Halifax Faster payments (Not Working)

malc_b

Just have a reply from Halifax re my complaint. Halifax say they can't tell customers what the limits are and the rules as this would also tell the fraudsters. Since FP are immediate then unlike BACs they don't have 3 days to stop the money. At first glance that sounds reasonable, but then I thought about it.

What Halifax are saying is not only do they preferred to annoy their customers than run the risk of giving info to fraudsters, but even if the info is no use. If a fraudster gets into your bank account who would notice in 3 days, instead of 1? Does everyone log in daily to check their balance? No? So there is no more chance of you spotting a BACs than a FP, its all down to Halifax automatic systems and they don't care if it 3 days or 3mins.

Plus, BACs can be sent to anywhere (abroad to?). FP is limited to the big uk banks and for years we have had all this money laudering regs that you have to prove who you are and where you live. Any FP fraud would have to be to a uk bank who ought to know where the fraudster lives So why is FP more of a risk than BACs?

Of course, not that banks are any good at judging risk! Otherwise we all wouldn't be the state we are now.

BTW, anyone who'd like to complain to the head honcho the email is andyhornby(at)hbosplc.com

carpy

malc_b wrote: »

Just have a reply from Halifax re my complaint. Halifax say they can't tell customers what the limits are and the rules as this would also tell the fraudsters. Since FP are immediate then unlike BACs they don't have 3 days to stop the money. At first glance that sounds reasonable, but then I thought about it.

What Halifax are saying is not only do they preferred to annoy their customers than run the risk of giving info to fraudsters, but even if the info is no use. If a fraudster gets into your bank account who would notice in 3 days, instead of 1? Does everyone log in daily to check their balance? No? So there is no more chance of you spotting a BACs than a FP, its all down to Halifax automatic systems and they don't care if it 3 days or 3mins.

Plus, BACs can be sent to anywhere (abroad to?). FP is limited to the big uk banks and for years we have had all this money laudering regs that you have to prove who you are and where you live. Any FP fraud would have to be to a uk bank who ought to know where the fraudster lives So why is FP more of a risk than BACs?

Of course, not that banks are any good at judging risk! Otherwise we all wouldn't be the state we are now.

BTW, anyone who'd like to complain to the head honcho the email is andyhornby(at)hbosplc.com

hi how did they reply to you, letter, phone, email? i'm still awaiting a reply from them

malc_b

By letter (after I emailed the head honcho).

The Halifax FP system can best be summed up as:

If any of the secret rules be broken the user will be punished by faster payments being withdrawn for 10 days

Hmm, I though Halifax was a bank not a secret brotherhood.

The secret rules are possibly: trying to make a FP for >500, trying to make more than 3 FP (to one account?) in one period (day?, week?), trying to change the amount of a FP.

carpy

malc_b wrote: »

By letter (after I emailed the head honcho).

The Halifax FP system can best be summed up as:

If any of the secret rules be broken the user will be punished by faster payments being withdrawn for 10 days

Hmm, I though Halifax was a bank not a secret brotherhood.

The secret rules are possibly: trying to make a FP for >500, trying to make more than 3 FP (to one account?) in one period (day?, week?), trying to change the amount of a FP.

yep that sounds about right from my experience!!!:mad:

miserable_ol_so_n_so

All this nonsence from Halifax about fraud etc is rubbish. I can do a fast payment from my Natwest account anyday to the limit of 10,000 per day. If Natwest can, why cant Halifax?.

YorkshireBoy

miserable_ol_so_n_so wrote: »

All this nonsence from Halifax about fraud etc is rubbish. I can do a fast payment from my Natwest account anyday to the limit of 10,000 per day. If Natwest can, why cant Halifax?.

Precisely the question I put to someone claiming to work for HBOS in their FP fraud department recently. Despite asking 3 times I didn't get an answer!...

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1327543&page4 (post #72 onwards)

miserable_ol_so_n_so

Please, can someone quickly tell me :
If I make a FP request, and it is denied, does the transfer request then get executed by BACS, ie the normal 4 to 5 business days?

I need to know as I want to transfer about 25 k, and I was kinda hoping to do it 10k per day.

YorkshireBoy

miserable_ol_so_n_so wrote: »

Please, can someone quickly tell me :
If I make a FP request, and it is denied, does the transfer request then get executed by BACS, ie the normal 4 to 5 business days?

It'll tell you on the interim payment screen, ie before you click "confirm" (or similar).

Something like "on this occasion we were unable to...your payment will be made on xx/xx/xx and will take 3/4 days to arrive"


EDIT: Unless you can get it on for tomorrow, it'll be lost in the BACS ether over the weekend.

Speculator

malc_b wrote: »

If you login to Halifax and click the ringing phone in top right you can update your contact details with a mobile or alternate landline. Of course this assumes you take your mobile on holiday and have it on which I think it a large assumption given how much the mobile companies rip us off when we are abroad, especially outside the EU. Still if you are in HK for 6 months you'll probably buy a local mobile. I did that for that USA and only for 1 month (money saving starts at just 10 calls!).

Thanks, I will update when I get my new sim in HK.
I always use "Peoples" PAYG mobile sim in Hong Kong. Cost only HK$78 (£6.50) for upto 1560mins! So cheap compared to the UK.

http://www.peoples.com.hk/p_prepaid_supertalk_default_iso.jsp

malc_b

Interesting. If I ever get to HK I'll remember that. USA was not quite as good. About £16 for phone and 200 min AFAIR, compared with using UK mobile at £1.60/min. No contest!