Incompetent rigmarole

hiya thea
I am still waiting for that charge to go on and will be sending a huge letter of complaint! Maybe I'll get some compensation, in the reverse of the charge... and pigs might fly.
I remember the simple days of passbooks, life was simpler then.
So your grandmother's dog's name is One?

Listen seriously Alice as for once this is a serious answer. You will get compensation if you follow this to the letter.

Telephone the bank. Immediately ask the operative for their full name and note it. Then tell them the date and time, tell them you are aware that for your protection your call is being recorded and ask to be transferred to a supervisor. Do not give a reason, simply state you wish to be transferred as is your right. She will immediately advise the supervisor that trouble is on the line but you must renain calm and polite at all times as you are being recorded.

When transferred to supervisor, same routine, take down full name, state date and time and again that you know the call is being taped. Do not discuss anything more. All you want is the name and direct contact address of the managing director. They will have been told not to give it out but you state it is your legal right to have this information and don't be fobbed off. Do not state why you want it just politely ask for the information to be supplied.
You then detail your complaint in writing to the managing director having kept several copied. In your letter first state that you contacted the bank on such and such date and you adivsed you knew you were being recorded. Then state your claim and at least 3 times the figure of compensation you require.
Said managing director will be livid that his incompetent staff have not dealt with your complaint and he is now having to waste his time. If one of his staff replies to you fobbing you off take a copy and return to managing director with another copy of the original plus the added statement that you may now need to look for addtional compensation as your complaint has not been dealt with promptly.
If this happens a second time simply state a copy of all correspondence is about to appear in the local press, even though it isnt. At this point they will offer some compensation and do not settle for less than the amount you originally exaggerated. Do not waste your time complaining to staff. Managing directors hate their office to be bothered with piddling little complaints which this is in his eyes and negative publicitiy is their worst nightmare. This is how the system works Alice. True completely. Ask if you want to clarify anything my dear but you are totally justified to stand up to them and receive compensation.

The above does not refer to the reversal of a charge Alice, it refers to proper compensation for your time and stress involved. You must advise in your first letter that you will be charging the same as the bank letter rate if subsequent letters are needed.

WOW! That's real serious procedure and I'll definately take heed of your advice thea, thank you very much! I'm always quite tentative when approaching these situations, because I've had so many fights they've almost knocked the stuffing out of me..... almost

Stand up for yourself Alice by being stand offish, don't let them talk you into giving them your complaint, you'll get the eternal run around and nothing.

I will thea I guess this week will be when the ball starts rolling. My PIN number should come and that penalty charge might...and probably will be added so I will make the phone call as soon as that happens. I will let you know how things progress either here or in a pm.

Good luck Alice

I wasted hours yesterday by the way trying to sort out the Greek life style avatar. The potential rich man of your dreams has not as yet made it across as an avatar but can be seen on my profile page for now. Enjoy. Now don't forget, large boat, detached house with large garden and hens, pocket stuffed with cash

Forgot to add, house directly on sea front.

Hi Alice, thanks for the best response my dear.

you're welcome thea, I'll let you know what happens.

Guess what I got in the post yesterday???!!! yep! a bank card Unbelieveable huh? It was the one that they said was reported lost but neither the letter or the envelope had a date on it, yet it was addressed to my present address and not the old address (which is why they said it had been reported as lost) This whole thing stinks to high heaven. I called the bank and asked for the managers name... it's a woman (no comments from smartypants men please lol) I was asked by the clerk if she could possibly help, but instead of taking your advice I told her the entire story and pointed out that if the clerk had known her job in the first place none of this would've happened. I'm still waiting for that penalty charge to be added! I'm leaving that £40 in the bank, they're probably waiting for me to use it so they can slap a 2nd charge on me!

All I can say Alice my dear is don't hold your breath for your charge back and don't even think about compensation. Explaining to the desk clerk your problem is not the way to be taken seriously by the people who write the 'shut up' cheques.

Sorry.

hiya Shirley
It wouldn't surprise me if it was deloberate! Call me paranoid but I put up comment on my msn messenger saying "I hate banks" lol, because of my trouble with them recently... is big brother watching me?

You ever actually tried that one jb? the handcuff bit.

countless times. hold - no. once, but on a, oh better pm this one actually.

