Abbey Zero card - declined - why??

HamiltonL

ldn-100 wrote: »

Definitely. The letter declining the online application was dated before the day I went in the branch.

That is unusual, I'm baffled by that.

All I can suggest is just send back the agreement form that you'll have from the acception letter for the branch application and you should then receive your card.

Kavanne

Volcane wrote: »

Have you tried the Post Office card, usually an instant decison?

Yeah, referred online then declined Nationwide have me between a rock and a hard place, I can't close my account with them

Volcane

Kavanne wrote: »

Yeah, referred online then declined Nationwide have me between a rock and a hard place, I can't close my account with them

WHy do you wish to close this account?

Can you keep it for foreign transactions only and not use it any other time?

ldn-100

HamiltonL wrote: »

That is unusual, I'm baffled by that.

All I can suggest is just send back the agreement form that you'll have from the acception letter for the branch application and you should then receive your card.

I sent it back and got the card. When it arrived it had a very low credit limit (the lowest I've ever known from a card issuer). When I tried to use the card I found it was blocked. When I called up I was told my photo and address ID had not been passed over by the branch and I had to resupply as they had lost the copies. I went into two other branches and both failed to fax it over properly. In the end I went into a branch in the City with ID and said I would not leave until my card was unblocked or the account was closed. It took about an hour, but it got sorted on that fourth attempt to supply ID.

exel1966

All the problems encountered above sound pretty run of the mill as far as ShAbbey are concerned. They are a notoriously bad organisation for failing their customers, you just have to read the financial pages of any of the major newspapers or even these forums to realise that. The tie-up with Santander made a bad situation worse and they are still experiencing continual problems with the computer software used which has led to even further problems.
They have had their knuckles rapped on numerous occassions by the Ombudsman and it has cost them financially. They have even been directed by the authorities to rename their branch c/s agents from using misleading titles such as financial advisors when they are clearly nothing but sales persons with the bare minimum of training in offering financial advice.
I tried ShAbbey and went in with my eyes fully open to possible problems. They didn't let me down and the compensation is now sitting in my wallet to prove it.
Avoid them at ALL costs. No organisation is perfect or even near perfect, but their are numerous other banks/cards who offer a better product/service.

Kavanne

Volcane wrote: »

WHy do you wish to close this account?

Can you keep it for foreign transactions only and not use it any other time?

Bad customer service experience, don't really want to have to use them anymore

rdp1980

Sorry to bring this back up, but I have now had my conditional acceptance letter through from Abbey, so thought it might be helpful to give other people an idea of timelines.

I applied online on 24 June in the evening.

Received my conditional acceptance letter on 4 July - letter was dated 27 June however and send 2nd Class.

No indication of what my credit limit will be yet, I assume that will be detailed on the paperwork that comes with the card itself.

I couldn't help smirking at the Freepost envelope they had enclosed... labelled "Priority Processing" but only pre-paid as 2nd Class! :rolleyes:

HamiltonL

rdp1980 wrote: »

No indication of what my credit limit will be yet, I assume that will be detailed on the paperwork that comes with the card itself.

Well looks like the application is going through OK timewise as we usually advise about 2 weeks to get the agreement pack.

The credit limit is usually stated with the letter you get for the PIN, prior to receiving the card. Once you send the agreement out the card will be sent out fairly quickly so I expect within a fortnight you'll know your credit limit on the Abbey Zero card.

rdp1980

HamiltonL wrote: »

Well looks like the application is going through OK timewise as we usually advise about 2 weeks to get the agreement pack.

Yep, despite some of the stories on here I can't complain about the time taken to receive the pack at all.

When I applied I opted to transfer a balance from two other cards. Any idea how long they are likely to take to process? Will they start as soon as my signed agreement is sent back, or does that process only start once they have sent my card and PIN?

blindman

Good news:

I applied in a branch and got accepted straight away.

Bad News
Despite proving to the CS that I have good credit my limit on this card is £3K (seems to be the standard)

HamiltonL
Is it worth writing to the underwriters to try to increase this? I am trying to BT £6K from another CC.

Ta