Strange Response From Abbey To Request

[NickR]

After reading about so many situations similar to my own I sent my letter to Abbey's Complaints Dept in Milton Keynes requesting 6 years worth of statements. I sent the letter together with a cheque for £10.00 on 14th April via recorded delivery. I checked on the Royal Mail's online track and trace service which confirms the letter was delivered on 19th April after the bank holiday.

 

It has been 28 days and I'm getting a little impatient so thought I would phone the complaints dept so they could confirm receipt of the letter and that progress was being made.

 

I have just been told that they have no record of the letter on their system and I quote "No way of possibly finding the letter"!!! and if I would like the statements I simply need to speak to the banking dept in Bradford.

 

Is this just a tactic of theirs????

 

My cheque has not yet been cashed.

What should I do???? Do I wait until 40 days are up and see what happens??:?

 

Do I send another request and cheque??? Do I speak to the people in Bradford??:-|

 

Just wondered am I the only person in this situation and can someone please advise.

 

Many thanks

[Movingon]

I would re-send your DPA letter as it was originally sent (i.e. with the original date) with a covering letter telling them that they have 40 days to comply. You should tell them the 40 days began on the original date. I would send it Special Delivery (GUARANTEED delivery, next day). Don't send another cheque, you have proof that they have received the first one; if they choose not to cash it that's their affair.

 

Then wait...

[mahala]

You could be cheeky here and tell them the 40 days began on the original date.

Then wait...

 

that's not cheeky - the 40 days IS already running, as delivery of the letter has been confirmed. If they lost the letter after that, that's no resaon for the 40 days to start anew. That would be a stalling tactic.

 

Call or resend the letter by all means, but stick to the original deadline - not your fault they are incompetent.

[Movingon]

LOL - I edited almost as soon as I posted that; you're TOO QUICK!!

[NickR]

Thanks for the advice.

 

I am sending a copy of the original request to the manager of banking services in Bradford (thanks to members of the forum for the contact details). I have mentioned in the letter that I am also writing to The Information Commissioners Office and The Banking Onbudsman. (I'm not really going to, but they don't need to know)

I've asked for all the statements be sent to me within the next 14 days, and made it clear that I find the situation completely unacceptable.

Oh I've also included a copy of the proof of delivery from the Royal Mail. (Let's see them get out of this one!!):?

Although I have attached another £10.00 cheque I have told them that I do not expect both payments to be processed.

Let's hope this approach works, I'll let you know in 14 days time.

[alanfromderby]

I have mentioned in the letter that I am also writing to The Information Commissioners Office and The Banking Onbudsman. (I'm not really going to, but they don't need to know)

 

 

This will not concern them a great deal - although it is something that is worth saying, and I would actually consider making a complaint in due course. Abbey now have two county course cases in progress under the Data Protection Act, and should they start to get too many the IC may be forced to put some real pressure on them.

 

I would seriously consider adding that if they don't comply, you will issue a court action under section 7, and section 15(2), of the Data Protection Act 1998.

[NickR]

Thanks Alan.

I've added your suggestion to my letter.

[NickR]

Following my 2nd letter as mentioned prviously in the thread...

Well as expected still no statements or confirmation letter from Abbey and my records show the 14 days is up tomorrow 08/06/06. So I have just rung their complaints dept. The young lady was quite helpful and confirmed that my 2nd letter has been recieved and that a request has been made for 2 months statements!!. :o

She also tells me that a letter was sent out to me confirming that the request has been made on 27th May. (Not surprisingly I have never recieved this letter). She has now changed my request to 6 years and the relevant dept have marked the request as urgent. It should take about 2 weeks. At least she has given me a reference number regarding her help

This is becoming very tiresome just trying to get to first base, I'm sure that Scabbey are making thing as difficult as possible and using every delay tactic possible.

Because their 14 day stay of execution is over tomorrow, should I proceed with court action for non comliance of my DPA request or hold out some faith in the helpful woman I've just spoken to????

[Seminole]

Do you have this assurance in writing? If you ask them to write to you within 48 hours confirming the date by which they will have fufilled their DPA obligations. If they refuse to write or if the write and refuse to give you a date or if they write and give you an unacceptable date, then commence a DPA claim when your deadline expires.

 

Never accept any verbal promise or vague written promise from Abbey. Their behavior over DPA compliance is scandalous and, in my view and I know of at least one of the other mods, unfit to hold a consumer credit licence.

[marion]

I am aslo going to be going down the same path as your self, if l were you never trust what any individual on the phne tells you, if they have missed the date, take your next action.

 

good luck;)

[Guest louis wu]

I am sure I have read that transcripts from telephone conversations can be requested, but can't find the post. Am I losing my marbles or can it be done, if the answer is yes then perhaps we should all do it after every phone call.

 

If the Abbey want to stall us at every opportunity, then perhaps we should be creating some work for them to actually do!!

[Beaker_smiles]

I have said this in another post but ............

 

I have worked for a call centre, and when they say your call MIGHT be recorded for information or training purposes, your call IS being recorded. Most of these systems store the sound file on hard disk, so I would have thought they would be covered by the DPA ....... but don't quote me on that.

[noobrider]

I work in a call centre where every single call is recorded and held on file for anyone to access for 3 months. These are then saved on disc and stored for 12 months before being archived. they are then held on record for 2 years before being destroyed.

 

Archived files can take a considerable amount of time to recover and will incurr costs to retrieve. Unarchived data ie anything within the last 12 months is free to access but a minimum process charge may be levied to retieve the data. This data also is subject to DPA.

[barracad]

I am sure I have read that transcripts from telephone conversations can be requested, but can't find the post. Am I losing my marbles or can it be done, if the answer is yes then perhaps we should all do it after every phone call.

 

The best thing to do is to record the phonecalls yourself. I think it is important to record all conversations you have with all companies as a matter of routine - you never know when you may need to refer to them.

 

I have worked for a call centre, and when they say your call MIGHT be recorded for information or training purposes, your call IS being recorded.

 

Not true. Just because your call centre does it that way, doesn't mean that all companies operate the same way. Some call centres just record calls on an ad-hoc basis for training and development purposes only. They may just record a few calls on to tape and then tape over them a month later.

[Guest louis wu]

Unfortunately, me and technology do not get along. So I will ask the, probably, really dumb question of, "how do you record your phone calls"?

 

Do you need extra equipment, or will a dictaphone next to the earpiece work (yes I really have no idea)?

 

Then, do you need to tell the person you are talking to that the conversation is being recorded.

 

I can see the advantage of recording your phone calls, but is it viable for everyone?

 

Thanks

[barracad]

It's very simple to record your calls. Holding a dictaphone probably wouldn't work as you'd have to hold it right next to the earpiece - then you wouldn't be able to heard the call!!

 

You can get a lead for a few quid from an electronics store such as Maplins which plugs into your phone then plug the other end in to your dictaphone/tape recorded/MP3 recorder etc.

 

You do not need to inform the other party you are recording the call as long as the recording is for your own personal use.

[Guest louis wu]

Thanks BARRACAD, even though I suddenly feel as old as my grandad. Damn this new fangled technology lol

[Beaker_smiles]

Not true. Just because your call centre does it that way, doesn't mean that all companies operate the same way.

 

Agreed, it was a generalisation. However when you are dealing with the large companies such as the banks and mobile phone companies, your conversations are being recorded. Either that or the people I talk to at all of the above all have very good memories. Utility companies, councils, they all have a unique insight into my life ................................ or they are recording my conversations.

 

Now I'm just starting to sound paranoid ................. although the milkman always knows how many pints to leave. ROFL

[noobrider]

Most large companies have a system call " ONAir" which is linked to both the PC and the telephone system of the operator. It records both the telephone call and the screens accessed by the operator. However due to the storage reuired for both sceen shots and telphony it will depend on the type of storage contract the company has as to what percentage of screen shots are recorded. from my experience the screen shots are genreally around the 15% mark however all calls are stored whether screen shots are available or not. Phone calls that ar recorded are subject to the DPA and therefore can be requested in addition to any other DPA requests. This will of course be a considerable undertakiing for the company as the sytems cannot record the exact details of the call unless there is another form of call logging system in operation, this also brings into afeect any written records of call logging that is used to idetntify the call.

 

it may be very interesting to request these records as part of your DPA request as any written comments such as "" this cust isan arsehole" could add fuel to any claims

[Guest]

I've always taken the opportunity to record my calls to these places. It's got to the point now where I have a small DVD collection with them on.

 

It also helps that I have access to a large radio studio, which obviously has the ability to put calls out to any media possible.

 

This is good, as the quality of the calls are superb.

 

I've has to use 1 or 2 of the recordings in proving what a company has said in the past, simply by replaying it down the line to the manager or supervisor...

 

Priceless moment, I can tell you !

It's about time we started taking greater control, after all, we are THEIR customers !

 

Adam

[NickR]

I returned from holiday with expectations only to find 12 months worth of statements together with the usual "Im affraid the information is held on microfiche and will take some time".

Also I received a letter from the debt chasing department demanding that I pay my outstanding £2,000 overdraft in full as the next step is legal action.:o

What do I do next????

They have given me no indication of when I will receive the remaining 5 years statements other than to tell me the £10.00 I sent them will be used for this purpose.

How can they take me to court over an overdraft that is mostly made up of charges that I am disputing and they are not enabling me to resolve??

Has anyone ever received 6 years worth of statements from The Abbey???

I just want to find out how much I can claim for and can't even get the information that I'm entitled to.

Still I'm not giving up yet!!!

[Jane Austen]

You need to ensure that they haven't changed your request from a subject acces under DPA regs to an ordinary request for copy statements. If they have done this (and recent letters from Abbey suggest this is their latest ploy), then you need to write and confirm to them that it was a subject access request. This ensures they have a 40 day limit. If they are treating it merely as a request for copy statements there is no time limit and you''ll probably never get them.

 

Some people have received 6 years of statements but they seem to be few and far between.

[Movingon]

Be prepared (and make it clear you are prepared) to take them to court to get this information as a SAR. They CANNOT continue to mess people about in this way.

[NickR]

Thanks for the advice. Is there a letter template that I should use regarding my subject access request not being changed to a request for copy statements and who should I send it to.

Regarding the debt collectors, is there a standard letter I can send them explaining that they are not allowed to chase a debt that is partly made up of disputed charges.

Also what's my next step as they have not sent statements within 40 days of my original letter.

Sorry for all the questions, but I'm keen to follow advice based on experience from the site rather than branch off on my own.

[Movingon]

There're templates for DPA non-compliance in the template library; I would use one of those to request the missing information. Add a bit if you like (but you don't need to now that 40 days has elapsed) that despite their contention that this was a "request for copy statements" it was in fact a statutory request for data under the Data Protection Act - as clearly stated in your first letter - which is what your £10 was intended to cover.