Not good for business - They do not deserve the 1 star I have had to give them (Barclays Bank)

Member Name: Frustrated

Product:	Barclays Bank
Date:	21/01/09 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Free automated banking

Disadvantages: Constant errors, Awful customer service, you pay for free banking with your time spent chasing them,

Having had a personal account with Barclays for 14 years, when I set up my business Barclays seemed the best option. I have had no end of problems since I opened the account & felt I had to warn others of these problems.

I opened the business account with them in February 2008, it is now January 2009 & I still have problems. When the account was first opened it took 1 month to receive the debit card. I had still received no pin number so after waiting another week for this to arrive I called to be told that one had not been ordered! This would be sent out...I called 5 days later for another problem I was having, to be told the pin number had still not been sent. I was mistakenly registered as trading as someone else & told that to get this changed I would have to provide proof of my name change! I was given a savings account which was no longer used as it was at half the percentage rate of the one I should have actually been set up with. This savings account has been closed twice in error! I have had 2 debit cards cancelled in error. The card I have now sometimes allows me to access my money sometimes doesn't (although on all occasions allows me to view my balance so I don't believe this is a problem with the card itself). Their business banking helpline is a joke. I spent over 1 hour on the phone to them on one occasion having a conversation with someone else through the operator I got, who didn't know anything & had to ask this other person for the response to every question. There are many more ridiculous errors which have been made by Barclays, too many to list here. I have listed the most serious. Barclays have cost me a fortune in phonecalls & time. I am so frustrated, I cannot bear to go near them anymore & can't trust them with my money. Please don't open a business account with this bunch of clowns, they do not deserve your money & you will be constantly chasing them for the most simple account operations to be carried out.

On another note although I have had no real problems with my personal account, as others have mentioned Barclays have recently introduced a personal reserve which is in addition to your agreed overdraft. Barclays will charge a one off fee of £22 the day after you go over your overdraft, and will then not charge for any further debits for 5 days. Prior to this I had a 'buffer' of £5 above my overdraft which suited me perfectly as I very rarely go over & if I do it is always for less than £5. I have been charged £22 for going £1.99 over my overdraft for less than a day, this was because of a problem as listed above with my business account not allowing me to draw any money, which (after having to draw it in branch) was then paid in too late to clear that day. The customer service in my local branches is severely lacking, absolutely awful. I have also been told that 'no Barclays wouldn't care' if I were to up & leave.

Summary: The worst experience I have ever had with any company ever, DO NOT GO NEAR