Do I have grounds for a complaint?

michael1234

The other day, my bank's fraud detection system kicked in on my debit card because apparently I'd made some "unusual" purchases.

That was about 11.30pm at night and I wasn't able to access anyone in the bank until around 8am the next morning when they contacted me (automated message) and I confirmed the transactions were mine.

So my question is, if the bank blocks my card for some hours but doesn't give me a way to contact them during that period and unblock, is that grounds for a complaint to the ombudsman?

eskbanker

No, IMHO - if you want a bank that you can speak with 24 hours a day (quite a few don't offer this) then this is worth checking via their 'contact us' website pages. Or do you mean that they claim to be contactable through the night but weren't for some reason?

michael1234

Wow - thanks so much for your prompt answer. I shan't waste my time submitting a complaint then. Thanks again!

cloud_dog

Interesting. Which bank?

When this has happened to me (Tesco CC if I remember correctly), they sent me a text asking me to reply Yes or No, if the transaction was valid. I rarely, if ever, make purchases directly from my bank account (ignoring bills etc).

stevenhp1987

If my card get's declined, I always ring them up and then get passed to the security team to verify transactions etc.

Most (not all) accounts will have 24/7 support. Does your bank not have this? If not, you could have used an alternative payment card?

[Deleted User]

No not really.

What if it was a genuine fraud attempt at that time of the night?

michael1234

The complaint (if I made one but on the fence now) would be nothing to do with them stopping my card late at night. It would be that they don't provide any means (automated or not) to verify me until several hours later. They have so far stated in a secure message that the reason for this is because they "don't want to disturb customers at that time". I think its more to do with not having enough staff or systems in place to support customers.

I do have other cards but what if I didn't or what if those other cards were managed in the same way so I never really could be confident they would be working and what if I'd needed the funds in an emergency?

The bank is Smile.

eskbanker

michael1234 wrote: »

I do have other cards but what if I didn't or what if those other cards were managed in the same way so I never really could be confident they would be working and what if I'd needed the funds in an emergency?

The bank is Smile.

https://www.smile.co.uk/faqs/general/when-can-i-contact-you-to-manage-my-account/PROD-9047 does say that:

You can also call us between 8am - 8pm (7 days a week) if:

[...]

We’ve not made a payment you requested from your account.

so, as mentioned previously, if it's important to you to be able to rely on the option of speaking to someone at any time to unblock a transaction then bank with a bigger and better-funded financial institution rather than a minnow....

dj1471

It's a valid complaint, but don't expect any compensation or anything.

Which banks do offer 24 hour customer service then? The Lloyds group discontinued this last year and they're hardly a small player.

eskbanker

dj1471 wrote: »

Which banks do offer 24 hour customer service then? The Lloyds group discontinued this last year and they're hardly a small player.

I wasn't actually suggesting that larger banks automatically offer 24/7 contact simply by virtue of their scale, but a quick look around the websites of some would suggest that HSBC don't but First Direct do (presumably stemming from their phone banking heritage), Santander don't, Barclays and RBS do.

However, there's a difference between a bank publishing that they're always contactable by phone and them actually being able and willing to help customers in OP's situation....

pinkdalek

Yes you have a reason to complain, they cannot stop you. Don't expect anything back, however if this happened to more than one customer and nobody said anything the bank would continue as it was.

The bank is acting within reason to protect your account, you would not be happy if it was genuine fraud and they did nothing. What is annoying is lack of action you can take to resolve it sooner.

It is always useful to have a secondary account in times like this so that if your purchase was vital you could always use an alternative payment method with a different bank.