Shirley Yanez / 24 November 2024 / Categories: Product and Brands, High Street Brands, Specialist, Corporate Brands, People, Business Leaders

HSBC Bank Customer Service and Fraud Team.

HSBC high street bank.

This is my distressing experience with having my handbag and phone stolen this weekend, an incredibly overwhelming and frustrating situation, especially when I was trying to act quickly to protect my financial security. I felt completely let down by HSBC's response and inability to help me in the moment.

Imagine the feeling of panic as you notice your bag has gone, the cold realization setting in that all your personal possessions, including your phone and credit cards, are gone. Your heart races as you think of the thief potentially using your cards to spend your hard-earned money before you can do anything about it. You call your bank, expecting immediate help, only to be passed around like a hot potato from one customer service representative to another.

Each transfer feels like an eternity, and your anxiety builds as you're asked for details that you don't have at hand because your handbag is gone. The run-around is unnerving, and the lack of urgency on their part is infuriating as they robotically keep repeating the same thing without listening. The very institution you rely on for security seems to be adding to your distress with their archaic methods and inability to provide timely assistance.

The suggestion to visit a branch, which is closed on weekends, feels like a slap in the face. How are you supposed to get help when you need it most, if the very places designed to assist you are inaccessible? It's like trying to put out a fire with a water pistol - utterly inadequate and totally maddening.

The world we live in is increasingly digital, and our lives are so intertwined with technology that we expect immediate solutions to our problems. Yet, here you are, stuck in a nightmare where the very tools that are supposed to make our lives easier are leaving you feeling more vulnerable than ever. The irony is painfully sharp. I eventually insisted on talking to the fraud team at HSBC and to my shock and horror without my bank account number and sort code they said they could not help stop my cards.

The person I was speaking to also insisted like all the other customer service robots, I go into a branch to find out my bank details and considering HSBC have closed almost all their branches and don't open on a Saturday, I truly began to panic. I was on the phone for a good hour, trying with everything I had left inside to get them to help me but it was impossible. In the end thank God my business partner arrived to meet me and by chance had my bank details on her phone, so eventually the fraud team stopped my cards and told me to have a good day.

I am now writing to the CEO to allow him to imagine the sense of violation and the fear of the unknown as I pondered what might happen to my finances. It's as if someone has taken not just my possessions but also a piece of your peace of mind. The whole ordeal is a stark reminder of the importance of having efficient, customer-cantered support systems in place, especially in moments of crisis. The good news, all calls are recorded, so the CEO can have a listen to how the business is just NOT serving its customers well when they need them, even in the fraud department!

This story for HSBC and other banks is a powerful one, and it highlights the need for banks to adapt their policies to the realities of modern life. I sincerely hope that I am able to resolve this issue swiftly and that HSBC learns from this incident to better serve its customers in the future.