@ handcuffs, Emily Pankhurst the 2nd
Yes I withdrew some money on the first visit Judith, but with the back ache I've had lately I could hardly walk. Using the last of my money on fares(almost) was infuriating too!

hiya Diana hugs* xxx
I'm just a statistic 1 in 10 ... I feel a UB40 song coming on If there's one thing I've learned in my ageing years it's that people behind desks are human, and some of them have problems like ours too, so I'm polite and calm (although raging inside at the incompetence and situation)
I understand your worry hon and mine pale in comparison. hugs* I give thanks for small mercies and a roof over my head.

I try and keep calm just like you Alice as yes they are just doing their jobs - with all the perks too

All will be well eventually - for both of us

hiya dawn hugs*
I remember this, and it's inexcusable. They don't care how much expense we have to go through to correct their mistakes and more often than not there is no apology or compensation.
Thanx for the hugs and the sarnie... what's on it? (I did exaggerate a bit I had eggs in the fridge and noodles in the cupboard)

I had a lovely roast beef last night, lots of slices left over for samiches...

have you got mustard to go on it please?

Stoneground or yellow?

Yellow please dawn is it French or English?

hiya Tony
It may be funny, but definately true! For those on the bottom of the banking customer ladder they've removed the rungs. I don't have the right account for a debit card and I can't get a debit card unless I change my account which requires more money going in. When I find work I can apply, does that mean if I become unemployed again they withdraw the debit card facility? lol
I'm not starving just feeling sorry for myself and exaggerating my predicament

hiya derek
When I brought up the point about already having sent a letter with my change of address I was told that it wouldn't have mattered if they'd received it, I would still have had to complete a form! That was news to me.
Unfortunately my previous postal address is no longer active because the building is being demolished. Maybe I should've had all mail forwarded via the sorting office for a certain period of time... sigh* cest la vie.

Note to self: get chummy with bank manager and find out where she lives!

An apology! You should've got it in writing and framed it Pikey! I expect £5 seemed a lot back then as was of compensation for the sum involved in the mistake, but they better not offer me that! lol
Another old saying springs to mind, 'it's not what you know, it's who you know' I wonder where my branch manager lives?

hiya Cat
Great motto! It could apply to all banks too. Multiple cards issued, but only one received.. with no PIN as yet. Several calls yes, but only 1 visit to the bank and yes, same bank as last problem, which is stil pending. There is another one which is nearer too, I really ought to go in there one day when it's quiet and see about opening an account, just as long as I don't get the same problem as pikey with a mix up of first name initial and surname... my sister has an account at that bank and branch lol. Thanx Cat

Between the fees and the hassle...I'm surprised more people aren't switching back to the coffee-can method of saving. The loss of any interest for many people is less than the savings on fees. The argument is that money in the bank is insured. Pretty darn secure if you can't even assess it yourself.

hahaha very true Cat. personally I'd go for the stuffed mattess method It should never have been made compulsory to put our money into the banks.. just so they can keep tabs on who's got what No wonder there are those with off shore banking accounts

I gave up on the stuffed mattress method. Too many people thought I had a disease with all those coin imprints...

do you think you're Miss Moneypenny? Where's Mr.Bond?

He stepped out for a bit. He was afraid the coin embossing would ruin his good looks. Hopefully he went to the bank to withdraw some nice soft paper money to stuff in his side of the mattress with. Do you think he'd notice if I keep rotating the mattress when he's not looking. We do want to end up with an evenly-stuffed mattress y'know.

lol@ coin embossing, no I don't think he'd notice you turning the mattress
I withdrew some money from another branch yesterday and because I handed it to him to swipe instead of using the chip and pin method I was asked "don't you know your PIN number" ... very embarrassing It's all being added to the complaint letter. I'll need to buy ink for the printer to print out the multiple pages LOL

It's all becoming clearer now. Your bank (like banks around the world) wants to keep your money and they don't want to hear any complaints about it. They want to accomplish that by not letting you buy printer ink. It's getting closer to the end of the year, and they are starting to think about those bonuses for the chief mucky-mucks at the top of the ladder....

chief mucky mucks lol... that's a new one to me. Yes they are doing wellat keeping my money from me... for all I get! I will be withdrawing every penny this coming Friday if I have to go back in there insteading of going into my local post office or to a cash line.

hiya Leenie
That's what's so upsetting about it because it coul've been an easy transaction if that first clerk had known her job. I wouldn't have been too happy if they'd said there would be a delay before the card was issued until the C.O.A went through, but it would certainly have been quicker than all this rigmarole. I've not been blamed for anything yet and had better not be! lol. Such a lovely, friendly youg woman too, pity her efficiency didn't match her friendliness.