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Before I went to Nepal I wrote to my bank and gave them my travel itinerary. While I was away I tried to draw cash at an ATM but found my card had been blocked. This resulted in me having to make a phone call to get it unblocked.
Now, I have no complaints about the anti fraud measures that are sadly necessary nowadays but since I had taken precautions to minimise this I'm a bit miffed at having had to pay £10 to sort the matter out.
Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
Now, I have no complaints about the anti fraud measures that are sadly necessary nowadays but since I had taken precautions to minimise this I'm a bit miffed at having had to pay £10 to sort the matter out.
Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
In reply to mypyrex:
I suspect this is where you went wrong. Ring them next time.
No
> Before I went to Nepal I wrote to my bank
I suspect this is where you went wrong. Ring them next time.
>
> Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
> Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
No
In reply to mypyrex:
That's a real pain - I rang my bank to tell them I was going to New Zealand, had no problems whilst out there, but they cancelled my card when I got back, saying there was fraudulent activity on the account. When we went through the transactions, it was just my NZ spending...
Good luck with trying to claim - it does sound like, to quote Monopoly, 'Bank error in your favour - collect £10'.
That's a real pain - I rang my bank to tell them I was going to New Zealand, had no problems whilst out there, but they cancelled my card when I got back, saying there was fraudulent activity on the account. When we went through the transactions, it was just my NZ spending...
Good luck with trying to claim - it does sound like, to quote Monopoly, 'Bank error in your favour - collect £10'.
In reply to mypyrex:
As you went to the trouble to advise them in advance I agree this is out of order. Give them a ring and complain - you might find they will reimburse you.
Presumably you are back now. Did you have a good trek?
As you went to the trouble to advise them in advance I agree this is out of order. Give them a ring and complain - you might find they will reimburse you.
Presumably you are back now. Did you have a good trek?
In reply to mypyrex: MrsTheDog used to work for a bank. I don't know about this specific problem but as a general rule if you have reason for complaint (I'd say you do) and yu complain and make enough fuss you should get your money back or maybe even some compensation.
In reply to all: Thanks for encouraging replies. Good trip by the way.
In reply to mypyrex:
It`s £10, get a life.
It`s £10, get a life.
In reply to mypyrex: HSBC has a facility in online banking that allows you to list all your travel plans and the cards you intend to use.Writing to a bank is waste of time.
In reply to mypyrex: Last time I went abroad I notified my bank, who told me that they don't make notes of your travel plans any more, but they still might block the card if they think it's a suspicious/foreign transaction! Thankfully they didn't, and my card was ok the one time I used it.
In reply to sjc:
From your reply it would appear that your life runs a bit diferrently from the rest of us.
From your reply it would appear that your life runs a bit diferrently from the rest of us.
In reply to mypyrex: Worth complaining, I got £60 out of HSBC after a similar thing
In reply to sjc:
> (In reply to mypyrex)
> It`s £10,
and represents a 75% increase in my usual mothly mobile cost.> It`s £10,
In reply to mypyrex:
Nationwide building society couriered a new card to me in Australia when the old one got retained somewhere (might even have been at heathrow!). They didn't take much persuading.
Even though it's only £10, the bank need to know they're wrong, so they can improve and you deserve something for the hassle. anything from an apology upwards...
I suspect you might have to jump through a few hoops to get cash, keep repeating the same thing, add in your hassle on a holiday of a lifetime, writing this, the phone callas you made to complain.
or you could complain once & write it off from then.
Nationwide building society couriered a new card to me in Australia when the old one got retained somewhere (might even have been at heathrow!). They didn't take much persuading.
Even though it's only £10, the bank need to know they're wrong, so they can improve and you deserve something for the hassle. anything from an apology upwards...
I suspect you might have to jump through a few hoops to get cash, keep repeating the same thing, add in your hassle on a holiday of a lifetime, writing this, the phone callas you made to complain.
or you could complain once & write it off from then.
