Banks refusing/ignoring/sidestepping clear requests to register complaints via chat

WillPS

ForumUser7 said:

Yorkshire_Pud said:

I’m another customer that’s suffered from Barclays complaint ‘handling’ which was to do with a credit card aka Barclaycard application. After online chat and speaking to a CS person I was told I had to write to a specific freepost address to make a complaint and to chivvy up my lost in space referred application.
I did this and it did stimulate progress for my application but my clearly labelled complaint has never been acknowledged or responded to.

It’s like wading through treacle on most levels to deal with Barclays if there’s any kind of glitch or problem they make it as hard as possible to make progress. To the point I won’t carry on with my complaint because all the different modes of communication I had to use and flim flam advice have left me with a ragbag of bits of info which might be hard to draw together in any comprehensible way.

Barclays favourite ‘trick’ seems to be labelling complaints as feedback when raised on the chat. And then you never hear back. It’s a very trying process trying to get things sorted with them, so I would agree with @masonic probably to just refer to the FOS after 8 weeks.

100%. My technique so far has been to open a complaint about the deliberate ignorance of the instruction to open a complaint, but sometimes they then open another 'feedback which you won't hear back about'(!!). I've got one complaint which I've insisted goes before an ombudsman where I had to ask 7 times for a complaint to be opened.

I will update the thread when I hear back from the ombudsman, but the investigator didn't really seem to pick up the ball with this aspect of my complaint (despite me repeatedly pointing back to it) so I'm not too optimistic.

Another one I've noticed Barclays do recently is offer you a pretty derisory amount of compensation then when you say that won't be acceptable they offer to pass it on to a 'complaints manager' they caveat it with 'but if I do that you might not get as much from them'; as if it's deal or no deal!

masonic

WillPS said:

Another one I've noticed Barclays do recently is offer you a pretty derisory amount of compensation then when you say that won't be acceptable they offer to pass it on to a 'complaints manager' they caveat it with 'but if I do that you might not get as much from them'; as if it's deal or no deal!

We had a very memorable incident where a similar thing happened at the FOS, with the investigator repeatedly warning that if the complainant didn't accept the decision they could get a MUCH LOWER offer from an Ombudsman.

It's almost as if these people fear scrutiny over their decisions.

WillPS

masonic said:

WillPS said:

Another one I've noticed Barclays do recently is offer you a pretty derisory amount of compensation then when you say that won't be acceptable they offer to pass it on to a 'complaints manager' they caveat it with 'but if I do that you might not get as much from them'; as if it's deal or no deal!

We had a very memorable incident where a similar thing happened at the FOS, with the investigator repeatedly warning that if the complainant didn't accept the decision they could get a MUCH LOWER offer from an Ombudsman.

It's almost as if these people fear scrutiny over their decisions.

Yes, I had a similar experience with the FOS once years ago before I knew better than to scrutinise.

I should add that I've had decent experience with FOS investigations too, most recently with what must have been a quite complicated case involving branch service (not Barclays) and their approach to helping my wife who has additional needs as a result of a hidden disability (which I had informed them in advance about). The investigator was very thorough and we were satisfied by their findings and directed actions.

Shakin_Steve

I found this on the web

Please call us on one of these numbers.

From the UK: 0800 282 390-

From abroad: +44 (Q)207 116 74881

If you'd like to make a new complaint

Select option 1 when you call.

We're here to help Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm, and Saturday from 9am to 5pm.

If you'd like to talk to us about an existing complaint

Select option 2 when you call, then select the type of complaint you're calling about, so we can connect you to the right

Yorkshire_Pud

Shakin_Steve said:

I found this on the web

Please call us on one of these numbers.

From the UK: 0800 282 390-

From abroad: +44 (Q)207 116 74881

If you'd like to make a new complaint

Select option 1 when you call.

We're here to help Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm, and Saturday from 9am to 5pm.

If you'd like to talk to us about an existing complaint

Select option 2 when you call, then select the type of complaint you're calling about, so we can connect you to the right

Sounds reasonable but it won’t work out that way, at all. You would just end up in the whirlpool of what do I do next I thought this was what I was supposed to do. They are deliberately obstructive in my experience. But not before they have gone through about ten minutes of over the top ‘verifying your identity’ before you are able to get ‘the answer’ to your query which will not likely be of any use.

