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Word of Warning - Barclaycard
gingergirl21
Posts: 89 Forumite
I just thought I'd post a word of warning on here.
I am a pretty experiemced money saver, and know all the tricks that credit card companies and the like pull to get customers, but I am particularly shocked at my recent experience and just thought I'd put something on here to save other people getting caught out.
Perhaps (and I hope) I was simply unlucky in that I spoke to someone who simply misunderstood my questions, rather than purposely lied to me, but but it might save some of you the time it will take me to sort this one out!!
On 10 June, I called Barclaycard to let them know I was going to be travelling abroad and so not to cancel my card if they saw any foreign transactions. The person I spoke to kindly noted this, and then began to cross sell me a balance transfer deal. The deal was 0% balance transfer until Feb 2010.
Before accepting the deal, as I did, in fact need to sort out a transfer this month, I asked some questions.
My Barclaycard is only used for my husband's expenses (he claims them back from work) and supermarket shopping and abroad (as I don't have another credit card). It is a cashback card and so we pay off the full balance every month.
I made the rep aware of this, and said the card would be no good to me if it paid off the balance transfer first, before purchases, as we would continue to make and pay off purchases each month. I was assured that we would not be charged any interest if we carried on doing this.
I also checked that my limit would not change as some months expenses are higher than others. Again, I was assured that my limit for purchases £3130) would not change.
I received my statement yesterday and guess what - what I had been told was completely wrong. I am now virtually at my limit, so we will have to find some other way of paying expenses, and any payments we make in fact do (as is usually the case which is why I specifiaclly asked) pay of the balance transfer first, so any purchases we make will be charged interest.
I angrily called customer services who eventually put me through to a manager who said he would listen to the initial call and call me back. He did call me back, but had been unable to listen to the call. He said as a good will gesture he would put a note on the file that all interest will be refunded - however it is up to me to call each month to ask for this to happen. This is not satisfactory and I will be writing them a letter.
I am just so cross that even though I was so careful to ensure I could have a balance transfer, and still use my card for purchases and not get charged interest so long as I paid off these purchases in full this month, I was completely mis informed and now it is a mess I have to sort.
Please be wary if you find yourself being cross-sold a balance transfer on an existing Barclaycard!
I am a pretty experiemced money saver, and know all the tricks that credit card companies and the like pull to get customers, but I am particularly shocked at my recent experience and just thought I'd put something on here to save other people getting caught out.
Perhaps (and I hope) I was simply unlucky in that I spoke to someone who simply misunderstood my questions, rather than purposely lied to me, but but it might save some of you the time it will take me to sort this one out!!
On 10 June, I called Barclaycard to let them know I was going to be travelling abroad and so not to cancel my card if they saw any foreign transactions. The person I spoke to kindly noted this, and then began to cross sell me a balance transfer deal. The deal was 0% balance transfer until Feb 2010.
Before accepting the deal, as I did, in fact need to sort out a transfer this month, I asked some questions.
My Barclaycard is only used for my husband's expenses (he claims them back from work) and supermarket shopping and abroad (as I don't have another credit card). It is a cashback card and so we pay off the full balance every month.
I made the rep aware of this, and said the card would be no good to me if it paid off the balance transfer first, before purchases, as we would continue to make and pay off purchases each month. I was assured that we would not be charged any interest if we carried on doing this.
I also checked that my limit would not change as some months expenses are higher than others. Again, I was assured that my limit for purchases £3130) would not change.
I received my statement yesterday and guess what - what I had been told was completely wrong. I am now virtually at my limit, so we will have to find some other way of paying expenses, and any payments we make in fact do (as is usually the case which is why I specifiaclly asked) pay of the balance transfer first, so any purchases we make will be charged interest.
I angrily called customer services who eventually put me through to a manager who said he would listen to the initial call and call me back. He did call me back, but had been unable to listen to the call. He said as a good will gesture he would put a note on the file that all interest will be refunded - however it is up to me to call each month to ask for this to happen. This is not satisfactory and I will be writing them a letter.
I am just so cross that even though I was so careful to ensure I could have a balance transfer, and still use my card for purchases and not get charged interest so long as I paid off these purchases in full this month, I was completely mis informed and now it is a mess I have to sort.
Please be wary if you find yourself being cross-sold a balance transfer on an existing Barclaycard!
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Comments
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Ringing customer services is a nightmare these days.All they do is try and sell you insurance,loans,PPI and things you don't need.0
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and they can't understand you0
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And if they can't understand you - they shouldn't be selling you products and unable to understand and dela with queries such as mine.
Grrrrr
Also - realised that even if they do refund me interest, it is going to be a lot more that £8 a month if I carry on using my cards for purchases. I purchase about £500 on it a month (petrol and groceries and pay £500 a month off meaning no interest usually - however with the balance transfer being £2500, I will have paid off the balance transfer in 5 months and be charged interest on £2500 worth of purchases! This is correct is it not? If so then even the Manager I spoke to yesterday mis informed me. Terrible!!
Stroppy letter written and sent. Will keep you posted0 -
If you ring Barclaycard Card Services on 01604 234234, you'll avoid both the overseas call centre and the perishing 0870 numbersIf they can't understand you, they shouldn't be selling you products and unable to understand and deal with queries such as mine.
People who don't know their rights, don't actually have those rights.0 -
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gingergirl21 wrote: »Cheers for that - York too so very local.
01604 is Northampton.0 -
gingergirl21 wrote: »I made the rep aware of this, and said the card would be no good to me if it paid off the balance transfer first, before purchases, as we would continue to make and pay off purchases each month. I was assured that we would not be charged any interest if we carried on doing this. ...
He said as a good will gesture he would put a note on the file that all interest will be refunded - however it is up to me to call each month to ask for this to happen. This is not satisfactory and I will be writing them a letter.
Well... in this "day and age" I think this is not a bad outcome. OF COURSE, it should be possible to agree something on the phone and rely on it happening. But the reality is if you're agreeing something out of the ordinary its just not likely to happen.
In this case, they weren't prepared to admit fault, but provided a workaround solution - they would "refund all interest" against your phoning them up.
By all means, take the view that this is "not satisfactory" and "write them a letter"... but why not look on the bright side? They have at least agreed to effect the outcome you believed you were entitled to. Just their IT systems aren't designed to cope and they are asking your co-operation. Yep, their fault. But is it so bad?
I had a situation with a mobile phone company. Agreed something clearly with the call centre and then it didn't happen. They REFUSED to take my word for it and since I can't prove it I'm stuck.
Thanks for the warning. But my advice is:
1) Don't rely on verbal stuff - especially something to do with interest calculation methods if it conflicts with standard printed T+Cs
2) If you are offered something verbally, then get it in writing before you rely on it OR at least record the conversation. (Don't rely on them being able to find their own recording after the event.)0 -
An option is to get another card for your purchase at least till the 0% BT period on barclaycard. This way you do not have call up every month to reclaim the interest.0
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2010 - year of the troll
Niddy - Over & Out :wave:
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If you ring Barclaycard Card Services on 01604 234234, you'll avoid both the overseas call centre and the perishing 0870 numbers
Not totally true, it still dynamically routes the call, the Liverpool number is the one you want, but can't find it at the moment.These are my thoughts and no one else's, so like any public forum advice - check it out before entering into contracts or spending your hard earned cash!
I don't know everything, however I do try to point people in the right direction but at the end of the day you can only ever help yourself!0
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