In reply to mypyrex:
You have just spent a load on a trip to Nepal but your messing around for £10, just get over it, the negative energy your wasting on this is just no good, for you.
Pick your battles, if it was more, crack on. Also most banks have it in T&C`s that this may happen even if you inform them.
You have just spent a load on a trip to Nepal but your messing around for £10, just get over it, the negative energy your wasting on this is just no good, for you.
Pick your battles, if it was more, crack on. Also most banks have it in T&C`s that this may happen even if you inform them.
In reply to mypyrex:
I think you naively thought banks still employ people who can read. The humble letter gets you no where these days unless you are a lawyer, in which case the fact that you charge by the hour means that sending emails and phoning people would put you out of business.
> Before I went to Nepal I wrote to my bank and gave them my travel itinerary. While I was away I tried to draw cash at an ATM but found my card had been blocked. This resulted in me having to make a phone call to get it unblocked.
I think you naively thought banks still employ people who can read. The humble letter gets you no where these days unless you are a lawyer, in which case the fact that you charge by the hour means that sending emails and phoning people would put you out of business.
In reply to mypyrex:
Yes, it's easy. Give them and ring and they will very likely sort it there and then.
Unless its Alliance and Leicester/Santander
> Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
Yes, it's easy. Give them and ring and they will very likely sort it there and then.
Unless its Alliance and Leicester/Santander
In reply to sjc: If £10 is such a trivially inconsequential amount, perhaps you wouldn't mind posting out a few crisp tenners to us less affluent UKCers?
In reply to mypyrex:
Been there, done it.
We were on the peage in france and when we got to the toll gate at the end the card was refused. Fortunately we had another card handy and were able to pay with that because we didn't have enough cash on us.
Our phone call to the bank didn't cost as much as yours so we didn't pursue it.
On the opposite end of the scale, A friend was living in Austria for a few months and at some point in the middle someone used her credit card (A replacement card that had been intercepted in the post) to buy a games consul and games in Manchester city centre. she had a lot of trouble convincing the company that it was fraud.
Been there, done it.
We were on the peage in france and when we got to the toll gate at the end the card was refused. Fortunately we had another card handy and were able to pay with that because we didn't have enough cash on us.
Our phone call to the bank didn't cost as much as yours so we didn't pursue it.
On the opposite end of the scale, A friend was living in Austria for a few months and at some point in the middle someone used her credit card (A replacement card that had been intercepted in the post) to buy a games consul and games in Manchester city centre. she had a lot of trouble convincing the company that it was fraud.
In reply to gethin_allen: Similar but opposite story for my sister. The bank didn't think twice before authorising a cloned copy of her card being used to virtually empty her account in India while she was living in the UK, but they did block her card for a 'suspicious transaction' when she bought a coffee in Starbucks (or some similar little transaction) in Nottingham where she was living!
In reply to mypyrex:
I've had this. I've also called the bank or to notify them of my travel plans and they have thanked me but said that the card may still be blocked as a security measure. Once it was.
I've also has two attempts to use my cards for large transactions in India, a place to which I have never been. The bank called me to check and the transactions were blocked or cancelled.
Personally I am prepared to accept occasional inconvenience and a 10 quid phone bill if related security measures save me a couple of grand.
>
>
> Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
>
> Anyone else had this and tried to claim the cost of the call back from the bank?
I've had this. I've also called the bank or to notify them of my travel plans and they have thanked me but said that the card may still be blocked as a security measure. Once it was.
I've also has two attempts to use my cards for large transactions in India, a place to which I have never been. The bank called me to check and the transactions were blocked or cancelled.
Personally I am prepared to accept occasional inconvenience and a 10 quid phone bill if related security measures save me a couple of grand.
In reply to mypyrex:
No but RBS do this everytime i travel, unless you carry a phone you cant withdraw money as when you do the just block the account. Even if you tell them and ask them not to.
Now i just use a different card abroad, barclays is much better. Just another reason to change banks
No but RBS do this everytime i travel, unless you carry a phone you cant withdraw money as when you do the just block the account. Even if you tell them and ask them not to.
