Why did bank hold on to my late mother-in-law’s £15,000 for six weeks?
WE HAVE been waiting six weeks for Barclays to transfer more than £15,000 from my deceased mother-in-law’s account.
I accept that due to the coronavirus pandemic this is a difficult and busy time, but this money is urgently needed to pay direct debits and bills for the property still owned by her estate.
I have tried emailing the specialist bereavement email address, but have had no response. When I call the dedicated bereavement telephone number, I am told there is a 40-minute waiting time. And Barclays’ online Track It service, which is supposed to let me check the progress of my enquiry, does not accept my reference number.
G. J., Leicestershire. I SENT your complaint to Barclays and — hey presto! — £15,077 arrived in your executor account within 48 hours.
But as bereaved customers, you should not have been put through the mill by Barclays, and it certainly should not have been holding on to this money for so long.
The bank admits that when you called, the waiting times were very long because this was in the early days of the Covid-19 lockdown. It has since enabled staff to answer customer calls from home.
Barclays wrote to you, as co-executor, in April — two months after your initial inquiry — asking for further documentation. However, it has now made an exception to its usual processes and made the payment.
It is also investigating the issues with its online Track It system.
A spokesman says: ‘We have apologised to our customer that on this occasion they didn’t receive the appropriate level of service following a family bereavement. It fell outside our normal response time to access and transfer funds of the deceased. The balance of funds has now been transferred.’
Barclays has also now sent what what you describe as a beautiful bunch of flowers and a superb food hamper. Having seen your photos I agree! WE BOOKED our first family holiday abroad in nine years through Barrhead Travel for £2,149. It was a one-week, allinclusive package to the Canary Islands leaving on June 25.
With coronavirus restrictions, it looks like we will have to move it. We have been told that we can move the date to next July but would have to pay £923 more. We can’t afford this.
I work for the NHS part-time and have worked so very hard to be able to afford this holiday.
P. L., Barry, Vale of Glamorgan. FIrSTly, don’t cancel, because you will face standard cancellation terms which would mean losing a good deal of money.
Barrhead Travel says the price difference is down to the dates you’ve chosen. your current date in June is mid-season whereas the date you have chosen next year is in the peak season. This seems reasonable to me.
Barrhead says that if you wish to travel on the same dates next year as you have chosen this year, there will be no price difference.
Alternatively, if you wish to travel in July, then it will try to find a similar holiday at the same price as you are paying this year.
you won’t be the only one who needs to move to peak time, perhaps because a child is starting school. So what are the other options?
you can wait until the holiday is officially cancelled and ask for a refund. Tour operators should offer refunds, but most are offering vouchers in defiance of the law.
But paying out full refunds might drive firms to the wall. That could leave holidaymakers scrabbling for refunds with administrators, which may take years.
you could make a claim on your travel insurance once the holiday has been cancelled. Most insurers will only pay out if you took out insurance or booked your holiday before certain cut-off dates. These vary but are generally in mid-March.
Alternatively, launch a claim on your credit card under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.
This makes the credit card firm jointly liable even if you have only paid a £1 deposit on the card — so long as the total cost of the holiday is more than £100.
If you paid on a debit card, you could make a claim for a chargeback against the company. your bank can explain how to proceed. I CONTACTED Team Knowhow as the washing machine I’d bought from Currys was making a loud banging noise. The engineer said it needed a part that could not be ordered, but added: ‘Don’t worry, the insurance will get you a new machine and they will be in touch with you.’ I received a call the next day saying they had the part.
Since then I have had several cancelled appointments. They now say they are closing the case due to coronavirus.
I have spent £50 and £25 on washes at the launderette because both myself and my husband have work uniforms.
K.M., Herts. SO HOW did Team Knowhow become Team No Show?
Currys PC World, which operates the insurance/repair service, is full of apologies and has offered a you a new machine.
While coronavirus restrictions are in place, it has limited repairs it does to only essential ones and set a time limit of one hour.
As your job would be an hour and a half, you will be installing the machine yourself. Currys says this should have been clearly explained to you.
However, while this may explain more recent delays, it does not excuse the changing story you were given and the series of cancelled appointments.