Tell Susie Rabin that you can now move your bank account in seven days, and you'll get a rather hollow laugh. Despite new rules introduced to make switching accounts easier, the charity manager from London has spent the past four months trying to move her account from the recently relaunched TSB back to Lloyds. Despite dozens of calls to both banks they failed to move her direct debits to complete the switch and enable her to use her "new" account.
Rabin was told that a glitch in the IT systems means others who also tried to switch bank to Lloyds from TSB have been similarly stymied, despite the two organisations being the same bank until September, and using the same back office systems.
Her case comes as figures from the Payments Council revealed that 89,000 people switched accounts in the first four weeks of the new seven-day switching guarantee, a rise of 11% on the same period a year earlier. It described the figures as encouraging – but they are not the revolution in bank switching that some expected. Rabin's story will reinforce many people's choice to stick with their bank and avoid the potential hassle of moving.
Rabin's problems go back to June, when she decided she would rather stay with Lloyds than to be moved, along with 4.6m other accounts, to TSB. Having joined Lloyds 20 years ago as a student in Liverpool, she was dismayed to find that hers was one of the accounts being shifted to TSB as part of a demerger.
"I had to spend 45 minutes on the phone to Lloyds reapplying for an account with a bank I'd been a customer of for over 20 years, and having to do credit checks. Eventually I was issued with my new account number and cash card and cheque book back in early September. I was told to move my incoming money to the new account, which I did. I was also told to take both the Lloyds and TSB cards out with me because, I assumed, the switch was imminent," she says.
The only problem was that nothing happened. When she rang the banks at the beginning of October – calling five different numbers and speaking to seven people – it finally emerged that her account wasn't due to switch until 18 October.
That date came and went. Rabin was then told by Lloyds that she had given them a wrong debit card number for her account, which had caused her switching request to be rejected, and that she should talk to TSB. But when she spoke to TSB she was told a computer problem was causing some TSB cards to be rejected, and that there was nothing they could do about it. TSB staff said she should ask to be switched once more, but "not straight away as it would probably happen again, but maybe wait a week or so".
Rabin was further insensed to be told byTSB staff that if she went overdrawn it was her own fault, and that she should "trot round to a bank with a cheque to make sure the account remained in credit".
"The other option I was given was to close my account, and to manually set up all my direct debits again on the new one. I now wish I had done that as it would have been far less time-consuming," says Rabin. "One of the reasons I wanted to move out of TSB is that I feared an IT meltdown, and I seem proved right. I still can't access online banking for the Lloyds account as it defaults to the TSB account when I log in. They tell me they are separate banks, but my online banking details and phone log in are the same for both. The whole thing has been a fiasco, and my complaints to Lloyds have gone unanswered," she says.
Under the new switching rules that came into play last month, the bank or building society to which you are moving your account – Lloyds in this case – is supposed to do all the work, and move all the direct debits. Customers were promised they would not incur any charges as a result of a switch failing to happen correctly.
The new rules were designed to halt tales like this one from happening – although strictly speaking, Rabin started her switch before the new rules came into play.
While Guardian Money has received only a few other account switching complaints since the guarantee came into force, reports suggest that some switches are being delayed because it is taking up to two weeks to issue new debit cards.
Meanwhile, Lloyds has admitted it let Rabin down. It has apologised and offered £300 her for her distress, £100 compensation for her time, and a further £75 to cover calls and postage.
A Lloyds spokeswoman said: "We would like to apologise to Mrs Rabin for the inconvenience. Unfortunately she didn't receive the high level of service we aim to provide. We can confirm now that the switch to Lloyds Bank is resolved and we understand Mrs Rabin is satisfied with the outcome."
TSB also apologised to Rabin and said: "Unfortunately the issue arose because the incorrect debit card number was input into the system. We are sorry for the delay and are pleased Ms Rabin's switch is now complete."
Meanwhile, Rabin says she has now manually completed the account switchover herself – which has allowed the matter to be closed.