Now i just use a different card abroad, barclays is much better. Just another reason to change banks
In reply to PATTISON Bill: Yet they have been known to ignore it, even if your plans are on there. That said, they seem to think its okay to block my card every other month due to 'fraud'. They then ring me (and 'assure' me they are HSBC) and expect me to tell them my card number over the phone so I can ID myselt to them, rather than the other way round. I hate them.
In reply to Nick Harvey: Not a debit card issue as such, but my brother is paid every month by bank transfer from Germany (his employer's head office). This has happened every month for the last two and a half years. The other month he got a call from the bank to say his account was on hold due to a suspicious foreign transaction - you guessed it, it was his monthly wage going in!
In reply to mypyrex: Same thing happened to us recently in California. We had informed the bank we would be in the USA but the cards were blocked anyway. There was no charge made on the account but the phone call was quite costly and more to the point the embarrassment of having a card refused and the inconvienience of then sorting it out rather than climbing.
In reply to owlart:
When I was abroad for an extended period my bank kept trying to call me because of 'suspicious activity' on my account. When I eventually got hold of them the suspicious activity was that there had been no activity at all for three months. Not quite sure that warranted several urgent phone calls.
When I was abroad for an extended period my bank kept trying to call me because of 'suspicious activity' on my account. When I eventually got hold of them the suspicious activity was that there had been no activity at all for three months. Not quite sure that warranted several urgent phone calls.
In reply to ebygomm: My sister currently lives in Canada, but still maintains a UK bank account (Lloyds). Lloyds tried to contact her recently about 'suspicious activity', but the number they gave to call them didn't accept calls from outside the UK! Cue my parents trying to phone the bank and convince them to give out a number which she could call from Canada, but because they weren't the accout holders, the bank didn't want to give out such information!
In reply to MG
Or change your bank. Some now won't accept manual notifications like that and just allow the profiling software to do the job, which is fine for very regular travellers but not those who travel somewhere very "exotic" only occasionally.
Neil
Or change your bank. Some now won't accept manual notifications like that and just allow the profiling software to do the job, which is fine for very regular travellers but not those who travel somewhere very "exotic" only occasionally.
Neil
In reply to Removed User:
I would be miffed if I had to spend £10 phoning a bank while at home, but frankly if I am in a position to afford a trip to somewhere like that I can also afford an extra £10. If not the trip is a little risky, no? What if something else happens incurring extra cost that I can't insure against? What if I can insure against it but there is an excess?
I would probably write to try to get it back as a goodwill payment, but that's about all.
Neil
I would be miffed if I had to spend £10 phoning a bank while at home, but frankly if I am in a position to afford a trip to somewhere like that I can also afford an extra £10. If not the trip is a little risky, no? What if something else happens incurring extra cost that I can't insure against? What if I can insure against it but there is an excess?
I would probably write to try to get it back as a goodwill payment, but that's about all.
Neil
In reply to Neil Williams:
thats what happened to me, i phoned em up, they said they'd write it down but actually ignore it (this was Nationwide) I had a card cancelled in USA and took many calls to sort it.
do you know if any banks have an online facility for me to tell them where im going and when, and use that info sensibly ?
> In reply to MG
>
> Or change your bank. Some now won't accept manual notifications like that and just allow the profiling software to do the job, which is fine for very regular travellers but not those who travel somewhere very "exotic" only occasionally.
>
>
> Or change your bank. Some now won't accept manual notifications like that and just allow the profiling software to do the job, which is fine for very regular travellers but not those who travel somewhere very "exotic" only occasionally.
>
thats what happened to me, i phoned em up, they said they'd write it down but actually ignore it (this was Nationwide) I had a card cancelled in USA and took many calls to sort it.
do you know if any banks have an online facility for me to tell them where im going and when, and use that info sensibly ?
In reply to all except sjc: Resolved amicably with a personal visit to bank. Refund of phone cost plus compensation.
