Disappointing Barclays

yorkshireOAP

Hi,

My wife passed away 5 weeks ago, so I thouight it was about time I cancelled her Barclays Current account which has funds in. I tried to ring the generic cutomer service number but got lost in all the phone options and started asking details I did not know about.
So, I went to our local town, the one which has featured greatly on day 4 of Tour De Yorkshire, with all the relevant documents at 11.00am today. I was told there was only one advisor in the branch and was booked up, but would squeeze me in at 12 noon. To be fair I was asked if I wanted to speak to one of the assistants' who was dealing with customer transactions. I thought a private conversation would be more appropriate. So I ambled around town, had a coffee and returned at 11.55am. I could see the advisor was busy and other cutomers were waiting. At 12.20pm I managed to grab the advisors attention but was told I could not be dealt with. The first appointment time was 1 week later. I was totally flabergasted I have to wait so long. When a person is a little emotionally affected, I would think more priority could be given. I guess the lack of staff is due to all of us using telephone banking. I am just venting my spleen, I certainly will not be opening an account there.


R.

EssexExile

Get back on the phone, press any button that gets you to a human then ask for the "bereavement team". That works with Natwest & gets you to the only helpful people in the organisation (in my experience). Branch staff were no help at all.

Uxb

In this situation whether it is banks, mobile phone contracts, utilities whatever etc you must/need only to deal with the special bereavement teams the organizations will have set up.
They will all have set procedures to go through when registering the death of an account holder - and seeing an original of a death certificate is usually one of them.

Many will have a special phone no to call;
Here is the Barclays website address for bereavement situations
https://www.barclays.co.uk/power-of-attorney/what-to-do-when-someone-dies/

All this is usually outside the experience or capability of branch staff to do anything.

Mchambers

My sympathies for your loss. Barclays are a dreadful company. I worked there for many years. I am glad that I left. I will give you the email address of their ceo Jes Staley.

The trouble with Barclays is that that have off-shored many functions (HR, IT, etc.) to India that they are effectively useless.

Drop an em to Jes. You won't get a response for a few days but it will be sorted.

agrinnall

Mchambers wrote: »

Drop an em to Jes. You won't get a response for a few days but it will be sorted.

OP, my sympathies on your loss. Banks can be a bit tricky to deal with after a death, and as EssexExile and Uxb have suggested, the specialist bereavement team will be your best way forward.


Just ignore everything that Mchambers has to say, he has the world's biggest chip on his shoulder about banking in general and Barclays in particular.

Robin9

From Barclays website

Please call us on 0800 068 2238. Our bereavement partners Simplify1 will complete the notification and discuss obtaining probate if required.

robatwork

agrinnall wrote: »

Just ignore everything that Mchambers has to say, he has the world's biggest chip on his shoulder about banking in general and Barclays in particular.

Well at least we know why the shoulder chip now!

yorkshireOAP

Thanks to all. I will try this bereavement team tomorrow. Thaks too to McChambers.


R.

jonesMUFCforever

I had to recently go to a Barclays branch with a death certificate and was dealt with with sympathy and seen there and then.
This might have been because it was late in the day and the adviser had no appointments.

These days bank branches have more machines than people - you can't really blame them when other people had already booked appointments.

Sorry for your loss.

Mchambers

yorkshireOAP wrote: »

Thanks to all. I will try this bereavement team tomorrow. Thaks too to McChambers.


R.

Glad to help.

knightfox

Sorry for your loss