Natwest sucks

stclair

moongarden wrote: »

hi jessie 27,

i opened a nat west account today and i have five defaults and a CCJ

i phoned up and asked for an appointment to open a step account this morning. when i got there the lady asked me directly why i thought i couldn't open a normal account. i told her my financial status and said i had an up to date (dec 05) copy of my credit file from experian.

she still tried to open the other account on the screen saying lets try it anyway and if it refuses we will enter the details for a step account

of course it failed, as i told her it would, but then she put in the details for a step account and it went through fine.

step accounts are designed for people with adverse credit - thats what they are for.

it sounds to me like they have tried to open a different account for you not the step one.

definately go in and talk to the manager in the branch and ask them to explain what has happened.

if they are refusing to open it because you are in an IVA then this could be the case with all the other banks who offer a basic banking account

Branches are bar stewards for doing that you should complain and ask for the credit search to be removed from your credit file.

Deep_In_Debt

Barclays are also BR friendly so you could try them for a basic account also.

I have a Natwest Step account which I am happy with.

From what I read about NW, they are a bit unpredictable. They have been known to close accounts if you don't pay enough money in, if you've been BR in the past even though they opened an account for you knowing full well about it.

I'd try Co-op or Barclays if I were you but make sure that Barclays put you through for a basic account otherwise you will get rejected.

Good luck.

Deep_In_Debt

I think that banks put through for full accounts as the advisors get paid commission for them and they don't on the basic accounts.

yellowduck_2

I personally hate Nat West with a vengance, try the coop cashminder, got one organised after one visit to them, it has all you need, debit card, direct debits and on line banking.

never-in-doubt

planning_ahead wrote: »

I think you would have good cause to challenge Nat West on this. The cheque and credit clearing company states

The UK Domestic Cheque Guarantee Card Scheme was established in 1969 to create common, easily identifiable design features to simplify acceptance procedures for retailers and other acceptors of cheques.

Surely you are an 'acceptor of a cheque'

Unfortunately not - a cheque can not be guaranteed against an individual. Let me explain, i'm skint and have 2 Natwest cheque books - so I decide to write 60 cheques at £99.99 each and pay them to my girlfriend using the guarantee card.

If it was a business, how do you think that would look? Thus the chq guarantee facility is not relevant to personal account holders.

That is one example but not limited.

Basically the bank is correct; also for someone to offer to use the guarantee part to you should be enough in itself to suggest something wasn't right....;)

never-in-doubt

jessie27 wrote: »

Hi everyone, am new to this site but just needed to vent my anger at Natwest!

I have £40k worth of debt and am currently arranging an IVA through Cleardebt. I went into Natwest last week and opened a Step account and I was told this was specifically for "bad credit". I even paid some money in there and then. However the next day I received a call from the branch saying that when the application had been sent to head office, a lot of "adverse information" had come up and so they could not give me an account after all!

I couldn't believe it, the girl at the branch knew I had bad credit and isn't this what this account is for?

So now I have to go in and close the account once the cheque I paid in has cleared! Has anyone else had a similar experience or does any1have any suggestions for another bank account?

:mad:

You got hit with AVU (application verifiaction unit) - they are the last defence that natwest (RBS group as a whole) have and they trawl through applications and make a final decision as to whether to keep it open or close it.

I have had the card and cheque book delivered, then in a different letter AVU closed it down - lol. They are a pain in the arsey to be fair and actually lose the bank a lot of business. They tend to check referred accounts or those not accepted (automatically) for a full current account.

I got accepted for a tesco/Natwest/RBS/Ulster credit card every time I apply, sign the agreement and post it back then instead of a shiny new card with great limit (ranged from £700 to £6k) I get a 'sorry' letter from AVU cancelling and closing my 'new' account.

Fine, their loss. :mad:

planning_ahead_2

never-in-doubt wrote: »

Unfortunately not - a cheque can not be guaranteed against an individual. Let me explain, i'm skint and have 2 Natwest cheque books - so I decide to write 60 cheques at £99.99 each and pay them to my girlfriend using the guarantee card.

If it was a business, how do you think that would look? Thus the chq guarantee facility is not relevant to personal account holders.

That is one example but not limited.