In reply to sjc: You are a loud mouthed tiresome little turd.
In reply to sjc: You are a loud mouthed tiresome little turd.
In reply to lithos:
While I've banked with them the Co-op have always been sensible, I do it via their secure message system rather than a specific travel thing (some have mentioned upthread that HSBC offer that). However I travel internationally very frequently with work (more than 50% of my time many years) so their profile of me has built up to say that card usage anywhere is not unusual. The only time it tends to flag up is if I do a load of high value purchases at once, say 4-5 flights at once but booked individually (easyJet let you put them all on the same booking reference so it doesn't happen often).
The only one I ever had trouble with is a Capital One MasterCard years ago. I did have issues with my debit card in Belgium once but that was years ago when Chip & PIN standards varied. I did get a card eaten in Malaysia once (the machine rebooted itself), which emphasized to me why, so long as your credit history is a good one, it's always a good idea to carry two credit cards in addition to your debit card, you can then "load" one of them (keep a zero balance otherwise) and withdraw straight away, thus avoiding interest for a cash withdrawal, and sort the mess out when you get home other than a quick call to block the card.
Best to carry the second one somewhere other than your wallet (hotel safe is good if you're staying in one, or just hidden in your bag or on your person), as that's then a backup in the event of theft.
Neil
While I've banked with them the Co-op have always been sensible, I do it via their secure message system rather than a specific travel thing (some have mentioned upthread that HSBC offer that). However I travel internationally very frequently with work (more than 50% of my time many years) so their profile of me has built up to say that card usage anywhere is not unusual. The only time it tends to flag up is if I do a load of high value purchases at once, say 4-5 flights at once but booked individually (easyJet let you put them all on the same booking reference so it doesn't happen often).
The only one I ever had trouble with is a Capital One MasterCard years ago. I did have issues with my debit card in Belgium once but that was years ago when Chip & PIN standards varied. I did get a card eaten in Malaysia once (the machine rebooted itself), which emphasized to me why, so long as your credit history is a good one, it's always a good idea to carry two credit cards in addition to your debit card, you can then "load" one of them (keep a zero balance otherwise) and withdraw straight away, thus avoiding interest for a cash withdrawal, and sort the mess out when you get home other than a quick call to block the card.
Best to carry the second one somewhere other than your wallet (hotel safe is good if you're staying in one, or just hidden in your bag or on your person), as that's then a backup in the event of theft.
Neil
In reply to mypyrex:
Calm down, that's uncalled for. He's entitled to a point of view even if you don't agree with, without being subjected to abuse.
Glad you got it sorted.
> (In reply to all except sjc) > In reply to sjc: You are a loud mouthed tiresome little turd.
Calm down, that's uncalled for. He's entitled to a point of view even if you don't agree with, without being subjected to abuse.
Glad you got it sorted.
In reply to Trangia: "loud mouthed" retracted
In reply to mypyrex: x
In reply to peas65:
Never had this problem with RBS myself. I almost wish they did block foreign transactions unless notified in advance - then I wouldn't have mistakenly used my RBS card at two ATMs in Italy this this summer, rather than my Halifax card which doesn't charge a fee for cash withdrawals within the EU...
> RBS do this everytime i travel, unless you carry a phone you cant withdraw money as when you do the just block the account.
Never had this problem with RBS myself. I almost wish they did block foreign transactions unless notified in advance - then I wouldn't have mistakenly used my RBS card at two ATMs in Italy this this summer, rather than my Halifax card which doesn't charge a fee for cash withdrawals within the EU...
In reply to Martin W:
Really? Which 'fax account is that? I get charged £1.50 for every cash withdrawal or euro transaction on my hally accounts.
> (In reply to peas65)
>
> [...]
>
> my Halifax card which doesn't charge a fee for cash withdrawals within the EU...
>
> [...]
>
> my Halifax card which doesn't charge a fee for cash withdrawals within the EU...
