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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 25, 2014 13:00:10 GMT 2
I think banks deserve a thread all their own.
Ten days ago an email arrived, supposedly from Nat West bank, saying I had to activate my card. They also emailed Mrs Faz. Now Mrs Faz does not have an account at Nat West. I went round the corner to the local branch and they puzzled over this and decided it was a scam and I should delete the email. Today 6 letters have arrived from Nat West, 3 for me, 3 for Mrs Faz. Mine include a new card (which I haven't asked for since my current card is valid until 2017) plus 2 separate letters giving my PIN.
Mrs Faz who does not (remember?) have an account with Nat West has also received a card and separate letters giving her PIN. As an extra insult her name is spelled incorrectly on the card.
I went round the corner to tell the bank to sort out their mess - and found our branch doesn't open on Saturday (just when people who work Monday to Friday would need it).
Banks are in a mess. the solution is obvious. Bankers should be given hugely bigger bonuses and then they would do their job properly.
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Post by OnlyMark on Oct 25, 2014 15:09:44 GMT 2
Baz, as weird as it sounds, has someone been applying in your names?
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Post by Netsuke on Oct 25, 2014 16:52:58 GMT 2
Bankers should be given hugely bigger bonuses and then they would do their job properly. Don't bankers already get hugely big salaries? Tell you what, I'll do the job for half of what they get. |
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Post by itsasmallworld1 on Oct 25, 2014 18:27:19 GMT 2
As I stated before and still think, banks suck, bankers should be shot, long live Anarchy!
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 25, 2014 18:35:27 GMT 2
Baz, as weird as it sounds, has someone been applying in your names? And using our address? Because the letters were delivered to our house. |
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 25, 2014 18:36:04 GMT 2
Bankers should be given hugely bigger bonuses and then they would do their job properly. Don't bankers already get hugely big salaries? Tell you what, I'll do the job for half of what they get. Er, it was meant to be ironic. |
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Post by itsasmallworld1 on Oct 25, 2014 18:50:30 GMT 2
I had a lovely experience in a bank, here three days ago. Went to deposit a big sum of money for a certain co I work with and had to wait for an hour and a half aprox if not 2hs to be able to do it, since they had just 2 human beings for this job. I could not do it through the machine, this co. is fed up with fake notes. When I complained to the person who "helped" me... she said something like go to hell to me. I went to the manager, as my dad always taught me to do, always talk to the top person, ... he was much bigger an asshole and recommended me to either open an account in that bank or to complain in their phone line for that. I said I would but used Twitter, no phone. The bank contacted me immediately and said they were contacting the branch to know what happened. I insisted on Twitter and Facebook later about how rude and inefficient they were, Apologies rained all over my direction. Got to return to same branch next Thursday, will report if they let me in or shoot me before I step in  |
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Post by OnlyMark on Oct 25, 2014 19:32:34 GMT 2
Does seem unlikely Baz but I'm always suspicious of things that happen that are out of the ordinary, especially with credit cards/debit cards. Especially when one arrives that I've not ordered, when my card is still valid for a few years, when my wife receives one when she is not an account holder and when even the name is spelled wrongly, when I've used cc's to order things over the internet, book flights, car hire, etc etc.
I'd keep a close eye on my bank statement for a while if it happened to me - especially if there never was a connection between my wife and my bank.
One thing, the spelling mistake..... have you come across the exact same mistake anywhere else? Or would it be an easy mistake to make? Aren't nowadays most names/addresses a direct lift from a computer file such that there is little room for human error? I'd be interested to know where the bank got her name from in the first place and, being me, I wouldn't be satisfied with a generic answer of it being a scam. I'd drill it right down at the bank, demand details and specifics. Demand to see the application form including the signature and stuff. But I've got plenty of time on my hands and a brusque accent.
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 25, 2014 19:51:14 GMT 2
The debit card missed an "e" out of her surname. It all looks correct. For instance, there is the leaflet explaining the debit card. The PIN is not printed on the paper but on a piece of clear film that needs to be scratched to become visible. There is a chip embedded in the card.
As I say, it all looks kosher. I'll see what the bank says.
