Rant banks and landlord grrrrrrrrrrrrr

[Ormorof]

I recently moved out of Ireland, before doing so i gave my landlord my months notice (actually about a month and a half notice), and cancelled all direct debits and whatnot from the bank.

i regret more than anything right now not getting a receipt from the bank showing they had been cancelled... the cheerful girl at the desk said all was fine and so i left...thinking i had €200 left in case i came back to ireland and needed to buy a pint or two...

now it seems i have been charged €800 (obviously into an unplanned overdraft) + overdraft fees since august before bank decided to try and contact me about it... the €800 being my former landlord for rent for the month after i left (who knew i would be leaving ireland the sneaky bastard) and the fees being the bank

the bank is claiming it was never cancelled and deny all responsibility, the landlord? well he isnt answering his phone or emails... so ive told the bank that frankly there is no way in hell i am paying this, i am digging out all the paperwork i have from landlord showing the dates that my contract would end, i even have my "residency" status papers from Finland ready (which are dated BEFORE the landlord charged me for rent)

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr why are there no honest, competent people out there!

lesson learned though, every damn transaction i do with a bank, every change, i will want a receipt of proof.. bloody useless idiots!

 

[Tom]

In the UK I believe that it is the bank who are liable for funds that are taken without your consent, via Direct Debit, but in Ireland and Finland I don't know.

 

[Ch3tan]

It's very rare for rent to be collected via a direct debit. Are you sure it's not a standing order. Harsh lesson, but always cancel things in writing.

 

[old.Tohtori]

Would imagine it's just a hassle, with all the papers etc, but it's not like you need the cash now

 

[Talyn]

always cancel things in writing.

Or bank online where you can see what's what and make alterations without any of the hassle and paperwork. The internets ftw...

 

[Ch3tan]

Also Omorof you need to be in constant contact with your bank here, and suggest keeping a record.

What are their daily overdraft fee's? The longer this goes unpaid, the more chance of you being stuck with an immense bill. Try and get them to freeze charges until it is sorted out. Did you change your overdraft limit at the same time as cancelling the DD or Standing order? If you did, you have a date of reference for the bank to investigate - push for the fact that it was a clerical error. You may want to contact whatever body regulates the banks in Ireland too.

 

[Raven]

You may want to contact whatever body regulates the banks in Ireland too.

Don't tease him!

 

[Ch3tan]

LOL, good point, I missed the ridiculousness of that comment while posting it

 

[Ormorof]

yeah its frozen until january now at least, argh

 

[chipper]

without a receipt and a signature saying you wish to cancel said DD/SO your on pretty thin ice :/

i do all my banking online so theres no chance of clerical error. ive also had a bad experience in the past, it ended up with me basically losing my bank account cos i refused to pay as well. (fucking HSBC or midlands as it was then) good luck with it hope you get it sorted.

 

[SilverHood]

You should be able to get the money back from the landlord. If he doesn't respond, get someone in Ireland to call. If that fails, send round the boys!

 

[Scouse]

The bank will have your conversation recorded. Tell them to look up the conversation and if they're reluctant threaten a call to the ombudsman...

 

[Ch3tan]

The bank will have your conversation recorded. Tell them to look up the conversation and if they're reluctant threaten a call to the ombudsman...

He didn't cancel over the phone... it was in branch, so if she didn't do it there is no proof.

 

[Ormorof]

just a quick update for anyone that cares

i managed to convince my former landlord to pay back the €800 (after several phone calls and emails with copies of the letter he sent to me asking me to be out of the house by 28th of July )

so at least i only will be paying the bank charges (about €80 still a bitch but better than the full amount) and i will be closing down that account for good methinks.

 

[pez]

If you simply asked the girl to cancel all your DDs then she did nothing wrong. Your payment to your landlord was a standing order.

 

[Jeros]

Make sure the bank knows its thier fault. Maybe try and get evidence that you went into the bank that day. When they realise they are at fault that they may get nice.

I hate banks, after dealing with loads of problems with the TSB I switched to RBS....however.....

I lost my wallet and cancelled all my cards for them in branch, but when I got my wallet back however my main debit card was never cancelled, but they did send a replacement, so I ended up having two working cards for the same account.

Went into RBS and they cancelled and destroyed the old one, but could not explain why it was never cancelled despite the guy in branch telling me it had been cancelled.

So ya, internet/phone banking is the way forward.

I often wonder what would have happend if I had lost my wallet for good, my address and what not is on my driving license, god know how much I could have lost.