Ulster Bank cancelled my card - what can I do ?

phantom60

Terrible customer service from UB again, after all there advertising about their "customer commitments" :mad:.

I went to lodge money to our joint (current) account three and a half weeks ago at an Ulster Branch branch (not my own branch). The cashier told me that the cards on the account were cancelled on the 2nd March, but he could not see why !
He assured me he'd look into it personally, arrange new cards for me, and contact me personally in a few days....I didn't get any contact from him.
I contacted my own branch a week later and they couldn't help, so was transferred to another person (not sure where) and he also couldn't tell me why the cards were cancelled and assured me he'd get back to me....again, I haven't heard from him since.
Since then I've contacted the branch and asked for the guy who originally informed me that the cards were cancelled. He had no further information for me and was "going on holidays for a week" but he told me that a girl called Karen wouldget back to me in a few days....surprise surprise, haven't heard anything from Karen either !!

It's four weeks since my cards were cancelled without reason, and I have yet to hear why this has happened and I have yet to receive new cards.

I can't believe this level of service and am absolutely raging.
What can I do about this ?
Any advice appreciated.

unclebill98

The cards could have been cancelled as they replaced them with the visa debit. New ones might have been sent and never received by you.

Any way, call your branch. Ask for the sqa, service quality advisor, read out your post and ask them for a concern reference number. They will not have it there and then but 30mins is plenty. Sit back and follow the complaints procedure.

phantom60

The cards I had were VISA Debit cards.

Thanks for the reply, unclebill.
I'll post an update on how I get on.

phantom60

It gets better!

Rang the branch today, was told that the sqa was on lunch and would ring me when she got back.

Guess what, no phonecall from her either!

unclebill98

Holy fcuk.

Try again and remind the they did not call. Should be an interesting call.

What branch?

amdublin

Do you have any idea why they would be cancelled?

For example: are you running an unauthorised overdraft?

Rebel1977

Maybe your accout is out of order or your overdrawn without a pre sanctioned overdraft

phantom60

Update - I rang again for the sqa on Monday. She was on a call at the time but rang me back that day. She couldn't see why it had been cancelled and she said the collections (i think) dept were dealing with it. So I asked her to get them to ring me, she said she would (I confirmed this with her about 3 times!) and yet again, they haven't got back to me!

I think this is 6 times now I've been told I'd get a call back and it hasn't happened.

I've checked back to the date when the cards were cancelled and there was nothing wrong or out of order at the time.

Panrich

Do you have anytime banking?
You could try to do some sort of transaction online.
Do you have a chequebook?
You could write a cheque to a friend/relation and get them to write your card number on the back to see what happens.

UglyBolloxFace

Blast them with....

your rights.

No seriously, here's what I would do - go into your branch (not the original branch that was different from your own) and tell them about the awful customer service you have received (tell them exactly what you have told us here - people saying they'd ring you back but not) and inform them that you are not leaving the branch until they sort it out there and then. It's the only way, considering you've tried everything else.

Let us all know how you got on.

unclebill98

phantom60 wrote: »

Update - I rang again for the sqa on Monday. She was on a call at the time but rang me back that day. She couldn't see why it had been cancelled and she said the collections (i think) dept were dealing with it. So I asked her to get them to ring me, she said she would (I confirmed this with her about 3 times!) and yet again, they haven't got back to me!

I think this is 6 times now I've been told I'd get a call back and it hasn't happened.

I've checked back to the date when the cards were cancelled and there was nothing wrong or out of order at the time.

Ah, that sheds some light on it.

Collections are UB recovery dept. So either somethings up with some kind of borrowing. This can be your single account or any joint account or any dealings be it personal or business.

Chances are they stopped your cards to prompt you to contact them or your branch cause they've yet to hear from you on some matter and you have not returned their calls.

Get the collections number and call them.

amdublin

phantom60 wrote: »

I've checked back to the date when the cards were cancelled and there was nothing wrong or out of order at the time.

