MBNA - online services reconciliation error

blue.peter

I can't reconcile my online MBNA statement. Before I phone them, I was wondering if anyone here knows of a general problem? It's not a big deal for me, since the error appears to be in my favour. But it's bugging me a bit.

My last statement showed a balance of £391.79. I'm happy to agree that - it matches my own record.

Since then, I've made two transactions, for £16.30 and £24.60.

So I reckon that the current balance outstanding is £432.69.

Why, then, does MBNA's online service show those two new transactions and say that there are no pending transactions (which I agree), but the current outstanding balance is £417.78?

In other words, they say that I owe £14.91 less than the sum of my transactions.

That discrepancy isn't attributable to my Smart Rewards cashback. I'm expecting that to be added sometime in the next few days, but the amount due is £10.24, not £14.91. (£10.24 is the amount earned in July, according to their online summary, and it looks right to me.)

(Edited to correct typing error.)

Belenus

So I reckon that the current balance outstanding is £432.69.

I make that 432.61 and a discrepancy of 14.83.

Could there be a direct debit credit or other credit of 14.83 not yet showing?

I find these things usually resolve themselves within a few days.

Leave it a while and see what happens rather than spending time on the phone.

blue.peter

Belenus said:

I make that 432.61 and a discrepancy of 14.83.

Apologies - copying error - for "£391.71", please read "£391.79". (I'll edit the original post to correct this.)

Belenus said:

Could there be a direct debit credit or other credit of 14.83 not yet showing?

No. My DD collection isn't due for three weeks, and I'm not owed anything. Besides, as I said, MBNA says that there are no pending transactions.

Belenus said:

I find these things usually resolve themselves within a few days.

Leave it a while and see what happens rather than spending time on the phone.

Yes, that's likely. But, as I said, it's bugging me.

blue.peter

It transpires that the discrepancy is related to the Smart Rewards scheme. They've paid me £14.91 instead of the £10.24 that I was expecting. But why?

I've just had a very frustrating time on the phone to LBG.

The first lady (MBNA credit card servicing) told me that she didn't know what was going on, and said that she'd transfer me to the Smart Rewards team.

However, I was actually transferred to a gentleman in the Lloyds credit card servicing team.He didn't know what was going on, and said he would transfer me to the Smart Rewards team.

This time, I was transferred back to the MBNA credit card servicing team (i.e., where I started). The gentleman there also didn't know what was going on, and said he would transfer me to the Smart Rewards team.

Fourth time sort of a bit lucky - with the Halifax Smart Rewards team. The lady there reckoned that the difference was cashback on the last of my June transactions that didn't get paid in July. However, after I rang off, I looked at my June summary and found that that would only account for £2.73, and not £4.67.

I gave up at this point. The Smart Rewards scheme is generous (if you spend money at the right places and activate the relevant rewards)*, but its administration appears haphazard.

*I've had the card since March. In that time, I've spent £1599.60 on it and received £50.80 in cashback, or just over 3%. Most of the rewards offered are irrelevant to me, but, for example, 5% on Sainsbury's spending for a couple of months (with a maximum of £30 cashback) is great for me. I buy most of my groceries there.

intalex

OP does your smart rewards section still appear on your online account? Mine has completely disappeared and my (first ever) smart rewards credit has just been applied, but no idea which transactions it relates to as can't view the relevant section at all.

blue.peter

intalex said:

OP does your smart rewards section still appear on your online account? Mine has completely disappeared and my (first ever) smart rewards credit has just been applied, but no idea which transactions it relates to as can't view the relevant section at all.

No. It's disappeared from my online account. It was there as normal when I logged in on Thursday, so it's gone within the last couple of days.

It also seems to have gone walkabout from the phone app.

As I said above, the administration of their Smart Rewards is pretty haphazard. After a while, you'll find that there's little relationship between what they say they'll be paying you and what they do actually pay. I think that it all balances out over time, but it's difficult to be certain with only three months' history. If it was just visibility of historic payments, I wouldn't be too bothered. But, of course, it also seems that we can no longer opt in to rewards that are useful to us.

Looking at the MBNA web site, I see that they're still advertising cards with Smart Rewards, so they don't seem to have dropped the scheme altogether without telling existing customers. I guess that it's just a !!!!!!-up, and would like to think that visibility will be restored. One day.

If you feel like phoning and asking them about it, please let us know what they say. (I have no intention of phoning them myself. I've already spent half an hour trying to get sense out of them about something else this week.)

intalex

Talked to them and they said Everyday Offers / Smart Rewards have been turned off temporarily for all brands and that they are trying to resolve it.

blue.peter

So it is SNAFU, then. Thank you.

(The problem that I had on Monday turned out to be another IT error, so it seems that that they've got general problems in that area. Not terribly inspiring.)

blue.peter

I've just noticed that there's a relevant thread on the Budgeting and Bank Accounts board