Direct debits

laalaa41

Then they should have said "refer to drawer". Yes they did know. I visited the branch (was talking to them on the phone on another matter over the two days this happened) and handed them a spreadsheet showing the dates - they knew I was changing them to on or around the 28th. Ordinary people must be protected from having £600+ stolen from them through no fault of their own - putting them into a position of having no money to feed their family.

Far from being "unhelpful" RBS themselves (Customer Services) have advised that I should fight this "all the way" with the branch.

Let's say I had been for the longest time always overdrawn, always late with payments, sometimes unemployed..... then you could (if you were warped) think that I deserved some sort of punishment so I was never naughty again. But this isn't the case. It's another reason I'm so angry - I pay my way - always have - and on time.

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dzug

laalaa41 wrote: »

Yes they did know. I visited the branch (was talking to them on the phone on another matter over the two days this happened) and handed them a spreadsheet showing the dates - they knew I was changing them to on or around the 28th.

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It's irrelevant that a member of staff 'knew' that you were changing the direct debit dates. That doesn't equate to the bank knowing. Even if they did there's ****** all they could do about it. They are entirely in the hands of the paying organisation.

To repeat as you don't seem to be taking it in. There was no repeat no bank mistake on the dates of the direct debits. That particular mistake was entirely the mistake of the receiving company.

laalaa41

Ive written to the city council who took the first direct debit off early. Thank you for your sympathetic response.

laalaa41

Ive opened a new bank account elsewhere - they've offered me a large loan and automatically given me a big overdraft facility (I earn a decent salary). I await the FOS response to my claim that the amount of charges did not reflect the amount involved of £10, that they have dealt with the matter unfairly and unsympathetically (and more). The claim was put together with good advice.

I remembered the last time I had issues like this - when I went back to my maiden name. But even that wasn't as problematic.

I'm gradually getting somewhere - RAC said sorry, so did Egg - but they have'nt paid the bank charges and refuse to put anything in writing. SpecSavers said sorry and did give me a full refund of all charges. RBS Customer Services at Head Office have provided a transcript of their instruction to "fight the branch all the way, because I should never have had to pay those charges". Funny really (not) they have overturned a few of my branch's decisions lately. They contradict what the branch tells me (they hate me).

The DD that caused the avalanche - council tax - my councillor and the tax office are talking about the matter.

While I've been going through this, I've found that with several organisations - there is a belief that the system cannot be wrong and I've found limitations within systems that preclude dealing with unusual events. Their scripts are severely limited.

Egg being a prime example. I have, spoken to, written to (by letter and email) - to so many of their staff. Some find a record of transactions and conversations I've had, some don't. For a while, I received a phone call every single day from them - demanding money I'd already paid (twice over and was never due on the date they claimed anyway).

Council Tax office have no record of my original phone call (how convenient for them).

Specsavers' system works on a 3-monthly cycle - they hadn't cancelled the DD completely because they still had my record open as a customer in case I wanted more lenses somewhere down the line.

If I could go back and do things differently?
-If you're going to challenge a bank - move your account or face their wrath
-Remember that the legal process takes months/years so you could starve to death if they take your last buck
-Arrange an overdraft before you try to make changes
-Start the process at least 3 months before you make a move - financial institutions work at snail's pace
-Trust no-one to do their jobs even remotely correctly so make changes slowly - one at a time - and get EVERYTHING in writing first
-Take the names of everyone you speak to and try to speak to MANAGERS who have a longer script )
-Tell EVERYONE that the Direct Debit Guarantee isnt worth the paper it's written on because while you might get the payment itself back - NO-ONE accepts responsibility for the bank charges their mistakes incur.

Also, re this so-called "credit crunch". It appears to be an excuse to treat everyone with suspicion/derision - "customer services" is dead.

laalaa41

The FSA have not found in my favour in my claim against unfair charges by the RBS. There were so many organisations involved - someone rightly said "I couldnt make it up".

Pity I dont have a degree in banking or law. Naively I assumed that keeping my money in a bank would ensure it wouldnt be stolen or I wouldnt be left penniless by unauthorised withdrawals and that there was a direct debit guarantee to protect me.

Im just an ordinary person who never defaulted on a payment on anything, took every care to manage my accounts well - for 6 years with RBS, only to have a series of events out of my control - totally destroy everything.

I see I have no recourse within the law. When so many are reclaiming bank charges of their own making - I've been left penniless through others' incompetence and so stressed out by it all I can't tell you. My word against their's.

I see Im not allowed to post attachments or I would have let you see their findings.

Some posters here have jumped to conclusions that the dates were too narrow (they had 6 to 8 weeks to change the dates), that I didnt have a margin for error - I did, £150.

Also, although RBS refused me a temporary overdraft - I was never refused one before because I never needed one and didnt ask. These were circumstances beyond my control and I could have done without the facetious remarks here. Can't you see that I've been left with no money and a trashed credit rating through no fault of my own?

L