Really? Which 'fax account is that? I get charged £1.50 for every cash withdrawal or euro transaction on my hally accounts.
In reply to lithos:
Barclays have the facility.
I can't comment on how sensibly they might use that information. As this thread has shown all banks use their own 'strategies' to determine what may be suspicious activity on an account (primarily to detect fraud and money laundering).
>
> do you know if any banks have an online facility for me to tell them where im going and when, and use that info sensibly ?
> do you know if any banks have an online facility for me to tell them where im going and when, and use that info sensibly ?
Barclays have the facility.
I can't comment on how sensibly they might use that information. As this thread has shown all banks use their own 'strategies' to determine what may be suspicious activity on an account (primarily to detect fraud and money laundering).
In reply to mypyrex:
the co-operative bank have always been fantastic in this respect in my experience.
I travel a lot and am constantly calling them to let them know and have only once had a problem...and that was the time i forgot to tell them.
I was in Gran Canaria and my card was rejected. I remembered that i had forgotten to let them know.
Not having a smartphone at the time, i was resolved to having to go into town to find an internet cafe and skype them from there.
As i was walking along the promenade into town, my cellphone rang and, lo and behold, it was the lady from the co-op just checking that i was really in GC so she could unlock my phone.
And furthermore, this was no call centre in Hyderabad, but a lovely scouser with whom i had a nice chat about the relative weather conditions
the co-operative bank have always been fantastic in this respect in my experience.
I travel a lot and am constantly calling them to let them know and have only once had a problem...and that was the time i forgot to tell them.
I was in Gran Canaria and my card was rejected. I remembered that i had forgotten to let them know.
Not having a smartphone at the time, i was resolved to having to go into town to find an internet cafe and skype them from there.
As i was walking along the promenade into town, my cellphone rang and, lo and behold, it was the lady from the co-op just checking that i was really in GC so she could unlock my phone.
And furthermore, this was no call centre in Hyderabad, but a lovely scouser with whom i had a nice chat about the relative weather conditions
In reply to mypyrex: give us a trip report for our help- it is the way of dharma..
In reply to mypyrex:
I'm off to New York on Monday. Whoop Whoop...thought I'd better check with Barclaycard that my card would work over there (because it didn't work in Paris a couple of years ago) and they say it'll be fine.
Apparently they used to need peoples itineries, but now they don't care?
I'm off to New York on Monday. Whoop Whoop...thought I'd better check with Barclaycard that my card would work over there (because it didn't work in Paris a couple of years ago) and they say it'll be fine.
Apparently they used to need peoples itineries, but now they don't care?
In reply to subalpine:
Be nice to hear how it went, fitness required, cost etc etc!
Sorry to hear about the Mypyrex camera packing up!
> (In reply to mypyrex) give us a trip report for our help- it is the way of dharma..
Good idea!Be nice to hear how it went, fitness required, cost etc etc!
Sorry to hear about the Mypyrex camera packing up!
In reply to dek: i asked the old fart for a trip report on his last trip, but nothing came from it;(
In reply to subalpine:
After a trip to the Himalayas....happiness is a 'Dry' fart.
> (In reply to dek) i asked the old fart for a trip report on his last trip, but nothing came from it;(
After a trip to the Himalayas....happiness is a 'Dry' fart.
In reply to dek: i hope to follow in the footsteps of mypyrex one day. has he gone at a good time? can you recommend a place to look for cheap flights?
In reply to subalpine:
Me? I've not been yet! I'm getting the itch to go see though.
Me? I've not been yet! I'm getting the itch to go see though.
In reply to subalpine:
> (In reply to mypyrex) give us a trip report for our help- it is the way of dharma..
working on it.In reply to Nick Harvey: Sorry about your problem ,Im abroad 3 months or so each year and only had a problem when an ATM in Tenerife ate my card.HSBC sent me a replacement to a secure address I provided,no problems.Them asking you to quote your card no over the phone sounds very dodgy I dont think banks do that ,they already have your number
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