Basically the bank is correct; also for someone to offer to use the guarantee part to you should be enough in itself to suggest something wasn't right....;)

Hi NID

What you say makes total sense to me (although I never thought of it like that before, ie writing x many cheques to a relation or partner).

However, I worked in the banking sector for a number of years through the eighties and nineties and was never aware that cheques with the correctly detailed guarantee card information on them could be 'bounced'. We did regularly 'bounce' them if it was clear that the card details had been written on in the same handwriting as the person writing the cheque. Other than that they were always honoured providing they were within the limit of the guarantee. This applied whether the cheque was payable to a business or private individual.

Just out of interest I looked up the UK Domestic Guarantee Card Scheme Conditions of Use and I still can't see where in there it states that the guarantee does not apply to individuals accepting these cheques, or alternatively that the guarantee only applies to retailers/businesses.

As I say - your logic makes total sense to me now I think about it, but I still don't think that logic was put into practice when the Conditions of Use were written.

never-in-doubt

planning_ahead wrote: »

Hi NID

What you say makes total sense to me (although I never thought of it like that before, ie writing x many cheques to a relation or partner).

However, I worked in the banking sector for a number of years through the eighties and nineties and was never aware that cheques with the correctly detailed guarantee card information on them could be 'bounced'. We did regularly 'bounce' them if it was clear that the card details had been written on in the same handwriting as the person writing the cheque. Other than that they were always honoured providing they were within the limit of the guarantee. This applied whether the cheque was payable to a business or private individual.

Just out of interest I looked up the UK Domestic Guarantee Card Scheme Conditions of Use and I still can't see where in there it states that the guarantee does not apply to individuals accepting these cheques, or alternatively that the guarantee only applies to retailers/businesses.

As I say - your logic makes total sense to me now I think about it, but I still don't think that logic was put into practice when the Conditions of Use were written.

Hiya

Have a mooch here: http://www.chequeandcredit.co.uk/information/-/page/cheque_guarantee_scheme/

To encourage retailers to accept cheques as payment for goods and services, the first cheque guarantee card was issued by National Provincial Bank in October 1965. Initially these cards enabled encashment of cheques in branches up to a total value of £20 per day. From 1966 cards were issued that guaranteed encashments by cheque, and payments by cheque for goods and services, up to a value of £30.

The UK Domestic Cheque Guarantee Card Scheme was established in 1969 to create common, easily identifiable design features to simplify acceptance procedures for retailers and other acceptors of cheques. The Scheme’s initial guarantee limit was £30, increasing to £50 in 1977 and two additional limits of £100 and £250 were introduced in 1989. Since 1 October 1990, the common identifier on all cards with cheque guarantee functionality has been William Shakespeare, and his image is used within the cheque guarantee hologram or logo on all cheque guarantee cards.

The wording other acceptors of cheques refers to courts/police etc which are not private companies but bodies all the same, just not retailers.....

Make sense now?

planning_ahead_2

never-in-doubt wrote: »

Hiya

Have a mooch here: http://www.chequeandcredit.co.uk/information/-/page/cheque_guarantee_scheme/



The wording other acceptors of cheques refers to courts/police etc which are not private companies but bodies all the same, just not retailers.....

Make sense now?

Hi again

Yes - it makes sense from the links you have given me but I still think that the Conditions of Use which is the document which the guarantee cards are issued under leaves the argument wide open - but then isn't that a similar situation to some of those credit agreements you love pulling apart so much;)

never-in-doubt

planning_ahead wrote: »

Hi again

Yes - it makes sense from the links you have given me but I still think that the Conditions of Use which is the document which the guarantee cards are issued under leaves the argument wide open - but then isn't that a similar situation to some of those credit agreements you love pulling apart so much;)

You're mis-reading the wording mate. Consider moving from the words 'acceptor of cheques' and move to 'payable for goods or services' - this is where the wording pretty much rules out an individual.

Bear in mind a lot of the banking processes were at fault, as the agreements are showing lately (with unenforceability etc)..... so although it didn't spell it out, it was always an unwritten thing that you couldn't guarantee a cheque to an individual.

You know me, I do like ripping banks a new A-Hole :eek: :rotfl: :eek: