Barclays ATM left me £280 out of pocket

I TRIED to withdraw £400 using my First Direct debit card at a Barclays cash machine on Brighton Marina.

Initially, I withdrew only £20, as I mistook the message on the machine.

I tried to withdraw the remaining £380. The machine returned my card and gave a receipt, but the lid closed rapidly, snatching my money back.

I informed First Direct, but my account has only been credited £100, leaving me £280 out of pocket.

First Direct says it contacted Barclays Bank, which admits its machine was faulty, but says that it only had an extra £100 in it at the end of the day. Mrs S. B., Brighton. I know that Brighton boasts excellent fish and chips and a fair number of slot machines. But I wasn’t aware Barclays had introduced an element of risk into its cash machines there.

when I read your letter, the explanation seemed pretty clear to me.

Barclays admits that the machine went wrong and took back your cash, and you have a receipt for the withdrawal.

Yet the machine was only £100 out at the end of the day. My best guess is that the next person who used the machine hit the jackpot and received £280 more than they’d expected.

First Direct confirmed the explanation from Barclays that the machine had recaptured the money, though at the end of the day, it did only have an extra £100.

However, First Direct says it would not want a loyal customer such as you to be out of pocket, so it has repaid the £280 as a gesture of goodwill.

I also went to Barclays, which, again as a goodwill gesture, also agreed to refund the £280. when I told First Direct that Barclays had also agreed to refund your money, it magnanimously agreed to let you keep the money it had already placed in your account.

So, at the end of the day, you’re £280 to the good. I suspect a little shopping trip along The Lanes beckons. enjoy spending it. MY VIRGIN Media phone line stopped working when I was admitted to hospital in December.

Virgin sent out two engineers in the New Year, who both advised me that the problem was with my phone, not the line coming into my property.

I purchased a new phone, but still nothing worked. When another engineer came out, he said there was a problem with the Virgin Media box on the street and that this needed to be fixed.

I think that Virgin should compensate me for the loss of service over several months. Mrs H. S., Hampshire. VIrgIn Media says your phone line was only out of action for 11 days. You called on January 4 to report the issue and, by January 15, the line had been fixed and no further issues have been reported since then.

Virgin says it has offered £200 for the cost of the two new phones you purchased and the cost of topping up your mobile during the period you had problems with your service. This also includes a gesture of goodwill.

It tells me that you’ve declined and want more compensation because you think the line was out of action for three months.

Virgin is adamant that the fault was first reported to it in January and fixed within a couple of weeks. given you were in hospital in December — and so weren’t there to notice any lack of service — I’m inclined to believe them.

It also says your service has been back up and running since. You haven’t provided me any evidence to the contrary.

A Virgin spokesman says: ‘we’re sorry for the temporary loss of service Mrs S experienced. An engineer visited her property twice, but unfortunately, the fault took 11 days to fix.’

I’m afraid there is little more I can do at this stage.

The £200 offer covering your expenses and some goodwill seems fair to me in the circumstances and I suggest you get back in touch and take it.

If you’re still unhappy, you can take your case to the independent ombudsmen — the Centre for effective Dispute resolution (020 7520 3814, cisas@cedr.com) or the International Dispute resolution Centre ( 70 Fleet Street, London eC4Y 1eU).