This card shuffle with NatWest bank left me penniless in Thailand
R.K. writes: The contactless chip on my ageing NatWest debit card was not working, so I ordered a replacement. A few days later the card arrived with an expiry date of June 2021 and the bank ordered me to destroy the old card which I did. Soon afterwards though, NatWest sent me another card with an expiry date of July 2021 and again ordered me to destroy the existing card, which I did. I then went to Heathrow to fly to Thailand for five weeks, but when I tried to buy goods at the airport my new card was declined. I rang NatWest and was told the new card had been cancelled, but I could rectify this at one of its branches. My holiday was a disaster and I had to contact people weekly to send me money via Western Union. IT IS easy now to look back and see what has happened. Your first card no longer worked properly. The second card replaced the first. But the first card was about to expire, so NatWest was already geared up to issue the third card as its replacement.
When NatWest sent you the third card it intended you to destroy the first card, overlooking the fact that you had already cut up the first card and so would destroy the second card instead. Simple when you work it out like this.
The consequences for you were less simple, though. When you called the bank from Heathrow, you got through to an adviser with just five minutes to spare before your flight. He could do nothing to help. Luckily, you had paid in advance for your first three nights in Bangkok and you had some cash.
But when this ran low you were forced to use your mobile phone to call home and get people to send you money regularly that you could collect in cash from Western Union in Thailand.
NatWest has told me that staff did realise you would not need the third debit card as you were already using the second card. They cancelled the third card, but it was still sent to you almost a fortnight later, with instructions to destroy the card you already had.
The bank has now offered to compensate you with a payment of £600 which you have accepted. This is made up of £150 for your mobile phone calls, £200 to cover Western Union money transfer charges, and £250 for the inconvenience.
In future, I am sure you will try using any replacement cards just to make sure they work before you cut up your existing cards and risk getting stuck in Bangkok without a baht to your name.