April 3, 2008
Banking Woes 3: Capital One, the revenge
So I've had another written response from Capital One. Presumably they're now an avid reader of this blog, as I've decided that rather than run up considerable phone bills being given contradictory information by people in C1 call centres all of whom to date have put me on hold for at least three minutes, I'm just providing them with a link to this blog.
Anyway, this is what they wrote:
"Thank you for asking us why you can't access the money that has been in your account for the past two weeks. When we receive your payment, we add it to your account straight away to show that we've received it. However, if the payment is large we may need to allow up to 10 days for the amount to clear. That's why we don't make the credit amount available to you immediately. Unfortunately, we don't record on our system whether the payment was made by cash or cheque. So the only way we can release the funds, before this time, is for your bank to send us a fax confirming how you made the payment. As soon as we receive the fax, we call the bank to confirm the information they've sent and then release the credit amount straight away. If you want your bank to ever do this, our fax number is 0115 843 3440. I'm sorry for any inconvenience this causes you. This safeguard allows the payment to clear, and if it doesn't, avoid any unnecessary overspending and charges being added to the account. Please let me reassure you that we're not suggesting this is the likely event in your case. I hope I've clearly explained this. If not, or you need any other help, please call us on 08458 400 400*. We're here 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. (*Please note, calls to 0845 numbers will be charged at a local rate. The cost will vary depending on your service provider. Calls may be recorded/monitored for training purposes.)"
I love the line that says "we don't record on our system whether the payment was made by cash or cheque." I remember this same argument from three years ago when I paid cash into my credit card account in order to have it to hand the following week - Capital One told me then that paying by cash would take longer to clear than electronic payment, so nowadays I only transfer money electronically from a bank account using cleared funds.
As for cheques... do they still exist?
The upshot of all of this is that Capital One has been sitting on my money for more than a fortnight now. In the meantime they have cancelled a number of standing orders including Spinvox (problematic because I don't actually know how to listen to voicemail on my mobile phone) and my mortgage (problematic because I don't want to be made homeless).
The written response above directly contradicts what I was told the last time I called their helpline and I basically feel I've been fobbed off with disinformation from the outset.
Staff in Capital One call centres (claim they) don't have access to all information about their customers, which is why it is difficult to counter the contradictory explanations they offer. Having worked in a call centre myself once (I had a summer job working for Orange) I will say that they have been well trained in their key task - preventing disgruntled callers from speaking to supervisors who are empowered to take effective action.
Harumph!
Now where did I put the phone number to the Ombudsman?
[EDIT: I noticed that a payment went through yesterday and I was finally able to make a payment to Spinvox using my Capital One credit card today, so I reckon they've finally removed the block that I was assured had been removed five days ago. I make that 15 calendar days/9 UK banking days since the money arrived on my account. Thanks C1, you're great!/EDIT]
Posted by dompannell at April 3, 2008 9:18 AM