halifax left me stranded in india

callum9999

Without meaning to sound rude - why were you "in tears" down the phone when you said yourself your partner had a debit card that worked? Although still pretty bad customer service, maybe you being really emotional just wound up the operator (maybe you just happened to get through to a bad one, or someone having a bad day) and they just wanted to get rid of you?

Do you have a link for that instant international transfer? Never heard of that and can't see it on the website (only the normal transfer to other accounts - I assume you didn't have an Indian account). And just for the record, you don't have to put +44 to call a British mobile from Britain - no matter where it is. They either lied or your phone wasn't working properly (it may have seemed like it was, but it's hardly unusual for roaming to be messed up).

atrixblue.-MFR-.

jonjamie1970 wrote: »

How can you possibly expect people to read this mess ?

oh i'm sorry, i didnt know you had to have a masters in english to post in these forums, i did read the forum etiquette but didnt list any qualifactions or specifacations to posting in the forums, but did say something about pulling people up on spelling and the like, perhaps you should have a read?

malcolmffc

atrixblue.-MFR-. wrote: »

oh i'm sorry, i didnt know you had to have a masters in english to post in these forums, i did read the forum etiquette but didnt list any qualifactions or specifacations to posting in the forums, but did say something about pulling people up on spelling and the like, perhaps you should have a read?

Proper English isn't compulsory, but you should be aware that 50%+ of people will simply skip over your post when they see it is bereft of punctuation and paragraphs. It's in your own interest to post coherently.

lotterywinner

Hi

If you look on Halifax's website, there will be an address for complaints usually postal or fax. If you write to them it forces them to respond to you in writing explaining their position, rather than someone in a branch fobbing you off. I have had a small payment to my account as a gesture of goodwill from a complaint I made this way.

jellybean39

Alot of banks ask you to let them know if you are going abroad or they will stop your card because of unusual spending. Lucky i had let bc know when i went to knew york (or not as they are now on my list lol) or they would have denied transactions.

chattychappy

jellybean39 wrote: »

Alot of banks ask you to let them know if you are going abroad or they will stop your card because of unusual spending.

Yep they say that. I doubt whether it does any harm, but in my experience it makes no difference at all. I have long since stopped bothering.

Azrael_1701

chattychappy wrote: »

Yep they say that. I doubt whether it does any harm, but in my experience it makes no difference at all. I have long since stopped bothering.

With halifax, from what I have seen you will get 1 transaction or cash withdrawal before the fraud team pounce on the card and stop anything further.

One freebie, then lockdown.

chattychappy

OK, I don't have that card. A typical experience for me was Zero. Used without a problem for months. Then got stopped at a shop I often use in Asia. Got it unblocked (assured me it would be OK), used once, then blocked again. I was stuck in this loop for a month or so, then all OK. Post Office - never called them, never blocked.

Most of my spend is overseas.

Tangible

An 'instant international transfer' is not something to rely on to get you out of a fix. More than anything it depends upon the country you're in and the sophistication of their banking network, what bank and branch from which you choose to collect the money and the flexibility of their banking system. On all fronts India is one of the most difficult countries in which to expect a speedy money transfer, and no bank is comfortable paying out money to a complete stranger they'll never see again.

Most banks offer the service but using a partners card is a far more sensible alternative to avoid a lot of hassle and time wasting that's only going to stress you even more.

chattychappy

Moneygram/Western Union works well in situations such as this, though expensive.