather than complaint management, one attributes an abl.com address to Bank Alfalah, and personal contact details go stale quickly. Use the bank's own complaint line or form, which gives you a reference number.

Questions readers are asking

My card was charged but the POS machine declined. Will I get it back?

Usually yes, and often within a day, because the amount was held rather than taken. Nothing guarantees it, so complain if it has not reversed after 24 hours.

Should I let the shop try again?

Not before checking your own balance. If your account was debited while the shop was not paid, a second attempt can take the money twice.

How long does my bank have once I complain?

SBP requires acknowledgement within 48 hours and disposal within 15 days, or 30 days in fraud related cases.

Which number do I call?

HBL 111-111-425, Meezan 021-111-331-331, Bank Alfalah 021-111-225-111. For other banks, take the number from your bank's own website.

Bank Alfalah has a separate address for card problems?

Yes, atmsettlementunit@bankalfalah.com handles ATM and card disputes specifically, which is the right desk for this.

The Banking Mohtasib website will not open.

Use 021-99217334, info@bankingmohtasib.gov.pk, or the Karachi office.

Is there a government portal for this?

Yes. SBP runs Sunwai at sunwai.sbp.org.pk and as the "Sunwai Customer Complaint" app. Open the website in a normal browser.

How we verified this

What we checked and where we read it.

Last checked 8 November 2026. We read Meezan Bank's contact page, Bank Alfalah's contact page and bankingmohtasib.gov.pk in November 2026. The HBL row is from HBL's own site, read in August 2026. The Sunwai app is listed under the State Bank of Pakistan on Apple's Pakistan store.