Rant Santander - if you bank with them, LEAVE NOW!

I'll likely write a fuller explanation later (I'm tired from writing a witty yet damning complaint letter at the moment).

In short I've never known such awful service and such a lot of cockups over something so simple!

In late July I lost my debit card, popped into the local branch to report it, double checked all my details and was told a new card would be with me in around 5 working days - All good so far.

Two weeks later, I ring them up to find they sent my cards to somebody else, have since cancelled them and blocked my address to prevent fraud. Wait, what? Yes, they sent my cards to the wrong address....but they then blocked my correct address, which makes no sense at all. Oh and they didn't mention it to me, they were just going to leave me to wait for my cards forever, until I rang them! - Very Poor.

A further two weeks later, I ring them up to find out where my cards are. I'm told my address is blocked and that the cards were returned because of this. Wait, what? Yes, they seem to have completely forgotten my last phone call and 'have no record of me calling'. So instead they left my address blocked (which still makes no sense) and left me without cards for a month....and let's remember here that they 'apparently' don't know I ever called, so they have managed to not tell me for a month that I wont be getting my cards! - Simply Unbelievable.

So A long complaint letter and a rant to a manger later, my cards are on there way at last, they'll take 5-10 days to arrive...once the block is removed...Wait, what? Yes, my cards cannot be sent until the block has been off for 48hours! so that's another week to 2 weeks without a debit card! 6+ weeks with no debit or credit cards at all! - ****ed.


Now the bit I'm leaving out is, I'll cover extremely shortly here:
I'm off to India on Friday....and have to do so without any bank account access (this is my only account and only card)...which means I haven't got train tickets to the airport yet....and I cant get Travel insurance....and that I need to walk around India with the best part of 1k in my back pocket as I also can't pre-book any hotels.......

If I didn't laugh I'd cry

 

Dude, that's seriously bad. I first came across the terribleness of them when i tried to pay some money into someone's account via one of their branches, but discovered i couldn't because even though the account was with them, it wasn't all at the same time.....

Sam

 

yeah totally agree - Santander are useless. they blocked my visa debit card on my pay day because I had used it 4 times within a few hours. I was at asda at 18:00 on a friday night ready to do my shopping, phone there support line and was messed around for nearly an hour before speaking to a manager who eventually unblocked my card.

They wouldnt' do anything for me until I quoted them the last 5 values for the transactions I made, and the time I made them. I explained I'm at asda trying to get money from a machine and without the internet I didn't know the exact details as I didn't make an effort to make exact mental notes (given its my money I figured I was just ok to spend it).

If I didn't have a overdraft I'm living in I'd move in a heart beat. Support in store isnt any better then the phones. Once got charged £120 for going over my overdraft by £9 over two transactions, £25 per transaction for clearing it, and £35 per transaction for actually giving me the money!! I wasn't until I went into the store on a busy weekday lunch and kicked off they actually did anything reasonable about it..

santander = total suck

 

@MiNiMaL_FuSS: I know i will sound a bit insensitive, but isn't this the case where you should take your ass to the local branch and make a "show" in the bank office.

 

Right there with you.

I've been through through a series cockups of varying severity for the last year, and a complete and utter lack of competent support personnel when trying to sift through the wreckage (and then even more cockups with the gestures of goodwill for the first cockups!).

I moved to another bank a month or so ago and as of last week I no longer hold any accounts with them - it is a nice feeling. I'm looking forward to the customer service call when they ask why I've closed the accounts.

 

I am leaving as soon as the remaining car finance is paid off (not long thank god)

Never seen such an incompetant organisation in my life. (well there is ONE place but ill not go there).

 

Am I the only one with two accounts with two different banks? Just in-case this happens. There would be a maximum delay of 3 days before I could get at my money from one account to the other.

NHS?

 

Don't Santander offer to pay you to join them?

Might explain a lot :/

 

Same - recently moved away from them after my cards got stolen, someone took £600 out, and they lied to me on the phone about how they were dealing with the problem. Got told it was being dealt with by the Spanish team, as Abbey had just been taken over, cue 4 months later and a very confused manager telling me there is no Spanish team, nor has there ever been on for dealing with card fraud. They then broke my online banking (I have an eSaver - which I wasn't able to access for 16 months...)... wrote off my losses, never did get the £600 back as by the time I'd established they were making it up, the time period for reporting lost money was up, and no one really wanted to listen...

 

I was with Alliance and Leicester who had been fine and gave me a v.good interest rate....but they got eaten and it's been trouble ever since.

I'd move banks today, but I doubt a new bank will get me a card by Friday/Saturday...so I'll move banks after my holiday. Luckily I'm shifting all my money to my gf's bank account for the holiday and we'll both use her card.

 

I've had similar experiences with Natwest (saying one thing, doing the polar opposite; refusing to send to x address despite y phone conversation, which they suddenly have no record of etc etc). The only difference was we were given/sent someone else's information (opposite to your case). It was really infuriating; can imagine exactly how you feel.

We've been messed about a decent amount with Santander too. One time my wife transferred some money (not a major/out of the ordinary amount) from one account into another and without ringing her or anything they decided to freeze her account. So a week or two later she goes to do something else and finds out (still without having received any communication from Santander) that her accounts were frozen. I think a few days after she got it all sorted, she finally received a letter from Santander saying about security and frozen account etc. 1.5+ weeks later = fail, though.

And today she discovered they randomly decided to close/freeze her Isa as they didn't think she was using it (which she was - and again, a quick phone call or even letter would have resolved it). So the branch make her fill out some big form today to unfreeze an account which she wanted and was actively using.

Is bizarre.

 

I left them about 15 years ago when they were still abbey national. Their favorite trick was to take a charge out and put you over drawn. They would then charge you even though they put you over drawn and then charge you again for telling you that you are over draw..£52 it used to work out to. So after about 15 years with them and hav ing this happen to me a few times I told them where to stick it. I then got a letter asking why I had left them..Feckin arseh*les. I' now with the Natwest and have only had one major cock up when they closed the wrong account, but that was sorted with a few phone calls and all back to normal in under an hour.

 

To be honest, if I left every bank that I heard about having screwed someone over via a series of administrative cock ups I'd probably have to keep all my money under my mattress.

 

So go private.

 

any recommendations? First Direct are likely my new choice.

 

You see, you have no one to blame except yourself....






....

I've been with HSBC for 10 years and never had any issues, but I can't say I've had any issues to cause issues, if you get my drift..

 

Couldn't you get one of those currency cards that they keep touting in the travel agents and just load it up with your cash at the exchange desk, must be safer than carrying cash around.

Soz if someone has already suggested this.

 

I'm meeting my gf out there (she went for 8 weeks lucky so and so) so I'm just putting my cash into her bank account tomorrow....one of those cards is prob safer than that...but i cant say that out loud

 

These are actually really good.

 

I'd recommend them without hesitation.