I tried to use my Lloyds TSB debit card in ATM machines on holiday in India
last month with no luck. When I rang Lloyds in the UK I was told that an
unusual pattern to my ATM use - namely that I was in India - meant a block
was put on my card. But I had called to tell Lloyds that I would be in
India, and it was my third visit since 2005, so hardly unusual.
Calling the UK from India cost me £35. Lloyds told me that blocks are
generated automatically. If so, will my card be blocked every time I am in
India?
Lloyds told me to take out a prepaid card. I then asked if it would
contribute towards my £35 phone bill. I behaved reasonably by keeping the
bank informed but have been penalised and am now out of pocket.
RICHARD HANDFORD, London
You and many others, unfortunately. Anyone planning summer holidays take note:
Troubleshooter has discovered that after a sharp rise in fraud committed
abroad, the usual advice to tell your bank before you go away no longer
applies, because it won't make any difference.
Apacs, the payment services association, says that banks reserve the right to
turn down any payment they think is suspicious, even if you inform them of
your travel plans. You can limit the risk of this by not using cash machines
in foreign countries, particularly those without chip-and-PIN technology, as
these are the favoured targets of fraudsters.
Your bank is not obliged to call you if a transaction is stopped, but it does
have to warn you that you are at risk if the bank has a history of
“routinely” barring transactions abroad. However, many banks will try to
call you if a transaction on your card is declined overseas. It is vital,
therefore, to leave your bank with a contact number while you are away.
Lloyds said that it did not have your mobile number. Troubleshooter asked the
bank to refund the £35 call charges, but it said that it will not consider
doing so until you have sent proof of costs. Given that Lloyds did not tell
you to leave a number when you originally called, Troubleshooter reckons it
should pay up.
What has happened to my 71-year-old mother recently has reduced her to near
penury. She recently returned home from doing her shopping but left the
bags, along with her purse, outside. The next day she went to the bank and
noticed that £250 had been taken from her account. She reported the theft to
the police, but they do not plan to take action.
Nationwide, my mother's bank, seems to be saying that if the thief was able
to access the money, he must have found the PIN in the bag, which would make
my mother to blame. My mother says that the PIN was not written down.
Nationwide is refusing to reimburse her on the basis that she could have
withdrawn the money herself.
PAULA ROWLETT,
Halesworth, Suffolk
“Upon closer inspection of the details surrounding the case” - a phrase often
heard by Troubleshooter - Nationwide refunded the £250 and set a record for
the fastest response to a Troubleshooter inquiry. It took less than two
hours to credit your mother's account. It just goes to show, doesn't it?
I recently took out a cashback mobile phone deal with a company called
onestopphoneshop.co.uk. The deal entitled me to four payments of £80,
totalling £320.
I missed the deadline for the third payment, but instead of losing £80, I
was told that I was no longer entitled to any payments.
This is a significant caveat that I was not told about when I signed up.
With most cashback deals, if you miss one deadline, you lose only that
instalment. Had I been told of this condition, I would not have taken out
the deal.
DAVID WOOD, Hornchurch, Essex
Onestopphoneshop is yet another subsidiary of the monolithic Carphone
Warehouse, which has gobbled up lots of smaller phone retailers over recent
years.
Although owned by Carphone Warehouse, Onestopphoneshop is a law unto itself. A
spokesman for Carphone Warehouse says that the company is in a very
competitive marketplace with tight margins. Hence, lots of fiddly and
unpredictable clauses in the small print.
Your correspondence was well timed, as Ofcom, the regulator, is currently
working with cashback operators to make the deals fairer and more
transparent. And, as it happens, Troubleshooter recently bumped into a
compliance director for Carphone Warehouse, who said that changes are afoot.
There is no doubt that you should have been told about the caveat, so it is
only right that Onestopphoneshop has now agreed to pay you the full £320.
To tell us your problems, visit timesonline.co.uk/troubleshooter or write
to Troubleshooter, Times Money, Times House, 1 Pennington Street, London E98
1TB
Readers to the rescue: O2 cancelled credit
“Last year I was unable to use my mobile phone for a prolonged period
because of illness and did not use the £80 of credit on my O2 contract. O2
says that as the phone was not used for a long period, I must forfeit this
and start with a new Sim card and new credit. Can I recover the lost credit?”
DOUGLAS GOHL, Maidstone, Kent
“If not happy, go to the top,” was the advice of Ian Moore. “Write direct to
Peter Erskine, the chief executive of O2. There is a department that deals
with complaints and they sorted me out, plus I received a letter and e-mail
from Peter himself.”
Francis Harvey, of Bristol, suggests a rather extreme solution: stop using
your mobile phone. Mr Harvey wrote: “Even if O2 won't refund his £80, at
least he could cut his losses by not wasting a similar amount on pointless
future calls.”
Ronald Goldberg, of Beckenham, Kent, said that you should threaten legal
action: “The forfeiture clause is undoubtedly void and unenforceable, since
it breaches the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations. O2 is likely
to concede straightaway, since an investigation might result in the clause
being banned by an injunction.” Mr Goldberg will receive a £25 voucher for
his advice.
O2 says that after six months of inactivity, one is no longer a customer, but
it has made an exception and will return your credit.
Can you help? E-mail troubleshooter@thetimes.co.uk with your answers to the
following problem for a chance to win a £25 gift voucher.
“Two-and-half years ago I joined Attractive Partners, a reputable
introduction agency based in the Midlands. I moved to Devon and was told
that few men here belong to the agency. Since being here, I have had four
introductions: one in the Middle East, one who sails for months, one who did
not return my call and one who lives two hours away. I have had no contacts
for six months. I am not unattractive and have an active life. I want a
refund as I feel that I have not received good value or good service. Any
suggestions?”
CAROL VOADEN, Devon
On the bright side
It's the small gestures that count, as this story, from Colin Rose, of London,
shows.
“I went on holiday to China with an Eminent suitcase. On leaving, I noticed
that I had lost one of the two keys. I went to Selfridges in London, where I
bought the case. An assistant told me that it does not sell keys, but gave
me the number of another firm. I called and was given another number. This
time, the assistant said that she could send spare keys. I said that I
needed only one and asked how much they were. ‘Free,' she said. ‘They will
be with you tomorrow.' And they were.”
