Withholding money
I took a car loan from Emirates NBD, where I have a salary transfer account. I got this loan in April 2012 and paid the necessary instalments without fail, till date.
Then, I changed my job in July 2014. I have received a regular salary (which is higher than my previous salary) from my new employer since then. My end of service amount from my old employer was credited in July 2014. The bank called me to submit my documents at the end of October. At the time, the bank representative asked whether I needed to adjust the settlement amount with my outstanding loan. I replied in the negative.
I visited the bank the week after, with all the necessary documents (such as passport copy, visa copy, salary certificate, etc.) and submitted it all. Yet, the bank went ahead and debited my account with my end of service amount and settled it against my loan.
I complained to the bank but there has been no action on this. I inquired about this matter with the bank representative and he informed me that it was adjusted with the principal loan. The reason is apparently because the gratuity is not mine, since I took a loan from the bank, and I have no right to it. I requested them to reimburse the gratuity, but they haven’t yet reverted to me.
I would like to know if there is any law to do so or not? Does the bank have the right to adjust the settlement cash with my loan without my consent?
Emirates NBD later emailed me saying that they will not refund my money, despite the fact that I have never defaulted in any of my payments, and have submitted all my documents to them. This is a huge amount and it is extremely unfair for a bank to treat its customers like this!
From Ms Ruchika Kalra
Dubai
The management of Emirates NBD responds:
We are pleased to inform you [Gulf News] that our Group Customer Experience team has been in touch with Ms Kalra and has provided her with the necessary clarifications relating to her auto loan settlement with us.
We would like to confirm that as per the End of Service Benefits (EOSB) policy, for all customers who have exited their previous employment, there is a hold placed on the account towards the EOSB to recover any liabilities that the customer may have with the Bank. Ms Kalra was informed by our collections team to provide the Salary Transfer Letter and the copy of the stamped visa in order to continue with the liabilities. However, since there were no documents received within the necessary requested time frame, the collections team settled the EOSB towards her auto loan account as per the Bank’s policy.
We have contacted Ms Kalra and explained to her that based on the above, we regret being unable to reverse the amount back to her account.
Furthermore, please note that the new employer documents were received by us from Ms Kalra on October 2, 2014 and subsequently the hold placed on her account was released as appropriate on the same day.
We would like to thank you [Gulf News] for your continuous support in offering us the opportunity to further assist our valued customers.
Ms Kalra responds:
Thank you so much for listening to my complaint. I would like to clarify a few points.
Firstly, the bank claims to have called me on July 27, 2014, to ask me for my documents. I was out of the country on that day, which they could have guessed by the international ring tone.
They claim to have sent me an SMS on that day too, though I have all their SMSes in chronological order for the past five months.
From July, all the way to September 2014, nobody called nor texted me.
In September 2014, I did receive a call from their collections department. I took about a week to get the required documents and visited the Dubai Airport Freezone Authority (Dafza) branch to submit my documents.
The branch manager advised me to get the salary remittance document in another format. I discussed this with him and told him that it will take 2-3 days. He agreed to this. I submitted the documents within this time frame, however my assumption is the branch did not communicate this to the collections department. The collections department went ahead and debited my money.
I am very sure I submitted everything by the last week of September and not October 2, 2014, as they claim.
A few more points:
1. My new employer has been crediting a salary regularly every month to my account (higher than my previous salary).
2. I have never defaulted any loan amount with them.
3. My current bank balance with them is higher than the loan amount I have with them.
Given these facts, I do not understand the rationale behind this unfair behaviour.
The management of Emirates NBD responds:
After conducting additional inquiries into matters relating to Ms Kalra’s concerns, we wish to reiterate that as per the End of Service Benefits (EOSB) policy, for all customers who have exited their previous employment, there is a hold placed on the account towards the EOSB to recover any liabilities that the customer may have with the Bank. Ms Kalra was informed by our collections team to provide the Salary Transfer Letter and the copy of the stamped visa in order to continue with the liabilities. However, since there were no documents received within the necessary requested time frame, the collections team settled the EOSB towards her auto loan account as per the Bank’s policy.
Furthermore, we wish to confirm that the new employer documents were received by us from Ms Kalra on October 2, 2014 and subsequently the hold placed on her account was released as appropriate on the same day.
Our Head of Group Customer Experience has personally contacted Ms Kalra and we are working out an amicable solution to exceptionally assist her and shall keep her updated with the status.
Once again, thank you [Gulf News] for your relentless efforts in providing us with the opportunity to further assist our customers.
(Process initiation: November 4, 2014. Response from organisation: November 6, 2014. Process completion: December 25, 2014.)
Setup box issues
I closed my connection in Abu Dhabi in June and returned all the required hardware to etisalat. Then, etisalat sent me a receipt, confirming the return. I have also paid the remaining amount in full. But since then, every month, we are receiving a bill stating that the setup box has not yet been returned. We have lodged three complaints so far and all have been closed unceremoniously, even after we submitted the required setup box submission confirmation. Kindly take the necessary action.
From Ms Divya Balaji
Dubai
The management of etisalat responds:
Kindly note that the customer’s issue was solved and the customer has confirmed the same.
Ms Balaji responds:
Yes, the issue was resolved.
(Process initiation: December 5. Response from organisation: December 10. Reader confirmation: December 25.)
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.
