Can I appeal my overdaft decision?
Yes. But it will not make any difference. The hard truth is that the decision has already been made.
You have the right to appeal the decision about your overdraft, but this is smoke and mirrors. Regardless of whether we are reducing or removing your overdraft, your appeal goes to a department that does not handle phone calls and is under incredibly strict guidelines about whether to overturn the decision. And they will not overturn it.
When you speak to an advisor on the phone, we are powerless to help. We cannot overturn this decision ourselves. We can only 'appeal' the decision to the department mentioned above, who will not actually reconsider the circumstances. As mentioned earlier, it's only smoke and mirrors.
It does not matter if you have banked with us for 40 years or if you have thousands in savings with us or millions in assets. This was not taken into consideration to begin with and it will not be considered in an appeal.
You may even be asked to upload documents in support of your appeal that are none of our business. This could include bank statements from other banks, benefits entitlement letters or tax documents. If you think it's unreasonable to upload sensitive documents just to have your appeal declined anyway, you would be correct.
100% of Barclays front-line staff are on your side. When you phone us, whether you get through to our general support line, Premier support, lending department or complaints department, we will not be able to overturn or influence the decision about your overdraft. We understand your frustration. You have been let down by your bank, and we have been let down by the company we work for.
Staff morale is at an all time low. Many of us dread coming in to work and there have been reports of some people crying in between calls and after work because of the nonstop angry calls.
Please show some humanity and please do not ring us to discuss this. We are absolutely on your side, but you are only wasting your own time and causing further stress amongst an already drained staff. Barclays are not going to reconsider the decision. The computer said no, and that is final. There are other options...
Should I switch to another bank?
Yes.
Many clients threaten to switch their banking from Barclays to another bank who will support their overdraft needs.
But this is almost always an empty threat.
In reality you should actually switch banks.
Companies only react to the bottom line. All the empty threats and complaints in the world will not change a thing. The only thing that will have an impact is a bank losing its assets. Barclays can absorb the cost of losing a few clients, but if clients begin moving away en masse, there will be no choice but to take notice.
There are banks that will gladly accept your business and give you an overdraft. Barclays is the only high street bank that doesn't give their clients the option of applying for a loan or an overdraft in their app unless you have been pre-approved, and less than 2% of clients are pre-approved. You are probably somebody who isn't.
Have a look at MoneySavingExpert for options to switch. Many high street banks are offering switching incentives and all of them, Barclays included, particpate in the Current Account Switching Service (CASS) which guarantees all of your balances, regular payments and regular credits are automatically switched to the new bank within 7 working days. A keen eye will notice that Barclays is not listed anywhere in the list of 'best current accounts'.
Should I switch to Barclays from my current bank?
Probably not. Not if you want an overdraft.
Barclays occasionally offers incentives to switch to us, just like other high street banks. It is vital to note, however, that Barclays will not offer you an overdraft when you switch, even if you have one with your existing bank.
As mentioned earlier, Barclays does not lend to clients unless they are pre-approved, and if you are totally new to the bank you will absolutely not be approved. It will take months, if not years, before you may come close to qualifying. There is just as high a chance that you may never be offered an overdraft. This is rarely the case with other banks.
Can I complain to the CEO?
Yes you can, and you should.
If you phone us, go into a branch or message us to raise a complaint, you will only be speaking to a disaffected advisor who agrees wholeheartedly with you.
The bottom line is that this is a business decision, so you should make a decision that affects our bottom line. The only way that anything may possibly change is to complain directly to C.S. Venkatakrishnan, the CEO of Barclays.
His email address is cs.venkatakrishnan@barclays.com, which is widely obtainable from any number of business websites.
If you use the subject I'M COMPLAINING ABOUT MY OVERDRAFT, this will be difficult to miss and it will signal clear dissatisfaction amongst our clients about the way you are being treated.
Will anything change?
Nothing will change unless you as a client takes action. This means contacting upper leadership directly.
If you phone us, go into a branch or message us to complain about this, you are only wasting your own time. Nothing will change. As explained above, phone and branch staff are nothing more than a stressed out and morale-depleted group of people who want to give you better news but cannot. You and Barclays front-line staff are in this together, but the voice of client speaks far louder than that of staff.
TL;DR
- Branch and phone staff cannot change things, and your appeal goes to a department with guidelines so strict that it is nigh on impossible to keep your overdraft.
- Just switch banks. Your loyalty to Barclays will not be taken into consideration, and there are plenty of banks that can accomodate your needs. Money talks, so make it walk.
- Barclays cannot offer you an overdraft if you have only just switched to us, so do not waste your time. You may never actually qualify.
- Email C.S. Venkatakrishnan with the subject I'M COMPLAINING ABOUT MY OVERDRAFT. It may not change things, but at least your complaint will go to somebody who will absolutely take notice.
- Nothing will change unless you put your money where your mouth is. Don't phone us or complain in branch as we cannot help. Money talks, so make it walk and upper leadership will take notice.