Post Office/Nationwide

Any

Hi guys,

This is really just a moan. About most pointless application ever. 2 weeks I applied for Post Office credit card as I am going to US in Feb and it would be handy (due to no foreign currency charges). Allowed 6 weeks to complete.

First, they sent me letter requiring all sort of identification details. Either originals or "original sighted" sign copies. So off I go to the post office with some copied documents (as I was not going to send them original of my passport/driving licence) and apparently you can have it signed by Postmaster-which I thought is best and quickest, as their staff must be most trustworthy for them (and also trained). Our local Postmaster had done it all for me, stamped it, wrote tel number in there and all sorts....

I thought this as odd, as not only it is not my first product from Post Office but also I have never had problem before, so it is not like my credit files are not complete (I check them annualy as well). But hey ho, I though probably they do their own check.

Last night it all turned up back that they are not happy with it!!! Apparently the stamp is not absolutely clear on all documents!! And when they say absolutely, I mean absolutely, because everyone else can clearly read where it is from!! Apparently they want me to start all over again! In which case the card would not turn up on time at all because I have to wait until Saturday to go to Post office as I work like normal people do and then it would take them another at least a week before they send out paperwork to sign and THEN they might send you a card.

So I told them to stop the application.

To finish this moan on a positive note though... I bank with Nationwide so I called them afterwards to get card from them (higher charges, but still better then most cards) as that should be easy to obtain and I asked whether I still qualify for the BT offer, if I had their card in past - and they said that if it was closed more then 12 mths ago I do!!

So the rule where you can have only 1 offer in lifetime has definitely been scraped (there was some argument about it before here..)

alexei2k

Post Office lost my Driving Licence photocard that I sent with my application for a credit card although they did receive the rest of the application including the 2nd ID doc. I conclude the Licence was lost in their offices. How about that for ID fraud prevention and ID theft? It's a financial organization for ... sake!

chattychappy

What a mess and what a pity. I've found the PO to be genuinely 0% loaded as they say and so far it's never been blocked. Since some problems with Zero I've shoved about US$3000 through without a hitch. On the other hand you're missing out on what is probably the worst online system I've even seen.

Nationwide was always reliable too, but since the 1% thing came in I've only used it as a backup.

It maybe they've changed their policy. After years of having a card, for the first time ever they've made a BT offer. It was pretty rubbish, but they were pretty well known for not making repeat offers. Posters have noticed that in their publicity they've dropped the restriction that you can't benefit twice from an introductory offer. But it's still in the T+Cs at 7(e) see http://www.nationwide.co.uk/pdf/creditcard/P1404-CCard.pdf So if possible I'd get a name and number of someone who promised you the deal!