Problems with Barclaycard after successful claim

andijc

Hi all,

I successfully claimed back almost £300 worth of charges from my Barclaycard (BC from here on in!) account about 2 years ago. The money i got back paid off my outstanding balance and i haven't used the account since.

About 4 months ago I registered with Experian and saw that my BC was listed as 0.00 balance, not 'settled' like my other closed accounts, which essentially means they are using up £500 worth of my available credit and not actually providing me with it.

I rang BC and they told them the problem. They told me it was because i had a one penny balance on the account, but that the account was closed. I questioned how i got a balance of 0.01p as it had been paid off and it had not been used the account or received any statements for almost 2 years. BC said they would cancel the 0.01p balance and the situation would correct itself once my credit file was updated by experian.

A week later i got a statement from BC stating my balance was 0.02p! I got back on the phone to them explained the problem again, and that their attempt at rectifying it had not worked so well! The BC lady again assured me that the account was closed, but it would not show up as closed until the balance had been paid off.

She told me she would clear the balance (which she didn't) and that she would send a letter confirming the account was closed. I told her I was not very happy with BC's conduct and asked to speak to her supervisor at which point she put my call on hold and the line suddenly went dead (just an innocent case of accidental disconnection, Im sure!)

I got the aforementioned letter, which stated something like 'your account has been closed but you will continue receiving statements whilst there is a balance' and at the top of the letter it stated my balance was 0.02p.

I am now very annoyed! I have spent more then £10 calling them and the problem only seems to get worse, not forgetting the fact that they have now failed to do what they promised on 2 occasions AND hung up on me!

Can anybody suggest a next step?

Thank you!

natweststaffmember

2p in credit or debit? If it's in credit, write to them and ask them to send you a cheque for the amount and close the account

andijc

Debit unfortunately, so they are still claiming i owe them money!

natweststaffmember

andijc wrote: »

Debit unfortunately, so they are still claiming i owe them money!

Ask them to either shut the account as it should have been done or you WILL take them to the FOS to sort this out(it's either £500 case fee for the FOS or closing your account, which option do you think they will take? )

olly300

andijc wrote: »

Debit unfortunately, so they are still claiming i owe them money!

Get pen to paper or better still use a computer.

Write a polite letter to Barclaycard with the title "Formal Complaint" and state your account number. In the letter tell them:
1. The debt they have been sending statements for has been cleared.
2. A brief history with as many exact dates as possible of how and why it is cleared. (You want the letter to be only one side of A4)
3. That if they can't resolve the issue by cancelling the entire balance and closing the account properly then you have not choice but to refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Send the letter to:
Barclaycard, Customer Relations Department, Barclaycard House, PO Box 5592, Northampton, NN4 1ZY

And send it by recorded delivery, or if you are being tight at least get a proof of posting.*

After 12 weeks if you get no joy from Barclaycard you can refer them to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

I've had issues with Barclaycard in the past and found that if their telephone operators don't do what you say, a letter will sort it out.


*Legally you don't have to do this but it's amazing how many companies will "lose" letters if they don't arrive by recorded delivery or registered post.