Santander - Major C***-up - Poor service.

Believe it or not, the in bank advisor who was extremely helpful (to our faces at least) I think (from memory) informed me they had 8 weeks to sort it - she didn't mention the FOS, but she did mention the 8 weeks.

If it does get that far, then I will be involving the information Commisioner and probably Watchdog too.

That said, I think it is being resolved - I can no longer log with ANY of my credentials - this is a good thing because this is following the course of events laid out by our Complaints Resolver. Just have to wait for my new log on details to see if they have truly solved it.

Then it is just a matter of removing my association with my brothers addresses on my credit record.

Link added to original post

Received some post today - let us remind ourselves of the timescale here.

I went into a branch on the 14th of January 2011, and the official complaint was raised. I received a letter the following week, from the advisor I saw, dated 15th January 2011.

15 January 2011

Dear Mr ##########

I am writing regarding your visit to this branch today to discuss the error of Santander merging your accounts with those of your brother Mr ##########. Once again I apologize to you and your wife for this.

I am writing to let you know that this has been forwarded to our complaints team who will contact you directly to resolve this once and for all. They are a dedicated complaints team who will keep in contact with you and discuss what actions they are taking.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at the ########## Branch.

Yours sincerley

##########
Banking Advisor

Now, as you may remember from the start of this thread, we went back into the branch on the 1st of February because we had not had any contact from the complaints department - this was 18 days after we had gone into the branch and 15 days after the complaint had been officially taken (or so we were told) up by the complaints department.

Now there have been many phone conversations with our dedicated Complaints Resolver since then. Today (8th February 2011) I received another letter, dated yesterday, 7th February 2011, the complaints department. 25 days after our original visit to the branch and and 22 days after the complaint had been taken up.

7 February 2011

Dear Mr ##########

Thank you for contacting us. We are always disappointed when a customer feels the need to complain about Santander's products or services and I would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to investigate this matter.

One of my team will be responsible for investigating your complaint. High quality customer service is of great importance to us at Santander and we will do everything we can to resolve your complaint in a timely and satisfactory manner.

We pride ourselves in being able to resolve the majority of complaints quickly, so you should hear from us shortly. We will also keep you regularly informed of the progress of your complaint.

If you remain unhappy when you have received our response, you can request that our Central Complaints department review the issues you have raised. You may also be entitled to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you do not feel we have resolved your complaint to your satisfaction. More information about escalating your complaint will be provided with our resolution letter.

Although I do not know what the outcome will be, I do hope that we will be able to find a solution that you are happy with.

Yours sincerely

##########
Head of Central Complaint Operations

As you can see, I have highlighted some particularly rash statements :rotfl:. It's a pity they didn't send this letter 3 weeks ago, when they took up the complaint, I might have been a little less niggly with them if they had. It reads like a stock response, so it should have been automatic. Oh well.

Still waiting for new e-banking credentials - will keep you posted.

You need to do what I did - go into a branch with all your details (take screen shots of the accounts you can log into - as some branches do not have unrestricted internet access) and refuse to go until you have seen someone.

Take documentation of all contact you have had with them too.

We had to go in, and get them to phone the complaints department whilst we were there - I think this is why our case is progressing. It is only now that we have a direct Complaints Resolver, that we seem to be getting anywhere.

I'll send you a PM.