I want to alert you to a procedure that John Lewis employs when an online order includes items from two separate suppliers. It is company policy to ringfence – or reserve – in the customer’s bank account the money needed to cover any order. This is to ensure the money is available to debit when the goods are dispatched. However, if the order involves items from more than one supplier the full amount of an order is reserved twice.
My daughter placed an order for a laptop, clothing and some homewares. The total bill was £1,036. But this was ringfenced twice – meaning that the entire balance of her bank account was frozen for five days.
What would have happened if any direct debits had failed during this period and penalty charges applied? AM, Twyford, Berkshire
When your daughter complained to John Lewis, customer services blithely explained that the authorisation code that allows the money to be debited when the goods are shipped can only be used once, so when one part of the order is dispatched another code has to be generated to cover the second.
That means a second £1,036 was frozen to cover the £136-worth of glassware and clothing. The money, she was told, should be available to her again within five days.
This policy is not mentioned in John Lewis’s terms and conditions. That, says a spokesperson, is because “it is a side effect that a very small number of customers experience”.
A eureka moment coincides with The Observer’s intervention as it declares that, from now on, it is introducing a new system. “This will remove this issue for the vast majority of customers, as well as manual checking as an additional safety net,” says the spokesperson.
Your daughter has been offered an apology and a gesture of goodwill by the press office. But given that some customers are still going to be caught out by the system it might be wise to take out a large loan before placing your Christmas orders.
If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number.
