MBNA replacement cards delayed/lost in post

jrawle

My MBNA card expires at the end of January, and for a while now my online account has invited me to activate my new card. Yet the new card still hasn't arrived. I think they normally send out the replacement at the end of November or beginning of December.

However, exactly the same thing happened two years ago. My replacement card didn't turn up. I phoned to report it, and was told it was sent out ages ago. So they insisted on closing my account and starting a new one, a nuisance since I know my card number by heart, and it also means all the hassle of registering again with Paypal etc. rather than just updating the expiry date.

Then, the day after next, my original "lost" card turned up in the post. This was too much of a coincidence as far as I was concerned. I contacted MBNA, but was told it was too late to reinstate the card as it had already been cancelled. I was not happy. I even called the company who deals with MBNA's mail (UKMail?) and they said it was very unlikely it was stuck in their system for such a long time. It was as if MBNA had forgotten to send it until I phoned.

I simply can't believe the same thing has happened again. I am not going to report it until well into January this time, although of course I'm checking my account regularly to make sure there are no unauthorised transactions, although I think that's highly unlikely.

So my question is: has anyone else had the same issue with MBNA not sending a replacement card until you phone up to query it? I can't imagine I'm their favourite customer as I never pay interest or charges. Are they trying to get rid of me? Or is this just an example of their incompetence?

Hax

If your current card doesn't expire until the end of January, then there's not much reason for them to send the new one until closer to the expiry date.

I would imagine that your replacement would arrive sometime in the six weeks leading up to the expiry of your current account

I very much doubt that it's the conspiracy you're making out - everything is automatically triggered by computer these days.

I'd only worry about it if you haven't received the replacement say two weeks before the current card expires.

jrawle

Hax wrote: »

If your current card doesn't expire until the end of January, then there's not much reason for them to send the new one until closer to the expiry date.

I would imagine that your replacement would arrive sometime in the six weeks leading up to the expiry of your current account.

Except that:

• When I phoned two years ago, the woman implied that the replacement card had been sent a few weeks previously
• The online account has a link inviting me to activate my new card
• In previous years when I did receive my new card, it arrived much earlier - MBNA allow a lot of overlap (the start date is typically November for a January expiry)

Just maybe they have a policy of sending cards later now, but the online system has to "activate" link from a set time before. In that case, when I phoned two years ago, the incompetent customer service agent wrongly told me I should have received the card, and somehow triggered its sending (I don't really think they post them individually by hand, incidentally!)

I'm not so worried about receiving it this time as I now have a Santander Zero card too. I'd cancel the MBNA one if it didn't have such a larger credit limit, and will do so if they say I have to change my number again.

Jammi

jrawle wrote: »

My MBNA card expires at the end of January, and for a while now my online account has invited me to activate my new card. Yet the new card still hasn't arrived.

I had a similar issue recently with a link on my account to activate my replacement MBNA card, a good few months before I actually got the new card. All I did was keep an eye on the account for any irregular activity. The new card eventually arrived in the same month that the old one expired. You will probably receive the new card sometime next month.

Typhoon2000

Same here, MBNA online accounting started inviting me to active the new card 6 week or so before it arrived.

jrawle

To follow up to this post, I finally received my replacement card today! As Hax suggested, it's two weeks before the old card expired.

What's more, the new card offers PayPass contactless payments - I wasn't expecting that.

It does make me more annoyed with the woman on the customer services line two years ago, who was clearly mistaken when she claimed my new card had been sent out "ages ago". In future years I won't worry about not receiving my replacement card until the last minute.

Thanks again to everyone who replied.