Santander switch pre-guarantee

mg1007

Hi everyone,

I'm needing some advice in how to take my complaint with Santander forward.

In April 2013 I switched my current account from BoS to Santander using their switch service. This was necessary as I was newly employed by them and could not have my salary paid into another account. I'd had my BoS account for years with no issues.

After being advised in branch that my direct debits, standing orders and funds would be transferred they told me my overdraft would be matched and that my old account would also be closed.

The latter did not happen, nor was there correspondence from BoS to advise me. Fast forward several months and my £15 account fee had continued to come off, taking me into unplanned overdraft with several hundreds of pounds of charges. In my naivety I panicked and began to pay it off in a plan that I couldn't afford, as soon as it was in planned overdraft it again fell away and eventually a default was added in 2014.

Fast forward to Nov 2016 and this debt has been sold on to Lowell debt agency with BoS (now Halifax) being marked as settled and Lowell as a default.

Now that I am older and wiser (sometimes) I decided to contact Santander in regards to the fact the account was not closed originally as I was told it would be, causing me these issues - other than this my credit report is near perfect but this is drastically bringing it down.

Notes from their response -

In this instance the issues have not been caused by Santander and we are not liable for any charges or fees.

I have not been able to trace a switch for you in 2013 under the 7 day Current Account Switch Service. Please note the 7 day Switch Guarantee process that included the full switch of payments, redirection of credits and included the closure of the old account was introduced on 16/09/2013. The only switch process found was requested on XX/04/2013 which predates the Switch Guarantee.

Under the switch process that was used at the time there was no guarantee in place. The switch would only take care of transferring regular payments. The transfer of funds and redirection of incoming credits as well as the closure of the old account was not covered and would be completed by the customer. Therefore, in this instance there has been no error in the completion of the switch.

The old bank would not have been contacted to close the account as part of the process. Any fees or charges that have been applied are not covered under the switch or the result of a Santander error.

Where I am struggling is that I don't have the original letter with the terms and conditions however what I was told by the adviser was much more similar to the switch guarantee which would have been introduced a couple of months later. Due to there being no funds in my BoS account at the time as I transferred the last £40 into the Santander account to "activate" it I cannot prove or disprove if funds would have been transferred as I was advised had I left money in the account.

What I have found is an article from thisismoney - PUBLISHED: 10:25, 20 November 2012

It outlines the general process for switching banks and says the following -

But thanks to processes already in place at most major providers, moving your bank account to another provider is already typically a simple and painless task, which can pay major dividends in terms of better services and rewards.

Then it goes on to say -

The process works like this:
You fill in an application and transfer form, provide identification, typically photo ID and a utility bill, as proof of address.
Your new current account provider will ask your old bank for a list of all Direct Debits and standing orders you have – you can specify any you don’t want to move across.
Your new bank contacts the companies and your employer and switches your salary and regular payments to the new account and sets up standing orders as needed.
Your account is set up, and on a set date you are then up and running with your balance transferred and old account closed, if requested.

Assuming, as now, that most banks have very similar processes, and given that the writer was able to be so general surely means that I'm not going crazy?

I hope someone can help!

MG

grumbler

I see two problems:

1. You can't prove what you were promised under the old switching procedure.
2. The 'guarantee' and the compulsory closure of the old account after switching were introduced only under the new scheme.

If anything goes wrong with the switch, your new bank will refund any interest (paid or lost) and charges made on either your old or new current accounts as a result of this failure.

MSE: 7-day bank switching era begins: Full Q&A

JuicyJesus

The fact of the matter is that this happened well over three years ago, and you've had ample opportunity to notice the issue. In particular, I'm very surprised that you've had no correspondence from BoS.

Shakin_Steve

Were you not getting statements or letters warning you of impending charges from BoS? Surely, if the account was still open, there must have been some form of communication?
Sorry, JJ, you beat me to it.

mg1007

Thanks for the replies,

I didn't as I moved house very shortly after getting my job with Santander and assuming BoS was closed had no need to update them of my new address, they eventually phoned me but by then I was already well into an unplanned overdraft however attempted the plan to pay it back.

I take full responsibility for forgetting about the debt, last week was the first time I've ever seen my credit report as I don't really have any credit and noticed the debt had been sold on in Nov.

I've asked for the terms and conditions of the old switch agreement as after scouring the web for bank switching processes from 2012/2013 most of them state they close the old account (from Lloyds down to the Co-op) and I can't see Santander being the only one not to, especially after being told otherwise! The BoS account had a balance of £0 it was simply the monthly fee that continued.

YorkshireBoy

I seem to remember that pre-CASS some banks included an account closure form in their welcome pack (along with a salary re-direct form for your employer). You had to complete this and return it with the list of DDs and SOs they sent you. Not sure if Santander did/should have done.

Have you had Santander's 'final response' to your complaint? Did it say you could go to the FOS?

Have you also made a complaint to BOS? They clearly had a contact number for you (or maybe they eventually got it via the CRAs' GAIN (gone away information network) process?), even though they didn't have a postal address.