Santander Beyond Help !

pricey85

fluffnutter wrote: »

'May not be worth' in what sense? Because of the worry of bad customer service? Or because their current accounts don't pay good interest?

I'm quite happy with the 5% interest, it's head and shoulders above what I'm getting at the moment. My worry is that given the issues they seem to be having with their back office and customer service departments, asking them to move over my direct debits and monthly pay in exchange for some cash back and introductory interest rates might be inviting disaster. I'm just trying to weigh up whether people who have dealt with Santander would consider the gain worth the risk.

fluffnutter

pricey85 wrote: »

I'm quite happy with the 5% interest, it's head and shoulders above what I'm getting at the moment. My worry is that given the issues they seem to be having with their back office and customer service departments, asking them to move over my direct debits and monthly pay in exchange for some cash back and introductory interest rates might be inviting disaster. I'm just trying to weigh up whether people who have dealt with Santander would consider the gain worth the risk.

I'm sure that, for the majority of customers, the service is fine.

backfoot

fluffnutter wrote: »

I'm sure that, for the majority of customers, the service is fine.

The evidence of various Customer Service Surveys leads to a completely opposite conclusion.

My recent dealings with my own account and then the nightmare trying to help my mother also show a 100% failure rate.

jjj1980

fluffnutter wrote: »

When large organisations take over other large organisations, there's often a period of upheaval. Migrating data from old systems to new ones will cause some customers problems. However, there are ways of keeping this to a minimum and it would appear that Santander's takeover of A&L has been a particular mess.

What the real problem is though, is their appalling customer service and lack of ability to sort things out once a mistake has been brought to their attention. That's fairly unforgivable.

The problems highlighted in the Watchdog episode were focused on the storecard business, taken over from GE Money. A lot of the problems mentioned occured before the system changes, which have only been a very recent thing. Santander made changes to processess, made countless restructures and redundancies and these don't seem to be abating!! I should know, I was one of the ones affected by the redundancies and still have both family and friends working there, knowing their roles are at constant risk.

The timescales and practices they are following in handling the issues being raised are an absolute joke!! Look at the two examples of proof being provided of a wrongly applied purchase and the confusion over a payment. What, seriously, would have been the issue with the person on the phone who confirmed they proof had been received, actioning either the correcting transaction or the relevant request for one, rather than just stating timescales??? There doesn't seem to be any ownership.

hotmama

I am a frustrated previous a&l customer who received great service until Santander changed my sort code without telling me and I did not get paid correctly causing all sorts of financial problems. When I challenged y I had not been informed they told me I should have looked online!! I did not receive any communication from them about this. I am looking to move all financial dealing elsewhere but I have my mortgage with them and am nervous about being accepted with a new mortgage company!

fluffnutter

backfoot wrote: »

The evidence of various Customer Service Surveys leads to a completely opposite conclusion.

My recent dealings with my own account and then the nightmare trying to help my mother also show a 100% failure rate.

Of a sample of two! I expect fewer than 50% of customers with Santander accounts experience problems. I'm not advocating banking with them - I certainly wouldn't. But to say that they have a '100% failure rate' can't possibly be true.

23n1th

I rang them up and asked why I couldn't view my old abbey savings and new esaver through my old alliance and leicester online banking page, seeing as they were now all one company. They told me to go into a branch with ID etc and it would be sorted. A month after attending at the bank I finally get all their mail through so I can set up my new online banking and I can view all my accounts, however I still have my login details for the original A&L account which work, however I can only view that account.

I ring up and ask why they couldn't just make the other account viewable on my original online account (easier I would assume) and they say its impossible despite the new one being far less user friendly and inferior overall (and thats saying something considering how rubbish A&L are!) since they have a new website to "rule them all" which they are transferring people to right now. "Why wasn't I just put on this new website?" I ask followed by stuttering and mumbling about being offered it in the near future. Now apart from the online help section thinking I need to reboot my computer to clear cookies from my browser I now face having a third set of account details to remember when they do transfer me over to the new website, which I was told would meet all my online banking needs and more.

hoyles10

Today was day 5 of trying to change my address on a store card financed by them that i've had for 13 years. They need to know the sort code of the bank I was with when I opened the account which I was 17 at the time and changed years ago.

I've tried Phone, Email, Recorded delivery letter but still unable to change it. I haven't used it for years either but kept it in my wallet for when I was working away as I sometimes ended up away for a couple of days longer than I was supposed to be so it was always handy to nip into Top Man or Burtons and buy a couple of clean shirts and stick them on the card which I cleared at the end of the month when I got my bill.

Everything is still going to my mums house so it's not to bad but all I want to do is change my address!!!

No1

hoyles10 wrote: »

Today was day 5 of trying to change my address on a store card financed by them that i've had for 13 years. They need to know the sort code of the bank I was with when I opened the account which I was 17 at the time and changed years ago.

I've tried Phone, Email, Recorded delivery letter but still unable to change it. I haven't used it for years either but kept it in my wallet for when I was working away as I sometimes ended up away for a couple of days longer than I was supposed to be so it was always handy to nip into Top Man or Burtons and buy a couple of clean shirts and stick them on the card which I cleared at the end of the month when I got my bill.

Everything is still going to my mums house so it's not to bad but all I want to do is change my address!!!

This is one of the easier tasks which you should be able to resolve in the next couple of months at worst.

Following another couple of weeks of calls you will probably be at a position where you will be required to visit a branch with a ludicrous amount of ID. The first issue is that when you do visit the branch, they will have no knowledge of who/what/where/why (whilst ignoring the ID) and you will need to get back on the phone/mail in an attempt to get them "joined up" There are various departments that at best do not communicate, but mostly are completely unaware of each other existence.

Assuming that somehow you do manage to get them joined up, a repeat of the in branch ID process will be necessary - almost there. HOWEVER, whatever and how ever many forms of ID you do provide it will not be sufficient. Something will not be right.

At this point at least you will now only be dealing with the branch - the problem being (as you will know by this time) there are two categories of staff - One; whilst being as helpful and pleasant as they can, have no idea what they should be doing/why they are there and Two; the ones who also don't know what they are doing/why they are there but will treat you as some form of sub-species - if the latter is the case (as in mine) the whole process is at risk of failing and back to square one/further action may apply.

I've had a few probs - does it show?

Edit: Forgot to mention that during this, expect any/everything you may have with them - savings/current accounts/debits/standing orders etc. to be put on stop without notice - that does make for hard work, believe me.

anotherbaldrick

The biggest b@lls up from Sanatander is still yet to occur but it is heading towards RBS customers like an Eastern Block Juggernaut down the highway to doom. In just over 6 months the English branches are all set to be taken over by Santander in the sale agreed 12 months ago with the Government.
At this point all the faithful customers will find that in order to fit into their new Santander system their account numbers be changed, direct debit payments screwed up and electronic transfers into their account of wages and pensions irrevocably lost . Or else get out now, why should the turkeys wait for Christmas ?