Pen and Paper
Legacy_user
Posts: 0 Newbie
Being of a certain age, my wife likes to manage her very small share account by post. Earlier this week she wrote to the Dealing Service for one of her ITs, asking for a modest refund of some of cash held on the account. The Bank account details she provided in her letter are the same ones that they hold on the account for the payment of any charges.
This morning she gets an unknown/ no number phone call from X Share Dealing. They tell her that they cannot action her letter without taking her through security. My wife responds by saying there is no security set up on the account, and concludes that the e sort of information which may be asked for will relate to transactions etc on the account. She sensibly, in my view, declines to go through security and says, 'if you have any problems with my request, then respond to me in writing'. She is then told that they will not do this without taking her through security.
Has the World gone completely mad, or has the practice of writing letters been banned and my wife and I just haven't noticed?
This morning she gets an unknown/ no number phone call from X Share Dealing. They tell her that they cannot action her letter without taking her through security. My wife responds by saying there is no security set up on the account, and concludes that the e sort of information which may be asked for will relate to transactions etc on the account. She sensibly, in my view, declines to go through security and says, 'if you have any problems with my request, then respond to me in writing'. She is then told that they will not do this without taking her through security.
Has the World gone completely mad, or has the practice of writing letters been banned and my wife and I just haven't noticed?
0
Comments
-
I do struggle to understand companies that think it reasonable to phone you uninvited and then ask you to answer security questions.
I had a call from Autoglass the other day and they wanted to know if there was anything special about my car windscreen they are scheduled to replace but before they would talk about it they wanted me to tell them my address and date of birth. Why? How often does the wrong person answer a mobile and tell them the wrong answers about a car windscreen?
Alex.0 -
I think she is absolutely correct to not give out any details to an incoming call.
Snail mail is very old fashioned these days.
It's not reasonable to make demands on how a company operates although you are free of course to take your business elsewhere.
I would find out the phone number myself and call them myself as then I know I a speaking to the correct people before giving out security nformation.0 -
I flat out refuse to give any personal information on incoming calls unless I am certain of the identity of the caller. Even those starting 'Mr ColdIron?' are met with a 'who's calling'?0
-
Even then it's worth calling them back on a different phone line incase they have not terminated the call properly on their side.0
-
Thanks all. I appreciate that it is probably an age thing but the World is, sadly, full of scammers. My wife and I are not afraid of technology. I suspect the reason for the call was to check that my wife wasn't making the withdrawal under duress (this seems to be the flavour of the month) but I struggle to understand how such a check can ever be made over the phone.0
-
If she usually manages her account by post, do they normally accept written instructions without any attempt to authenticate her identity? Has she withdrawn money in this way before?Thanks all. I appreciate that it is probably an age thing but the World is, sadly, full of scammers. My wife and I are not afraid of technology. I suspect the reason for the call was to check that my wife wasn't making the withdrawal under duress (this seems to be the flavour of the month) but I struggle to understand how such a check can ever be made over the phone.
I seem to recall that other posters have complained before about companies being happy to accept inbound payments but then making more robust verification checks when the time comes to withdraw, citing regulatory requirements....0 -
If she usually manages her account by post, do they normally accept written instructions without any attempt to authenticate her identity? Has she withdrawn money in this way before?
I seem to recall that other posters have complained before about companies being happy to accept inbound payments but then making more robust verification checks when the time comes to withdraw, citing regulatory requirements....
No, it has never happened before. I have in front of me a letter from them with charges so they do write every three months. I also have a letter from them last stating that, as it is an ISA account, my wife mustn't let cash build up. We have lefty them pondering what to do next. They have a letter that they need to respond to but they say that they will not respond unless my wife goes through security. My wife has suggested that they respond in writing explaining why they are not prepared to respond in writing. As they will not respond to her letter, she has suggested that they send their response to the account holder at the address that they hold on their systems for the account.
I sold some shares earlier this year with another share dealer and all the sales went through bar one without any issues. The one issue was that my daughter who was a trustee hadn't filled in one of the new forms. This was easily resolved by fax as she is in Canada. No calls: all done by mail/fax.
Fortunately, my wife does not need the money in a rush. And I still don't see how any Bank/Dealer can properly authenticate a withdrawal over the telephone when no security has been set up in advance - and authentication which is known only to the customer.0 -
It's all very well taking the view that the ball is in their court but ultimately your wife's money is in their possession and they won't release it without following their standard processes for doing so, which may of course differ from those of other providers.
She can jump up and down until she's blue in the face about this but getting bogged down in arguing about who's going to write to who doesn't really seem particularly likely to unblock this, so she may need to take a more pragmatic stance rather than questioning why their security processes are what they are....
Do their Ts & Cs say anything about managing the account by post?0 -
I think it is important to reflect what the company is offering. If the broker is paper free/internet based then it will be priced on that basis. If you want a manual service then they will price on that basis too.
I wonder if this is actually a scam. Scammers do trawl registries and a movement in stock means you have money available. So, a cold call pretending to be a company linked to the sale is possible.
Has your wife phoned the correct broker on an independently verified number and checked if there are issues?I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 343.2K Banking & Borrowing
- 250.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 449.7K Spending & Discounts
- 235.3K Work, Benefits & Business
- 608K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 173K Life & Family
- 247.9K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 15.9K Discuss & Feedback
- 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards