£150 from Natwest!!

alant1000

Hi,

Not sure if this is the right category, BUT...

I had a Natwest credit gold card, which i applied for independently of my gold account. I had a zero balance, so decided to cancel the credit card. I rang the Natwest gold card hotline / call centre, and was told by a lady that it was "IMPOSSIBLE" to close the account over the phone and that the only physical way was to take it to my local branch and had the credit card to the bank manager.

I smelt a rat, as i know that the call centres have targets for client retention, and had closed cards over the phone before, so I took the card to the branch, explained the situation to a bemused looking manager who confirm that cards can indeed be closed over the phone, and left it with him.

I then wrote and complained and made up some "iffy" story that i had recorded the call!! I got offered £25 compensation straight away, i refused politely saying that i was going to report them to the FSA (not even sure if these were the right people!), then they upped it to £50. I wrote back and said its £150 or nothing (to test the water) - AND THEY SENT ME A CHEQUE FOR £150! :eek: .

For me politeness and persistence worked here, i was never rude to them. But the fact is i got £150 for the minor inconvenience of nipping into my branch to cancel my card!!!:T

natweststaffmember

well, actually the answer is no, you need to cut the card up and return it to NatWest credit card centre asking to cancel it. They are obviously are still generous on the refunds side still. NatWest do like giving money to customers:)

LozBingley

natweststaffmember wrote: »

NatWest do like giving money to customers:)

Lend us a quid

alant1000

natweststaffmember wrote: »

well, actually the answer is no, you need to cut the card up and return it to NatWest credit card centre asking to cancel it. They are obviously are still generous on the refunds side still. NatWest do like giving money to customers:)

...SO just to clarify - I was right then, and you can close an account over the phone and it doesnt have to be handed in to the local branch?? In Natwest's credit they dealt with it at their customer contact centre very professionally and did apologise, their call centre staff however need to understand that we are not all as gullible as they think :rolleyes: . I was practically brought up in call centres, know all there is to know about retention / referral / renewal rates etc. They are all under a bit of pressure - but this should never come at the expense of the customer like me who pays their wages. :T