 Abbey rips off disabled pensioners
The following has been sent to Abbey's Complaints people six times but without even an acknowledgement. The accounts are now closed and I sincerely hope that Abbey, along with other banks are monitoring this site.
Dear Sir / Madam
I have just lost my husband after 61 years of happy and rewarding married life and I asked my son who came home from abroad for his father's funeral, to help me with some of the administrative tasks that needed to be done. He noticed that we had two joint accounts with Abbey, one paying 0.5 per cent and the other I believe 1.5 per cent interest. He was appalled that we were getting such a low rate of return and said it was akin to robbing
pensioners in the street, albeit without the violence. At my request he telephoned one of your advisers to ask why when Abbey employ financial advisers, we were not advised to close the investor account and transfer the money to an account paying more interest. Your adviser's response was that I would have to go into my branch to do this. My son says the adviser was embarrassed but not sympathetic.
As I am 84 and have severe arthritis, such journeys are very difficult and require the assistance of other people on whom I would prefer not to impose. And I am no longer able to cope easily with the pain I suffer from having to stand queuing, which invariably is the case when I visit the branch. Nevertheless on my second attempt, (the first was foiled by a power cut at the branch), I did manage to close one account but was instructed that to close the other account I would need to make a further journey to the branch, ‘to have my book made up’ and for the matter to be referred to Head Office. As you regularly send me computer printed statements of this account, why do you insist on making my life even more uncomfortable. If you are able to make an electronic transfer of the money in this account, please let me know and I'll let you know the details of the account to which it should be transferred.
My son tells me that once this matter is settled to my satisfaction he will be posting the details on the Consumer Action Group web site, whatever that is. He says that while most people can live with banking with banks that charge customers excessive amounts for running up overdrafts, they'll look quite differently on a bank that treats its disabled pensioner customers with such disregard. | 
