Reverse charges
In June 2013, I was holding a personal loan and credit card from Emirates NBD and both had outstanding amounts. However, I left my job and my complete 10 years’ end of service of Dh88,000 was transferred to the bank and blocked. Before leaving the country, I visited the Tower Branch and the Meydan Branch collection department and I informed them to deduct the instalments of my loan and credit card from my end of service money, which was available to the bank, until I got a new job. I also called customer care and registered the complaint for the same.
My new employment got delayed and it took me one year to come back to the country, and now that I am in the country with a new company, I realised that all of my end of service money was over. I calculated my monthly instalments for my loan, which was Dh3,624 per month and for 14 months, that is June 2013 to July 2014, it comes to Dh50,736. However, available in my account at the moment is Dh8,000 and when I asked where the remaining balance of Dh29,264 went, I was told that it was all taken up for late payment fees, over limit fees, and credit shield charges.
Now I want to settle my credit card bill and request them to remove all the unnecessary charges on my credit card statement. I am running between the collection department and the bank and while the collection department says that my card is active, the call centre says that the charges were for one year only.
I don’t know where to go to waive the one year of unnecessary charges on my credit card. I need a payment plan to clear my outstanding amount and I also need to waive all the unnecessary charges on my credit card as it is my 10 years of hard-earned money.
From Mr Mohammad Suhail
Dubai
The management of Emirates NBD responds:
We are pleased to inform you that our Group Customer Experience team contacted Mr Suhail and provided him with the necessary clarifications relating to deductions made towards his End of Service Benefits (EOSB).
Furthermore, we wish to clarify that adjusting the EOSB towards the personal loan is given priority when settling customers’ liabilities; since the received amount was not sufficient to close the personal loan in full, the EOSB amount was debited as instalments every month for the personal loan and towards the minimum payments for the credit card dues. As there were no standing instructions to debit the funds from Mr Suhail’s account towards the credit card, payments have been debited after the due date, hence he has been charged with a late payment fee every month on the credit card since receipt of the EOSB.
Mr Suhail has now provided the bank with the new employer documents such as the Salary Transfer Letter, copy of stamped visa and passport at our branch to continue with the liabilities. As a service gesture and in value of Mr Suhail’s relationship with us, we shall waive off all the incurred late payment charges upon receipt of his first salary to his account with us.
Mr Suhail responds:
I don’t have words to express my thanks and gratitude to Gulf News as I finally got all my accounts settled and unnecessary charges reversed by Emirates NBD. It did not seem possible when I came back to the country to find that all my gratuity vanished and while trying to get it sorted, I found a similar case on Gulf News’ website. I am highly grateful for your efforts and thank both parties from the bottom of my heart.
(Process initiation: August 28. Response from organisation: September 8. Reader confirmation: October 17)
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.
