Barclays ISA - they have stolen my money

glastoveteran

Hi all,

I applied for a Barclays tax-beater cash ISA at the end of the financial year on 5th April 2007 and deposited a cheque for £3,000. Like many I hadn't had any confirmation of the account for several weeks but was told that due to the huge demand it was taking longer than usual to process the applications. My cheque had been paid in and I was told that the interest would be back-dated.

This went on for some time, always being told that the application was being handled but still never receiving confirmation.

Today, 5 months on, I was finally told that there was a problem with the application and it had been returned to the branch back in April and no account had been opened in my name. "What about the £3,000?" I asked. "We'll investigate" they said.

Obviously I'd quite like my £3,000 back, plus interest, but can I claim for anything else?

Thanks all,

Alex

chesky369

I'm always interested in why people leave applying for ISAs until the very last minute of the financial year; if anything goes wrong (like this case) they have no leeway to make alternative arrangements.
If you get your money back, plus interest, what else would you want to claim for? I mean, you haven't suffered grief or torment.

dunstonh

Obviously I'd quite like my £3,000 back, plus interest, but can I claim for anything else?

£3k plus interest is what you are entitled to. Nothing else. However, sometimes they issue £10-£25 goodwill gestures.

isofa

Well if they made a mistake and didn't open it correctly, then you have also lost your 3K ISA allowance for that year.

As you cannot ever get back this tax allowance, hopefully you'll get a little more as a goodwill gesture if you complain. Several similar cases have been covered in the Sunday broadsheets, with different banks/building socs. giving different amounts as compensation.

Obviously, although not very helpful advice now - never leave opening ISAs until the last minute though, best to open them on the 6th April each year, with a full 12 months to go before the tax year ends on the 5th April the following year.

liz105

was the cheque cleared from your account? I mean to say have they actually taken your money from you at any point?? if not then cancel the cheque, in fact when I worked for a bank we didnt accept cheques over 6 months old anyway. If they have put the money somewhere then it should be easy for them to find it. They will drag their heals tho.

rathernot

chesky369 wrote: »

I'm always interested in why people leave applying for ISAs until the very last minute of the financial year; if anything goes wrong (like this case) they have no leeway to make alternative arrangements.
If you get your money back, plus interest, what else would you want to claim for? I mean, you haven't suffered grief or torment.

Some people just don't think until the last minute (as was the case with me) and (as was also the case with me) often financial institutions bring out great "last minute" deals such as the Barclays ISA.

The other side of that argument is if you're a business don't offer something that you can't supply.

shown73

Except, of course, if your business is enticing people to send you large chunks of your hard-earned wedge, with no intention of offering much in return. Isn't this called fraud?

DavidBH_2

Having seen the recommondation in this sites Newsletter, I attempted to obtain a cash ISA for the 2006/7 tax year-the application was submitted on time but not processed by Barclays for some weeks. At some stage, the tax year on the form was altered to 2007/8. Barclays do not seem to be interested in investigating this irregularity (although they have sent me a copy of the application form, which clearly shows the alteration), or even telling me why they have not sent me a statement outlining the sum invested, despite repeated requests. I have now referred the matter to the FOS-has anybody else experienced this degree of lack of customer care from Barclay PLC Public Relations Office?