Swithed bank account and now recieving charges

Heavenkiss

Hi guys,

My girlfriend switched bank accounts from HSBC to Lloyds tsb in April of this year.

She however got a phonecall this morning from HSBC saying she owed a direct debit from May. The account should of been closed as Lloyds apparently took care of all that for her, even so they said they woukd carry over her existing direct debits etc.

HSBC anyhow let the direct debit leave the account which had a zero balance and she now owes the direct debit plus interest from May.

Is she to blame here or can any action be took?

Thanks in advance

noh

Heavenkiss wrote: »

Hi guys,

.........................
Is she to blame here or can any action be took?

Thanks in advance

Really she should have monitored both accounts at the time of the switch to ensure everything was done.
I assume the DD in question was switched to Lloyds by the June payment?

Heavenkiss

Each direct resumed from Lloyds after that, yes.

System

Check the Terms & Conditions of the Lloyds Switching Service.

Contact Lloyds and inform them what has happened with the D/D on the old HSBC account.

In my opinion, Lloyds should pay the charge etc. on your behalf since it was their error that caused the problem.

i.e.
As part of the switching process, Lloyds should have ensured that all outgoing payments (including all D/D) were taken from your new account before closing the old HSBC account, hence funds should have remained in the HSBC account until the process was complete.

noh

BAA1 wrote: »

Check the Terms & Conditions of the Lloyds Switching Service.

Contact Lloyds and inform them what has happened with the D/D on the old HSBC account.

In my opinion, Lloyds should pay the charge etc. on your behalf since it was their error that caused the problem.

i.e.
As part of the switching process, Lloyds should have ensured that all outgoing payments (including all D/D) were taken from your new account before closing the old HSBC account, hence funds should have remained in the HSBC account until the process was complete.

That may not be the case.
What error have Lloyds made?

From Lloyds website click on the "full details" tab.

"We can’t guarantee that all companies we contact will change your account details, so it’s a good idea to check both your accounts as payments become due – especially mortgage and insurance payments to check that you have funds available to cover them."

"We'll tell you when your transfer should complete. Until then, to avoid overdraft charges on either account, try to keep sufficient funds in both accounts to pay bills/settle payments as they become due."

System

noh wrote: »

That may not be the case.
What error have Lloyds made?

From Lloyds website click on the "full details" tab.

"We can’t guarantee that all companies we contact will change your account details, so it’s a good idea to check both your accounts as payments become due – especially mortgage and insurance payments to check that you have funds available to cover them."

"We'll tell you when your transfer should complete. Until then, to avoid overdraft charges on either account, try to keep sufficient funds in both accounts to pay bills/settle payments as they become due."

I said what the process should be - in the "i.e." part of my post.

That is why I said check the T&Cs

It seems Lloyds (Toy Town Bank) do not offer a full comprehensive switching service with proper guarantees.

OP - Can you confirm who actually arranged the transfer of salary payments (if applicable) and the closure of the HSBC account ?

The banks I deal with do offer a better service.

noh

BAA1 wrote: »

I said what the process should be - in the "i.e." part of my post.

That is why I said check the T&Cs

It seems Lloyds (Toy Town Bank) do not offer a full comprehensive switching service with proper guarantees.

OP - Can you confirm who actually arranged the transfer of salary payments (if applicable) and the closure of the HSBC account ?

The banks I deal with do offer a better service.

All the banks switching services I have used have similar disclaimers.

System

noh wrote: »

All the banks switching services I have used have similar disclaimers.

Are those Toy Town banks Too :rotfl:

My bank has this in the Switching Service T&Cs:

We’ll do everything we can to make the process go as smoothly as possible. It’s very unlikely that you will incur bank charges as a result of an error or unnecessary delay on our part. However, if this happens we’ll refund these charges in full.
When we receive your application we will send you details of a telephone line direct to our dedicated switching team who will answer any questions you have on your switch.

However, it depends who was responsible for closing the old account. If not Lloyds, then they would not be responsible

Heavenkiss

BAA1 wrote: »

Are those Toy Town banks Too :rotfl:

My bank has this in the Switching Service T&Cs:


However, it depends who was responsible for closing the old account. If not Lloyds, then they would not be responsible

Tbh I think lloyds should pay the charges. What you posted about your bank BAA1 i think is commendable. Is it natwest? I remember reading a statement like that awhile ago (i looked into switching to Natwest) and that was the reason why i posted - hopefully lloyds will see it in the same light as your bank.

I'll get more information and let you know. The sheer fact HSBC let this go on without contact is disgusting imo though. Will have to get her to speak to lloyds too.

rb10

BAA1 wrote: »

My bank has this in the Switching Service T&Cs:

We’ll do everything we can to make the process go as smoothly as possible. It’s very unlikely that you will incur bank charges as a result of an error or unnecessary delay on our part. However, if this happens we’ll refund these charges in full.
When we receive your application we will send you details of a telephone line direct to our dedicated switching team who will answer any questions you have on your switch.

Note that they are only guaranteeing to refund charges if they caused the error.

Here it looks more likely that it's HSBC or the company who are at fault.

noh

BAA1 wrote: »

Are those Toy Town banks Too :rotfl:

My bank has this in the Switching Service T&Cs:


However, it depends who was responsible for closing the old account. If not Lloyds, then they would not be responsible

Your bank Natwest, as already pointed out guarantee to refund charges if they make an error. I'm sure any bank would do likewise.

Natwest also say on their website see days 6-9 under the "step-by-step" tab.

http://www.natwest.com/personal/current-accounts/g2/switching-to-us/dedicated-team.ashx#tabs=section2

"We rely on existing bank and Direct Debit originators to comply with our instructions regarding where to take the payments from"

"We recommend that you ensure your old account has been closed (if requested) and check your statement carefully to make sure everything is proceeding as planned."


It is not apparent from the OP that Lloyds made any error in fact it looks like no errors were made by any party.
The OPs girlfriend should have monitored the switching process and left sufficient funds in her HSBC account to cover the DD.