Abbey/Santander : Santander put block on debit card

[NailPost]

Long story cut short.

A fraudulent transaction was spotted by Santander and a block put on the accout. Santander didn't tell me until I had my card refused twice - four days after the fraudulent transaction. Four days! If that had been a missed direct debit or whatever I would have received a nasty letter and a charge! Anyway checked my balance and all appeared well. Card still refused so Ialled them, answered all their security questions, and went through the recent payments and they decided to issue a new card. Ten days later card arrives. It has to be unlocked so I do this and then try to use it. Refused. temporary block on it and because I called them from a phone number they don't recognise - they don't have a number for me - they refused to lift the block. Two weeks without access to my money is unaceptable and in that time I've had to make other (and expensive) arrangements to meet day to day expenses and pay bills. Complaint now in order. Any comments on how best to tackle them?

[PriorityOne]

What do they need from you in order to lift the block then?

[NailPost]

Me to go into a branch with photo id. No apology for the inconvenience which will entail time off work

[PriorityOne]

Ok... I would split this into two.

 

First thing is to get access to your money. So take your ID, proof of address and so on if that's what they're asking for because this cannot continue!

 

Secondly, draft up a formal complaint to HO; with a full breakdown of events and the cost/inconvenence to yourself by being denied access to your own money. Send by rec. delivery.

[NailPost]

Interesting 40 minutes or so in my local SantAbbey branch. Took my card and sufficnet I/d to prove who I was and told the girl at the counter what I needed to do. It had never happened before so she had no idea what to do. She called another counter clerk and she told her to call on someone else. This turned out to be someone with about as old as a school leaver and proceeded to assure me that everything was being done to sort out the problem. At that stage absolutely nothing was being done. She suggested I call customer services!

 

At that point a man appeared who seemed to know what he was doing. he took me into a small office away from the counter and the sixth form gaggle and called up the appropriate screen on his pc and got the number of security. After some discussion - it appeared he too had to answer their banal security questions despite announcing himself as branch boss and tapping in a password - the card was unblocked. It would, he added, best to leave it five minutes.

 

I had other business to attend to with him while I was there. That took the best part of 20 minutes. I went up to the cashpoint and entered my card and details and the card was promptly rejected. Back to square one! He got the hump as well and called up someone who put him through to someone else (each time answering security questions!) until he finally burst out "this is ridiculous" What I'd been saying all along. Can I quote you I asked?

 

Finally he got the card unblocked and I was able to withdraw cash - which I then promptly paid back in!

 

Without any prompting I was given details of how to file a complaint and to whom it should be sent. Full marks to the staff in the branch but nul point to the faceless cretins who sit in front of pc screens all day and act like zombies everytime the computer says no. In the old days every bank was run by branch staff and it seems we should go back to this system. Dealing face to face with someone is a damn sight easier than interfacing with a machine.

[PriorityOne]

OMG... I so agree with you!! no-one knows what they're doing these days and in some ways I think the over-reliance on ICT technology has taken away people's ability to think or, in the case of some younger staff, not allowed it to develop at all!!

 

I'm glad you got it sorted.... now time for Phase 2; your complaint by rec. delivery. Itemise everything that's happened and stress any cost/inconvenience you've experienced as a result... headed COMPLAINT. Go straight to HO and if you get some numpty response back, suggest that they pass your letter on to someone who has the authority to deal with your complaint properly.

 

Cretins...

[NailPost]

Complaint already made and on way. When this matter flared up two weeks ago i contacted customer services by e-mail and asked for a considered response. Almost by return I got a reply suggesting I give customer services a call. I rep;ied by stating I wanted a proper, written response. The reply was almost as quick stating they were disappointed I was unhappy with the resolution of the complaint. What complaint? I hadn't made one at that stage! Perhaps I should ask Santander why I should stay with them. Theirresponse will probably be we're no worse than the others.

[PriorityOne]

I'm sure I was born into the wrong generation. Companies don't seem to care about people anymore; just money and profit. Sad times...