Citibank Ate My Cash

I'm in the middle of a little fiasco with Citibank. Two Saturdays ago, I went to the branch in KL to pay my credit card bills. I was unfortunate to have the ATM die on me during a transaction. The response from the staff on duty was helpful. The guard immediately closed off the machine and led me to the phone and advised me to make a report. He called an officer to check the machine. I was told that since I swiped my card first, the money would be recorded into my account. I went off with a secure feeling that my money will be retrieved. It is after all, Citibank.

So I waited until Tuesday to check my balance, seeing that the deposits made on Saturday can only be confirmed by Tuesday morning. The money did not appear. I called again and was advised to make a report, which I did again, citing the machine number that ate 20 of my RM50 notes. I hung up again feeling secure that my money will reappear. It is Citibank, of course. Friday
and no news. I called in the evening, only to be told that no investigation was initiated by the last person I talked to.

I know a thing or two about how a call centre runs, having been involved in setting up systems for 2 call centres in my line of work. And I know that Citibank should be a well-oiled machine, having an active recruitment program for call centre agents and some of the fanciest and best set-up systems around. So I lost my cool as the agent I spoke to offered no apologies for what happened. And I was told that he will request an investigation, and that I should call again on Wednesday. Not wanting to be taken for a ride again, I called today to check. The nice lady told me that the last guy did his job and submitted the request.

And how long would I have to wait? 3 days. Standard procedure. No exceptions for the bank's mistake to not investigate the last time I asked it to.

I asked around - friends in Citibank, friends of Citibank, friends who left Citibank. All have had good stories to tell about the company. Most told me to go in person to make my complaint. One friend told me to write to them and cc to Bank Negara. All this is hard work. In the meanwhile, I checked my account activities in the last couple of days over the company's online banking site. I was charged a late fee...

Will I get my money back? Will I get a refund on the late fee? Will I get a free holiday out of this? Stay tuned for more...

Najah's Note: The ironic thing was during an IM session with a friend explaining this, I got a call. From American Express. Telling me that as a member of the Oil and Gas community, I am eligible for a card, free of charge for a year. And they're throwing in some luggage too.

Related Links:
Don't Like AMEX? You'd be pleased to know that there's an anti-AMEX movement!
The Citigroup Watch
How Safe is Your Maybank2U Password?

Posted by Najah Nasseri at 2003年03月10日 21:05