Nat West Account Failure

Maiden_Mum

I also had this message from them OP & I rang to query it with them. They said it was because I have opened two accounts with them (which wasn't my original intention) and my address had copies and -pasted over from one account to the other which had generated this automated message. I'm wondering if perhaps your son's account and yours are somehow linked on their system?
I must admit I am finding the whole thing a frustrating process but that is partly due to errors on their part but also my own confusion and errors as it is confusing with two accounts & the fact that their debit cards do not have account numbers on them plus the fact I have been with my bank for donkey years and card readers and things are all new to me.

jonesMUFCforever

What I don't like about Nat West is (unless they have now changed their systems) that you cannot view your direct debits in payments list until one payment has been taken.
So if old bank transfers some D/D which I have forgotten about I have no way of cancelling it unless they take a payment!

EachPenny

James_N wrote: »

You are wrong because the application process asks you to select a branch, it even has a sort code selector to use.

So, you diligently do this, and then Nat West carelessly allocate you an entirely different branch.

No, agrinnall is correct in what they said. For a personal customer it makes absolutely no difference which branch your account is based at. There may well be a system to express a preference, but that doesn't mean the bank must base your account at the branch you nominate. Rather than being done "carelessly" I would assume there is some process involved in deciding which branch your account is assigned to. The fact we don't know/understand how that algorithm works doesn't mean there has been a "failure of organisation".

James_N wrote: »

So, I think I am totally justified in thinking this is a poor start.

You're obviously free to think what you want, but getting this annoyed about something you "could not care less" about probably means banking with NatWest is not for you.

glider3560

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

What I don't like about Nat West is (unless they have now changed their systems) that you cannot view your direct debits in payments list until one payment has been taken.
So if old bank transfers some D/D which I have forgotten about I have no way of cancelling it unless they take a payment!

I found this annoying too. I transferred two direct debits (both Tesco savings) that I would like to cancel. But cannot until the payment is actually taken for the first time! It's too late to cancel the request on the Tesco end as they've already processed it.

Robin9

EachPenny wrote: »

. For a personal customer it makes absolutely no difference which branch your account is based at. There may well be a system to express a preference, but that doesn't mean the bank must base your account at the branch you nominate.

Not all branches are "full " branches. My local Barclays is a sub of the main one in the next town.

EachPenny

Robin9 wrote: »

Not all branches are "full " branches. My local Barclays is a sub of the main one in the next town.

But as agrinnall was pointing out, has that ever had a practical impact on the banking service you received?

James_N

EachPenny wrote: »

No, agrinnall is correct in what they said. For a personal customer it makes absolutely no difference which branch your account is based at. There may well be a system to express a preference, but that doesn't mean the bank must base your account at the branch you nominate. Rather than being done "carelessly" I would assume there is some process involved in deciding which branch your account is assigned to. The fact we don't know/understand how that algorithm works doesn't mean there has been a "failure of organisation".:)

Then why bother to ask the question during the application? if they were not going to allocate a nearby branch, why not say so? If they'd said this, I would not be worried. But they asked for a choice - then ignored that choice. What comes next in such an organisation?

EachPenny wrote: »

You're obviously free to think what you want, but getting this annoyed about something you "could not care less" about probably means banking with NatWest is not for you.

Way off the point! Just because I could not actually care where the branch is, does not mean I don't care that they are inefficient from the outset? And does your comment indicates that Nat West is prone to error (and you are OK with that? - if so more fool you).

Seems like they are no-good from the off, and have just showered me with paper for no result. Made my choice based on the evidence. They had a chance and have ****ed up.

IanManc

James_N wrote: »

Then why bother to ask the question during the application? if they were not going to allocate a nearby branch, why not say so? If they'd said this, I would not be worried. But they asked for a choice - then ignored that choice. What comes next in such an organisation?

a) They invade Mars.
b) They kidnap your granny and sell her into slavery.
c) They control everyone's minds via their gas or electricity smart meters.
d) They blackmail all UK retailers into using dog meat in their chilli con carne ready meals.
e) none of the above.



Thin end of the wedge / reducto ad absurdum arguments are pointless.

:beer:

Shakin_Steve

When Barclays changed everyone's sort code recently, they sent out letters saying that the new codes were not associated with any particular branch. Of course, direct debit mandates still ask for a branch address, so I just use the old one.

System

We had similar problems 3 years ago trying to go to Natw*st, in the end we went to N/Wide.
Natw*st took forever to send paperwork, then said we had to go to the branch 4 miles away and do it in person. Then they still got it all wrong and couldn't understand that we wanted a joint account and then a separate account each. Then the week after it was opened, they closed the branch in the local village, half mile from our house!