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Post by OnlyMark on Oct 25, 2014 21:09:42 GMT 2
No doubt it is kosher and from the bank, the main thing I think is why they sent it. I know they will automatically send out a new card(s) before my old ones expire but I've never had one sent for any other reason. Makes me curious, that's all.
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Post by itsasmallworld1 on Oct 25, 2014 22:27:20 GMT 2
They send cards here all the time even when not required from any bank whether you have an account there or not.
you got to call them to validate the bank and start using them.
I just cut them.
But it doesn't seem too Kosher for me what is going on with Baz's cards
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Post by Scrubb on Oct 26, 2014 4:45:48 GMT 2
My only recent gripe is that my bank went through a stage where you couldn't speak to a person without them trying to sell you something. I went to get my nephew's education savings account transferred to him when he started school, and the investment counsellor (who messed up the transaction, by the way) insisted on trying to talk to me about their mutual funds. The next time I was there, just to buy some American cash, the teller tried to sell me on their Visa card. It was really annoying.
But last week when I was there, the teller stuck to what I was asking about and didn't annoy me at all. Plus she kept calling me "my dear" even though I was twice her age. (She was from another culture - not sure which one.)
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Post by kuskiwi on Oct 26, 2014 8:23:49 GMT 2
Fortunately ours are reasonably efficient and we are way ahead of many countries but you still have to be a little wary. My bank was part of a merger with another. Great - much better service except they sent out new credit cards which had to be authenticated at the merged bank within 10 days of mailing and most of our small towns no longer even have a bank, ATM or even a post office. Great - particularly when you are on a 5 week holiday in another part of the world. Fortunately my card with another bank worked.
It always amuses me that I can walk into most of the banks in this town, be greeted by name and still have to have my ID authenticated before they will do anything for me.
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Post by auntieannie on Oct 26, 2014 13:19:02 GMT 2
Scrubb... in those cases, I love to listen to all their sales pitch (when I have a little spare time) and then say.. thankyou, but no. I remember once I even asked lots of questions. Ha!
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 26, 2014 13:26:16 GMT 2
I definitely do not want a new debit card (the current one has three years to run) because it means I have to do stuff like updating payment info on places like Amazon, Booking.Com, the Times etc. That is tedious.
Also I follow instructions to destroy the old card. Eighteen months ago at Bangkok airport I was asked for my credit card at check-in. It was a new one so different from the card I had paid the flights with. We had to go to the Thai Air shop and buy new tickets. Eventually they refunded the money for the tickets they refused to accept. But it was a big hassle.
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Post by grumpy on Oct 26, 2014 13:45:22 GMT 2
Sounds like someone ordered cards on your behalf. The scam intention may have been for bank issuing / post office sorting / post office delivery person to steal the cards before you got them. Call the bank and ask for the fraud team; explain situation, give card details and ask them to investigate.
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Post by Voy on Oct 26, 2014 14:57:30 GMT 2
banks any more can be brutal to the front line.. ie the tellers . A friend of mine who was working as a teller in Florida was given a target of "open X new accounts this month or be fired" . She couldn't. and she was. fired. In the terrible economy in S Fla, there are so many looking for work , that jobs like that are just filled with cannon fodder. horrible.
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Post by itsasmallworld1 on Oct 26, 2014 18:05:04 GMT 2
What you said also happens here, Voy. I had opened a new account every year for the last 5 in order to help the guy who usually helps me at one of the banks I work with, they close it before it produces any expenses to me ( gasto?) their statistics improve and I get help from this guy with any small issue I may have as a way to thank me for the help.
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Post by auntieannie on Oct 26, 2014 19:17:46 GMT 2
Here in the UK they cut almost all physical teller jobs. Unless you have an upgraded account, you don't get to see anyone in person. They've got greeters, though, ready to bring you to one of the automatic machines or sending you on your way to your appointment. sad.
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 26, 2014 19:46:18 GMT 2
I am lucky that our local bank (and in a small town, population 5000) has two tellers on duty.
My son-in-law says that possibly they are updating the cards so they can be swiped. That doesn't explain why Mrs Faz (who does not have an account, not even a joint account with me) has been sent a card. Also I have noticed that the bank sort code is different.
