Zero cash back
I am using a Standard Chartered Titanium credit card that provides cashback of 10 per cent on utility payments subject to a minimum overall spending of Dh2,500 in the statement period. I spent Dh2,500 on utility payments in the month of November, 2014. To my surprise, they posted the transactions in the statement, but did not include the cashback points worth Dh200 in the monthly credit card statement as a promised benefit on this card. I called their help line but they said that it will be credited in the next month’s bill only if I spend another Dh2,500 within the next month.
This is ridiculous and tantamount to cheating the customers. I am sure if I had delayed the payment, they would have imposed finance charges in the same month, but chose to defer the cashback points to next month’s statement.
In fact, they want me to spend Dh5,000 in order to get cashback worth Dh200.
In response to my inquiry reference number, they called me but refused to register a complaint. I would appreciate it if Gulf News could help with getting Standard Chartered Bank to fulfil its commitment to the customers or cancel this cashback scheme instead of playing around with customers.
From Mr Hammad Ali, Abu Dhabi
The management of Standard Chartered responded:
We have been in contact with our customer and the issue reported has been fully resolved. All considerations have now been satisfied. The customer has personally expressed satisfaction over the complaint resolution and has not raised any further issue thereafter.
Mr Ali responded:
My complaint has been resolved. Thank you Gulf News for all your help.
(Process initiation: November 26. Response from Organisation: November 26. Reader confirmation: December 21.)
Cancelled connection
I had an Al Shamil connection from etisalat in Sharjah. Upon receiving sales calls from one of their agents, I upgraded this connection to eLife with a basic package of Dh199 as a package offer. Later, when I moved to Abu Dhabi due to a change in my job, I cancelled my account and returned the equipment to a Sharjah business centre and cleared all the dues.
The officer did not provide any proof or receipt for the return of equipment, but verbally told me that the process was complete. He also said that I must check next month for any extra amount for usage as the system may not give me an up-to-date bill amount. I agreed.
Surprisingly, when I checked after two months, the billed amount showed as Dh779! Upon contacting the customer care centre, they clarified that the charges were for the fact that the equipment hadn’t been returned and early termination charges for deactivating the package.
Please note that both cases are not valid because the equipment was definitely returned, and any contract for eLife was not mentioned since it was an upgrade of the existing Al Shamil connection.
I hope Gulf News can understand my problem and seek help on my behalf to settle this issue without me having to pay extra, as I already cleared all my dues while cancelling the connection.
From Mr Asmabi Kalathingal, Abu Dhabi
The management of etisalat responds:
Kindly note that the customer’s issue was solved. The customer claimed that he wasn’t informed of the early exit charge and that the equipment was returned but he was not given a receipt. The customer was refunded the full amount of Dh808, as rental charges and the early exit charge. We have refunded the full amount. We tried contacting the customer many times, but his mobile phone was switched off. We then sent an SMS to the customer to inform him of the same.
Mr Kalathingal responds:
Thank you Gulf News and etisalat for your help.
(Process initiation: November 12. Response from organisation: November 25. Reader confirmation: November 26.)
Settled charges?
In 2007, I had three credit cards; one from Emirates NBD (ENBD) and two from ABN Amro. Due to financial difficulties, I missed some payments on these cards. The banks cancelled the cards and asked me to settle the dues.
I did a transfer from France and paid the exact amount liable on each card. To do so, I went to the branch and paid by cheque. A few days ago, the ENBD collection department called me asking me to pay the outstanding balance, which was around Dh5,000 due to interest fees.
Then, I got a call from Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), with regards to the ABN AMRO cards, to pay the outstanding amount, which was around Dh4,000 of interest fees.
I explained to both the banks that the cards had been cancelled in 2007, but both insisted to get the payment done. I have asked for statements from the past seven years so they can justify the overdue amount. I wanted to show them the exact amount transferred on the specific day in 2007 to cover any liability on the credit card.
I also asked them why they hadn’t contacted me in the past seven years to inquire about any “missing” or “hidden” fees, which I didn’t settle. But, they didn’t help.
I am desperate and still don’t know how both banks suddenly called me at the same time. I am looking for advice.
From Mr Benoit Lemarechal, Dubai
The management of Emirates NBD responded:
We are pleased to inform you that our Group Customer Experience team has been in touch with Mr Lemarechal and resolved the matter to his satisfaction. We would like to confirm that Mr Lemarechal had made a payment towards his blocked credit card on July 25, 2007, however, our records still show an outstanding on the credit card due to which he has been contacted by our collection team.
As a gesture of goodwill, the bank has approved to write off the outstanding balance on the credit card and close it within 2-3 working days. We have contacted Mr Lemarechal and informed him of the action taken.
We would like to thank you for your continuous support in offering us the opportunity to further assist our valued customers.
Mr Lemarechal responded:
This is to let you know that Emirates NBD called me and told me they will be reversing this amount. ADCB hasn’t contact me yet. Thank you Gulf News for your help.
The management of ADCB responded:
Thank you for your cooperation and communication with us in the endeavour to best serve our customers and resolve their issues. Customer satisfaction is at the very top of our agenda, which is why we have an established Service Quality Unit that is dedicated to handling all customer enquiries and complaints. While we cannot comment on specific customer cases, we do take finding a solution for our customers very seriously and approach every situation with the best interest of the customer in mind.
With reference to Mr Lemarechal’s issue, the customer was contacted by our Service Quality Unit and informed that his cards are still active and not cancelled. He requested a statement from the bank, and it was sent it to him. The customer will check the statement and come back to us if he wants to arrange a settlement. The case is closed from our side.
We continually urge all customers to contact our Service Quality Unit 24/7 by phone, email or web, should they need any further clarification regarding their issues.
We would like to thank Gulf News for bringing this issue to our attention and hence giving us the opportunity to further our servicing to our valued customers.
(Process initiation: December 1. Response from organisation: December 8. Response from reader: December 8. Response from second organisation: January 18. Process completion: January 19.)
Editor’s note: Do you have similar issues that you would like to raise with us? You can write to us at readers@gulfnews.com.