Okay. Anything out of your order with any of your accounts at anytime?

filmbuffboy

how did you get on OP? i lost my wallet today, and if its not in my sisters car im gonna have to re order credit and debit cards from Ulster. hope im not waiting as long as you had to! :eek:

phantom60

Got back on to the sqa today and told her that again I hadn't got a call like I was supposed to.
So she rang the other dept and rang me back. I think it was the Recoveries dept she mentioned this time - not sure if thats the same as the collections dept.

Anyway it seems there was some error/mix-up on their systems involving approx 250 accounts and it looked like my account was one of them. So my cards were cancelled and they won't be re-issued until they confirm that my account was one of these 250.
She will confirm this tomorrow and call me back!!!

unclebill98

phantom60 wrote: »

Got back on to the sqa today and told her that again I hadn't got a call like I was supposed to.
So she rang the other dept and rang me back. I think it was the Recoveries dept she mentioned this time - not sure if thats the same as the collections dept.

Anyway it seems there was some error/mix-up on their systems involving approx 250 accounts and it looked like my account was one of them. So my cards were cancelled and they won't be re-issued until they confirm that my account was one of these 250.
She will confirm this tomorrow and call me back!!!

More or less the same.

That's shocking. Keep at them and seek comp.

UglyBolloxFace

phantom60 wrote: »

Got back on to the sqa today and told her that again I hadn't got a call like I was supposed to.
So she rang the other dept and rang me back. I think it was the Recoveries dept she mentioned this time - not sure if thats the same as the collections dept.

Anyway it seems there was some error/mix-up on their systems involving approx 250 accounts and it looked like my account was one of them. So my cards were cancelled and they won't be re-issued until they confirm that my account was one of these 250.
She will confirm this tomorrow and call me back!!!

Word of advice - make sure you get (a) an apology for the mix-up (written if possible; I know it might seem like moaning, but **** it they should be apologising for the terrible treatment). (b) tell them you want some compensation (doesn't necessarily have to be monetary - I had a problem with Ulster Bank before and they apologised with a hamper) and an assurance that it will not happen again.

phantom60

The girl I was talking to today did say there would be a "gesture of goodwill".
Not sure exactly what this would entail.

neaideabh

Same happened to me!

First of all.... I was made redundant. So I went into bank to enquire about the possibility of extending my car loan in order to make the repayments smaller and more affordable. The bank said they would do it. And to come in the next week and they would sort it. So, I went in the next week and they told me to come in the next day. I did. They told me they would sort it that evening and not to bother putting lodging money in for repayment as it was essentially a new loan and repayments would begin in the next month...

They didn't even organise a new loan!!! and there was no money in my account so I missed that repayment.

I kept going back to them and they kept fobbing me off. I missed another repayment about 3 months later because I was broke at the time.

So then... the next time I went into lodge money, I went to use my visa debit card as always, and next thing I was told that the card wasn't working and that it was cancelled! As it turned out, they closed my account and put my loan into quarantine because of the 2 missed repayments that they caused!

Any way... I have given up on them! I am just paying money into the loan account. I have about 4 months till it's paid up in full and I 'm never dealing with them again ever!

Aswell as that, I have brought the issues I had with them to the ombudsman!

phantom60

Jesus that even worse than the treatment I got.

Anyway, looks like my case has been resolved.
Got another call today. Looks like it was got to do with a glitch in their system relating to my mortgage account. And it happened to about 250 others too.
New cards are being ordered for me and I've had €50 lodged to my current account as a gesture of goodwill.

Thanks to all for the advice - much apprecitaed.

One thing for all to note is that the Service Quality Advisor is probably the best person to go to if you're getting poor service.

unclebill98

The sqa is all about service. It's there job.

Glad to hear it's fixed.

phantom60

Thanks unclebill.
And thanks again for your help/advice.