We'll see what I am told tomorrow.
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Post by itsasmallworld1 on Oct 26, 2014 21:51:46 GMT 2
Do let us know how it ended. Hope it is only their fault and no anonymous idiot trying to scam you.
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 27, 2014 14:12:07 GMT 2
My head is ringing with the sound of Vivaldi's Four Seasons.
I went to our local branch this morning. I explained to the cashier, an old fella nearing retirement and his hands immediately started shaking. There is nobody superior in our little branch so he took me to a back room and called something like the Suspicious Events Team. First he explained. Then he passed the phone to me and I explained: we had received these debit cards which were not necessary; the branch sort code was not that of my bank account; Mrs Faz had also received a debit card though she does not bank with Nat West; and they had spelled her name wrong. I was put on hold and listened to Vivaldi. Then the Suspicious man came back and explained the sort code was for a branch in Jersey and the Jersey Nat West is a separate company from the England Nat West so they could not directly access their computer but had to go a roundabout route. More Vivaldi. The Suspicious man came back and asked the full numbers of my current card and the new Jersey one. More Vivaldi. The Suspicious man came back and said that the Jersey branch had no account linked to the card I had been sent I asked all the obvious questions about why had I been sent the card, who by, why had Mrs Faz received one when she had no account and why was her name spelled wrong? He said they would institute an internal enquiry. Though I pressed I got the feeling I would not be told the result of the enquiry.
Just as the cashier's hands had begun shaking at the prospect of fraud so the Suspicious man began speaking faster and stumbling over his words as he got more flustered.
More Vivaldi.
The Suspicious man came back and said I had done just the right thing going straight to my branch. I should please destroy the debit cards straightaway. They were very sorry I had had this trouble and were going to credit my account with £25 as a gesture of good will.
I have just checked and £25 has gone into my account.
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Post by Voy on Oct 27, 2014 14:22:06 GMT 2
oooOOO0000ooooo00000OOOOO0000ooooo
good thing you called!
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Post by OnlyMark on Oct 27, 2014 14:28:52 GMT 2
Well done with the patience thing then.
I suppose this will be one of life's great mysteries that'll never be solved. Up there with DB Cooper no doubt.
It must be one of the perils of being famous.
I remember Jeremy Clarkson giving out his bank account number and saying it was secure, no-one could do anything with it. All of a sudden he had a substantial withdrawal to a charity he knew nothing about.
By the way, on the internet there are sort code checkers to see where the bank was from the code on the card.
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Post by grumpy on Oct 27, 2014 15:44:51 GMT 2
Glad you got it sorted out.
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 27, 2014 19:23:42 GMT 2
But wait...
Shortly after I returned from the bank this morning the post arrived. Remember that the Suspicious man said that there was no account connected with the debit card. Well, surprise, surprise, we received a cheque book each for this non-existent account. In minuscule type (about 4 or 5 point) is a line on the cheques saying Royal Bank of Scotland. We do have a joint account with RBS. RBS owns Nat West. I vaguely remember reading that RBS was going to dispose of some branches so maybe this is some internal convulsion. If so, there should have been an explanation in the accompanying letter.
What I don't understand is how the Suspicious man could say there was no account attached to the debit card if in fact there is.
Do you think I should go to the bank tomorrow morning, ask to speak to the Suspicious man and tell him it might just be rearranging our joint account? Do you think he'll ask for the £25 back?
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Post by OnlyMark on Oct 27, 2014 19:38:26 GMT 2
The plot thickens......
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Post by kuskiwi on Oct 27, 2014 19:53:05 GMT 2
Are you suspicious about suspicious man?
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Post by welle on Oct 27, 2014 20:09:59 GMT 2
Are you up for more Vivaldi?
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Post by Baz Faz on Oct 27, 2014 20:27:35 GMT 2
I want to borrow Mark. I want him to go into the bank tomorrow and mutter "CID", while he half shows some ID card. Then he must say he is investigating a conman who goes round to banks, pretending to have a bogus card. Did this conman speak to anybody at head office? In a back room, eh. Were you present the whole time? What, you left him alone in a room with your computer switched on to the head office?
See how it goes from there.
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