The Lemon Fool

Earlier this week I went through the process of transferring some money (low thousands) from my UK bank account to my OH's bank account in France. The transaction was undertaken using my Barclays debit card via a leading international currency exchange organisation. I should mention that I have regularly transferred (about 4 times pa) similar amounts for about 5 years by the same means without a problem. The process was stopped at the final step whereupon I get a text from Barclays to go to my app to read a message. Obviously need to log in - then get to message which just asks me to to confirm that I had indeed initiated the transaction. I hit the confirm button only to receive a message that they will not sanction the transaction. I start all over again with a much smaller amount - only to get refused again. I try to get a response from their 'helpline' but give up after waiting for some 35 mins. An hour later I get a text message from Barclays stating that my card has been 'blocked'. There followed a 90 mins chase around the globe until I finally get to speak to the 'Social Engineering' Dept. They had decided to stop the initial transaction as they were worried that I was being scammed. I pointed out that the transaction was similar to some 20 previous transaction over the years - hmm but sir has anyone phoned you to 'persuade' you to transfer money to a foreign account? Please listen - the amount being transferred does not exceed numerous previous similar transactions to my wife's account etc . . . So why have you stopped the transaction and then 'blocked' my debit card? Give up any further discussion as I get another text telling me that debit card has been 'unblocked'. Clearly the 'social engineer' has decided that I am not gaga and that maybe I will go away and not complain any further if he allows me to get on with my life. About 4 hours wasted and then the transaction finally went through.

T7 (not Russian)

There is no common sense left in an algorithm driven world where "customer service" is manned by those devoid of common sense (bless them) or even an appreciation of how one's culture actually works.

silly example - i got a FB ban a while ago for the phrase "hey ho".

didds

didds wrote:There is no common sense left in an algorithm driven world where "customer service" is manned by those devoid of common sense (bless them) or even an appreciation of how one's culture actually works.

silly example - i got a FB ban a while ago for the phrase "hey ho".

didds

Ha, you have it easy. I can't log into my FB account any longer as they are demanding PHOTO ID to prove my ID, and I am refusing to supply it.

Honestly, photo ID before I can log into and read the 12V diesel heater group I'm a member of! What is the world in general and FB in particular coming to...?

didds wrote:silly example - i got a FB ban a while ago for the phrase "hey ho".

This is wonderfully silly!

Given the level of approved push payment (APP) scams across the UK, I’d prefer that banks err on the side of caution. Even if this leads to the odd frustrating episode.

Topping up my wife’s AJBell GIA this morning with a Barclays debit card, I mistakenly entered the wrong amount (missed a zero):

First frustration, need to wait 5 mins to make a second deposit in to AJBell.
Second frustration, payment triggered SCA via text message. Despite entering the correct OTP code the transaction was declined
Third frustration, payment triggered SCA which I was able to authenticate using the Barclays app.
Fourth frustration, funds did not transfer for about 3 hours, normally instant.
Fifth frustration, the IT I was buying went up by nearly 3% in the meantime.

That will teach me to double check transfer details in future!

I here you on the frustration side.

Told the bank I was going on holiday, full dates, where too etc as requested prior to travel.

Whilst on holiday all cards stopped because of unusual spending.

Obviously a nightmare getting things sorted. What was the point asking me to provide info in advance!

I could bore you all with the long and convoluted story of our Parish Council's dealings with Barclays which started when somehow they allowed a non-signatory to the account to remove all the signatories from the account, leaving the council unable to pay any bills or wages for two months. Well over 24 hours of call time have been logged so far in resolving this, most of it on hold or in a queue.

A decade ago, all of this would have been resolved in an afternoon by walking into the branch and meeting the manager.

I have spent fruitless hours with Barclays trying to set up a new payee on an account that I run for a local association. Their PinSentry never gives an answer that their system accepts when it comes to the "Respond" stage. Their app works as it should. Nobody will ever try to do a transaction using the website to show that it is flawed. After several years it is still broken.

They are useless. Of course they are busy closing most of the local branches, which means that to get your card unblocked you have to travel several miles and find the one open branch, usually devoid of customers, who are only too willing to do what is required. I repeat, they are useless.

Incidentally Nationwide Building Society use "Sign" for the same operation, which works like a treat if you wish to set up a new payee.

TJH

tjh290633 wrote:I have spent fruitless hours with Barclays trying to set up a new payee on an account that I run for a local association. Their PinSentry never gives an answer that their system accepts when it comes to the "Respond" stage. Their app works as it should. Nobody will ever try to do a transaction using the website to show that it is flawed. After several years it is still broken.

They are useless. Of course they are busy closing most of the local branches, which means that to get your card unblocked you have to travel several miles and find the one open branch, usually devoid of customers, who are only too willing to do what is required. I repeat, they are useless.

Incidentally Nationwide Building Society use "Sign" for the same operation, which works like a treat if you wish to set up a new payee.

I do not even bother with online banking. Banks are supposed to be local in-person businesses and I treat them that way. They make it difficult for me and keep telling me to "go online". But I insist in person and have found that if you take enough of their time, and be annoying enough, then they will finally give you the service they should.

Luckily there is a branch 100 yards from my house. They hate me and I don't care.

I gave up banking with the big 4 (my debacle was with Nat West who let a thief come into their brach and order foreign currency over the counter charged to my account to the tune of a month's salary) in 1989
been with First Direct since then - the best bank by far

pje16 wrote:I gave up banking with the big 4 (my debacle was with Nat West who let a thief come into their brach and order foreign currency over the counter charged to my account to the tune of a month's salary) in 1989
been with First Direct since then - the best bank by far

What do you consider the "big 4"? Going by Wikipedia's list, you're using the biggest out of the big 4 (HSBC, Lloyds, Natwest and Barclays).

SteelCamel wrote:

pje16 wrote:I gave up banking with the big 4 (my debacle was with Nat West who let a thief come into their brach and order foreign currency over the counter charged to my account to the tune of a month's salary) in 1989
been with First Direct since then - the best bank by far

What do you consider the "big 4"? Going by Wikipedia's list, you're using the biggest out of the big 4 (HSBC, Lloyds, Natwest and Barclays).

While First Direct is owned by HSBC
they do not operate like a big 4 bank
Customers are valued and treated properly
they are certainly are nothing ike HSBC

Lootman wrote:I do not even bother with online banking. Banks are supposed to be local in-person businesses and I treat them that way. They make it difficult for me and keep telling me to "go online". But I insist in person and have found that if you take enough of their time, and be annoying enough, then they will finally give you the service they should.

Luckily there is a branch 100 yards from my house. They hate me and I don't care.

Thats fine - until your bank closes their branch in your town, necessitating a journey to another town. Which may not be convenient for those reliant on public transport especially - or even those of us wage slaves with just 30 minutes lunch break and bank opening hours do not exist outside of our own work hours. You could of course switch banks to one that is open. And then what when ALL the banks in a town have closed?

That isnt to say your approach is wrong per se. but its somewhat trite to roll out when there are some that don''t have that availability. Two towns nearby used to have the full range of banks. They both now have just one option. And its only a matter of time until they are closed undoubtedly.

I wrote this a few years ago. All my own work etc etc etc

https://almost-middle-aged-musings.blog ... aking.html

didds wrote:

Lootman wrote:I do not even bother with online banking. Banks are supposed to be local in-person businesses and I treat them that way. They make it difficult for me and keep telling me to "go online". But I insist in person and have found that if you take enough of their time, and be annoying enough, then they will finally give you the service they should.

Luckily there is a branch 100 yards from my house. They hate me and I don't care.

Thats fine - until your bank closes their branch in your town, necessitating a journey to another town. Which may not be convenient for those reliant on public transport especially - or even those of us wage slaves with just 30 minutes lunch break and bank opening hours do not exist outside of our own work hours. You could of course switch banks to one that is open. And then what when ALL the banks in a town have closed?

