N26 refused to reimburse my €7,870 loss after scammers impersonated its security team

I received a call from people claiming to be N26 Security. They knew my full name, email address, phone number, and the final digits of my N26 card. A small £4.99 transaction had appeared shortly before the call, and the caller immediately referred to it as fraud.

The call lasted around 90 minutes. I was told that my account had been compromised and that a loan had been taken out in my name. While I was still on the call, my card was added to Apple Pay and two Apple Store purchases were made in London. In total, €7,870.56 disappeared.

I reported the transactions immediately while they were pending, blocked the card, filed a police report, and sent N26 call logs, screenshots, and a timeline. N26 refunded the initial £4.99 transaction but rejected the larger loss because an Apple Pay wallet had been activated through authentication in the app.

I am now trying the complaints process, the Ombudsman, BaFin, and considering legal advice. I would like to hear from anyone who has challenged a bank decision where authentication happened while criminals were impersonating the bank. My warning is simple: end unexpected bank-security calls and call back only through an independently verified number.