Yorkshire_Pud

I closed my Reward Saver with Barclays by message us service. Took a laborious forty five minutes including reason for closing, twice, full address, email and mobile number. Then how would you like to be notified of closure email or mobile and again give email or mobile number in full. All while waiting for replies from human. All worked and closed but why so laborious? CS courteous and ok just doing what the pedantic managers etc tell them to do.

Then closed a tsb savings pot in the tsb app. Took all of five seconds. Very easy, even included closing interest of 1p.

Im leaving Barclays, they are the most time consuming/wasting bank I’ve ever had to deal with. That includes when I had to go in to branch a few years back for various unnecessary meetings for simple things like overdraft of £100. Their blue rewards was a pain as well. 

In spite of valid comments here I’m not going to pursue my unanswered complaint with Barclays barclaycard even though it’s well over 8 weeks as it would retraumatise me! 

Will switch their current account soon. 

Ulrich

Well, after being Barclays customer since 2008 last year I spent months waiting for their final response to my complaint (which was awful btw), escalated it to FOS and was awarded a compensation. Then closed all my accounts with them and can only recommend anyone to stay as far away from them as possible.

eskbanker

WillPS said:
My technique so far has been to open a complaint about the deliberate ignorance of the instruction to open a complaint, but sometimes they then open another 'feedback which you won't hear back about'(!!). I've got one complaint which I've insisted goes before an ombudsman where I had to ask 7 times for a complaint to be opened.

I will update the thread when I hear back from the ombudsman, but the investigator didn't really seem to pick up the ball with this aspect of my complaint (despite me repeatedly pointing back to it) so I'm not too optimistic.

It'll be interesting to see if FOS reject your case as invalid, as there have been previous threads about them doing so on the basis that complaint handling isn't a regulated activity and is therefore outside their remit.

Ulrich

eskbanker said:

WillPS said:
My technique so far has been to open a complaint about the deliberate ignorance of the instruction to open a complaint, but sometimes they then open another 'feedback which you won't hear back about'(!!). I've got one complaint which I've insisted goes before an ombudsman where I had to ask 7 times for a complaint to be opened.

I will update the thread when I hear back from the ombudsman, but the investigator didn't really seem to pick up the ball with this aspect of my complaint (despite me repeatedly pointing back to it) so I'm not too optimistic.

It'll be interesting to see if FOS reject your case as invalid, as there have been previous threads about them doing so on the basis that complaint handling isn't a regulated activity and is therefore outside their remit.

Could you share a link?
If it's true, all banks are free to close all their complaint channels, get rid of their complaints departments (and part of customer service department as well) and stop reporting number of complaints to FCA as there is none?

masonic

Ulrich said:

eskbanker said:

WillPS said:
My technique so far has been to open a complaint about the deliberate ignorance of the instruction to open a complaint, but sometimes they then open another 'feedback which you won't hear back about'(!!). I've got one complaint which I've insisted goes before an ombudsman where I had to ask 7 times for a complaint to be opened.

I will update the thread when I hear back from the ombudsman, but the investigator didn't really seem to pick up the ball with this aspect of my complaint (despite me repeatedly pointing back to it) so I'm not too optimistic.

It'll be interesting to see if FOS reject your case as invalid, as there have been previous threads about them doing so on the basis that complaint handling isn't a regulated activity and is therefore outside their remit.

Could you share a link?
If it's true, all banks are free to close all their complaint channels, get rid of their complaints departments (and part of customer service department as well) and stop reporting number of complaints to FCA as there is none?

I've seen a couple of threads here where this was the case, although I probably wouldn't be able to find them again now.

Complaint handling processes are a matter for the FCA and the FOS cannot award punitive damages for non-compliance. They can only award compensation for the overall impact the matter has on the consumer. If the substance of the complaint is that there was a technical breach, then there may be nothing in the complaint the FOS can consider. FOS can flag concerns to the FCA, but this won't influence the outcome of an individual complaint.