One customer's cautionary tale about online banking

[EXC]

The Guardian's consumer champion

Anna Tims
Friday January 18, 2008
The Guardian


In the old straightforward days, we all knew that banks required several days to credit a payment, while managing miraculously to debit sums instantly. The trouble with online systems is that those jolly riches flickering on your screen can sometimes be illusory. Very definitely real, however, are the penalties imposed by banks when their cyber banking methods are not as quick as they appear to be.

Benjamin Dennehy has an Alliance & Leicester current account with £50 in it plus an agreed overdraft limit of £100. Recently, a Chaps payment of £1,000 was credited to the account and Dennehy's online statement confirmed the happy news that his available balance was now £1,150. Dennehy electronically transferred £1,000 to his savings account. This left £50 in his current account and the screen showed that, together with the overdraft limit, he had an available balance of £150. At the end of the day, two direct debits of £50 each were due to be removed from his current account, which should have left a balance of £-50, still well within his overdraft limit.

However, when he logged on the next morning he found although the £1,000 Chaps payment had shown up on his on-screen balance it was not, in fact, credited to his account until after Dennehy had transferred it to his savings account and after the two £50 direct debits had been paid. This meant his account plunged £1,050 into the red before the £1,000 was belatedly credited. Dennehy was charged three £25 penalties.

Alliance & Leicester refused to discuss the matter by telephone and threatened a summary judgment against Dennehy when he began legal action. Strange, then, that when I contact the press office it is discovered that the Chaps credit had been delayed so the fees were a mistake. Dennehy will receive an apologetic refund plus £100 in goodwill. · Send your consumer grievances to Dear Anna, at Shopping, 3rd Floor, 119 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3ER. Email consumer@guardian.co.uk



http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2242759,00.html

[Guest]

Re: One customer's cautionary tale about online banking

Alliance & Leicester refused to discuss the matter by telephone and threatened a summary judgment against Dennehy when he began legal action.

Since when did banks or their solicitors issue judgments, summary or otherwise?

Courts issue judgments and nobody else.

I applaud Anna Tims and what she is doing but she, along with the others who write about this abuse by the banks' solicitors and internal legal departments, really should try to understand what they are writing about and present the facts properly.