That isnt to say your approach is wrong per se. but its somewhat trite to roll out when there are some that don''t have that availability. Two towns nearby used to have the full range of banks. They both now have just one option. And its only a matter of time until they are closed undoubtedly.

Fair enough. I am in London so there are a few physical bank branches within walking distance from my house. I could switch banks if my branch closed - I really see no difference between the different banks. Moreover I have accounts with 2 different banks (*) and can play them off against each other.

I concede that not everyone can do what I do for the reasons you cited, nor would want to. For me it is something of a personal battle I have with banks to maintain their standards, and I have the time and motivation to engage in such guerrilla tactics. It was harder to do during Covid when I felt that banks took advantage of the epidemic to make physical access more difficult. One of my branches actually posted a gatekeeper out in the street checking in people who wished to enter and asking them what their business was. I really hated that, feeling that I had to beg to be admitted.

(*) HSBC and NatWest, not that I have any reason to believe that those two are any better or different from the others.

Lootman wrote:I could switch banks if my branch closed - I really see no difference between the different banks. Moreover I have accounts with 2 different banks (*) and can play them off against each other.

No disrespect but I don't think they will care if one person decides to pick one over the other
These are multinational organisations with thousands upon thousands of customers, the like of you and I don't really count

pje16 wrote:

Lootman wrote:I could switch banks if my branch closed - I really see no difference between the different banks. Moreover I have accounts with 2 different banks (*) and can play them off against each other.

No disrespect but I don't think they will care if one person decides to pick one over the other.

These are multinational organisations with thousands upon thousands of customers, the like of you and I don't really count

I agree although banks love to try and sell you stuff. Typically in my local branch there are a fair number staff just sitting or standing around, trying to sell you insurance or ISAs. At the same time there are too few cashiers. If one of the sales people approach me I tell them I would prefer it if they didn't and instead help out the cashiers. They never do of course.

Agreed re the floorwalkers
I rarely go in but they are jusy annoying (most of the time)
The ones in the Nat West branch at Bank ( not my account but I am treasurer for a few organisations, so use quite a few different banks because of that)
anyway Nat West floorwalkers at Bank are very good (the exception to the general rule)

terminal7 wrote:Earlier this week I went through the process of transferring some money (low thousands) from my UK bank account to my OH's bank account in France. The transaction was undertaken using my Barclays debit card via a leading international currency exchange organisation. I should mention that I have regularly transferred (about 4 times pa) similar amounts for about 5 years by the same means without a problem. The process was stopped at the final step whereupon I get a text from Barclays to go to my app to read a message. Obviously need to log in - then get to message which just asks me to to confirm that I had indeed initiated the transaction. I hit the confirm button only to receive a message that they will not sanction the transaction. I start all over again with a much smaller amount - only to get refused again. I try to get a response from their 'helpline' but give up after waiting for some 35 mins. An hour later I get a text message from Barclays stating that my card has been 'blocked'. There followed a 90 mins chase around the globe until I finally get to speak to the 'Social Engineering' Dept. They had decided to stop the initial transaction as they were worried that I was being scammed. I pointed out that the transaction was similar to some 20 previous transaction over the years - hmm but sir has anyone phoned you to 'persuade' you to transfer money to a foreign account? Please listen - the amount being transferred does not exceed numerous previous similar transactions to my wife's account etc . . . So why have you stopped the transaction and then 'blocked' my debit card? Give up any further discussion as I get another text telling me that debit card has been 'unblocked'. Clearly the 'social engineer' has decided that I am not gaga and that maybe I will go away and not complain any further if he allows me to get on with my life. About 4 hours wasted and then the transaction finally went through.

T7 (not Russian)

If that had happened in the 70s, my dad would have billed them for the time wasted.

Maybe try it and see what happens?

Steve