I recently applied for a Nationwide account in my name only. Today, I received a passbook in two names, neither of which are mine!! I traced the account holders, one of whom is a Methodist minister, and the minister told me that they received my passbook last week! I feel another compensation claim looming!!
What is it with British banks these days? They have seem to have forgotten all about the meaning of customer service. Recently I discovered to my horror that my bank had closed one of my accounts without any notice, warning or discussion - and that was within a month of them FedEx'ing me a new Visa Debit card for that very same account. That account did have a credit balance, which they transferred to my savings account, and had never been overdrawn. It also received monthly credits arising out of consultancy fees paid by my UK-based client. I emailed the branch manager about this who simply replied that it had happened whilst she was on holiday and suggested I phone "Premier" and gave me their 0800 number. That'd be kind-of okay had I been in the UK but the manager knows I'm in the Philippines and 0800 numbers do not work. I'm still awaiting her reply to my request for an email address. I will be sending a formal complaint to the bank and if I get no satisfaction, will be pursuing the matter with the banking ombudsman.
