Unsettled transaction
I was holding a credit card issued by Barclays bank, which later on, was transferred to Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB). On September 14, 2015, I approached the ADIB main branch in Sharjah and after settling all outstanding dues, as advised by the customer service officer, proceeded with the closure of the card.
Further to this, I keep receiving statements with additional payments due. Despite closure of the card and speaking to the call centre on October 28, I was surprised to find that my card was just suspended and not closed, and that I still owe money to the bank.
An official complaint was logged and even after visiting the branch again, and visiting their collection centre, nothing worked out. Finally, after a second complaint being logged on November 19, I got a final reply from the bank on December 22, advising me to pay up the additional amounts adding up in my statements month on month, and that the final amount advised by their staff was a mistake. A written apology from the bank and my demands to speak to higher authorities was denied.
As a customer, don’t I have a right to speak to higher authorities? Am I not entitled to a written apology from the bank if there has been a mistake from their staff? The bank staff was at fault and this has been confirmed through a telephonic conversation. In such a case, why don’t they penalise the staff, like in any other service organisation? Why does the customer always have to bear the brunt of their staff’s mistakes?
With no options left, in fact, I have started paying them now. I hope as the nation’s leading newspaper, Gulf News will support my cause and try to bring this issue to the public so others are also aware.
From Mr Faisal Hussain Meer
Sharjah
The management of ADIB responds:
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. With regards to the complaint, the customer had visited an ADIB branch to inquire about the outstanding amount on his card to settle and close the card. The customer was provided with the outstanding amount, excluding the active instalments deal amount that he has on the card. As a result, ADIB has formally apologised to the customer and as compensation, has offered a convenient payment plan on the outstanding amount with no extra charges. We wish to confirm the customer has already been informed and the issue has been resolved to his satisfaction. We would like to thank you for your continuous support in offering us the opportunity to further assist our valued customers.
(Process initiation: January 6, 2016. Response from organisation: January 11, 2016.)
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