Sigh...
I can't understand people who defend banks, for these reasons:

Deposit a very large amount of money in a *normal* bank account - it will be lost.
I personally have had several thousands of pounds go *missing* for an unacceptable amount of time. So has my father. My next door neighbour deposited 22k in her account once - nearly 2 years ago - guess what? Still not been *found*. This has happened on more occassions than is reasonable to assume mistake.

They process direct debits in order of highest first to maximise the risk of *bouncing* and process credits last.

They limit the amount of YOUR money you can withdraw, and treat it like theirs.

They rip the piss with cheque clearances - the Templar Knights (who invented Chequing) would cash cheques quicker than banks in the UK.

They lie. A lot.

They increase limits on credit cards, despite phoning and writing to them to tell them not to.

They allow staff to have lunch breaks at the same time as everyone else - meaning large queues if you are unfortunate enough to actually have to visit one.

They close early on Saturdays, meaning that you don't get that well earned lay-in on one of the two days per week that you don't have to work.

The don't open Sundays, yet they still gain the libor rate overnight on your money, and can still apply charges on Sundays.

They charge you, even if your account is in the black, and then you have to fight and struggle to get them to see sense to get it back from them - minus the (criminally small) interest you would have earned from it.

If you are unfortunate enough to have been conned into borrowing money from them - YOU have to take out an insurance policy to protect THEM from the risk THEY took? Perhaps the government should pay for my home insurance then - after all, if there was no crime (effectively what we pay police etc... for) then I wouldn't need it, would I?

On one occassion, I had a payment declined on-line (despite there being more than enough funds), I was charged 25 quid for it, and 25 quid from the reciever of the money. I had done nothing wrong and was chased by debt collectors (x2) for the 25x2 until I paid. I had to pay them off and the extra charges from the debt collectors, then sue both of them to get the money back. No amount of people I spoke to could (or seemingly not) not sort it out, or indeed, had any inclination to do so.

They will bombard you with credit card and loan applications if you put any sizeable amount of money in your account - meaning that they have software watching your every financial move.

They have unbridled access to the those private, limited companies they like to call "credit reference agencies" - they do not have to go through any legal shit or anything to bad mouth you to these agencies. If they make a mistake - you just try and get it put right - nearly impossible...you can of course, change it yourself, and if you do...guess what? It goes against you when applying for credit. If they fuck up (and a quick look at public records will show you just how many thousands of county court judgements they ALL have), then who doyou register that with? CCN et al, will just laugh at you. The only way out of that one is to write to the agency fuckers and assert your right under the DPA that you do not want your personal information included in any automated searches. If we all did this, their abuses would be limited.

It's very difficult to NOT have a bank account, and thus they have a virtual cartel - and as such, that means that we have to put up with piss-poor service from all of them. (it is possible, I haven't had a bank account for over 2 years now).

You can actually rely on their unreliability. When I sold my house I was told the funds would be in the account (not my account, I don't have one, and wasn't allowed my own money in cash due to some crap law that means that rich banks have to have my money before I do) on the Friday. The solicitor seems suprised when I offered her a 50 quid bet that the money wouldn't be there - she declined, of course.

The money was there the following Tuesday, and yes, I had to sue for the interest that was lost etc...

Then of course, there was the time they [Natwest, I think it was in this instance] deliberatly fucked over the first retail chain of personal computers, Escom.

Escom owed 1.7 million to Natwest in the form of an overdraft, they also owed 18 million to Barclays. (The figures are as close as I can remember, this was a while ago). Natwest, knowing that despite Escom having paid off around 4 million of their overdraft to them, and showing no signs of not coninuing to make profit and pay off the remainder in a very short time, decided to call the overdraft in immediatly. They knew what this would mean. Over a comparitevly small amount of money, Escom would have to fold as they would not have the time or money to sort it out. They went bust - owing 18 million to Barclays. Natwest had fucked over a decent retail chain just so they could fuck over one of their competitors. It was all investigated and this appreared to be the only reason. Of course, not illegal, and as such they continued with these dubious business practices, no doubt whilst toasting themselves with champaign and patting themselves on the back for their deviousness. Nice.

Add to that, the times they've ignored change of address forms and sent card replacements to an address you lived at a year ago, sent the wrong forms to the wrong address (in the case of my business some years ago), *forgotten* to take a mortgage payment (and then charge you for not paying it) and basically, you have the largest collection of incompetent, immoral, greedmongers that the world has ever known.

So, when they collectively start to act like they have a modicum of sense, competence and maybe even a slight sprinkling of morals, then perhaps I could understand some people defending their actions.

Until then, anyone who defends them can only be tarred with the same brush - or are just stupid and/or lucky that they haven't been one of the many millions that have been fucked over by them.

Banks break the law every day - in many different ways - the only one the government are concerned about is the tax evasion. The charges thing was found by me (and others around the same time) - keep looking and find more. If the government we pay to protect us from this sort of thing won't pull them to order, it's left to us to do it.

Scum, the lot of them.

/rant
(dchurch bah, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 9:31, 15 replies)

Win
^THIS^

clicky
(Galahad is out of his gourd on yellow bentines, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 9:52, closed)

More tinfoil, sir?
Let's divide your criticisms by category:

1) The banks are a bit crap, closing early, going for lunch, sometimes messing up payments.

2) The banks are commercial businesses, so try and sell you stuff and organise their processes in a way that makes them money (trying to sell loans to people, etc).

3) The banks are a hotbed of organised crime, who'll actually steal your money if you put it in them.

Now let's be honest, 1's annoying but true for most businesses; 2's what they're there for, and 3's tinfoil nonsense that you've made up.

[finally on Escom, if they were such a good business then why the fuck didn't Barclays lend them the money to cover the NatWest loan, rather than writing off 10X the money on their existing investment...?]
(stalinism, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 12:47, closed)

I agree
I especially like the comment about understanding people defending banks when they have morals. As you say, they are commercial enterprises, they don't make moral judgements.
(Bazongaloid, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 13:12, closed)

That's like saying
"Oh, stop whining about those muggers who beat you up and stole all your money. They're muggers! That's what they do!"

And if the answer to that is that that's what you have to do to survive in a capitalist system, then maybe it's a problem with capitalism. If we accept the premise that most of the country is run by capitalist organisations, then I don't think it's too much to ask that they have some morals.
(Cuthbert Annihilator, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 22:59, closed)

No, no it's not
that's you making a very poor comparison between a crime and a business.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 20 Jul 2009, 9:41, closed)

I'm not so
sure it's a poor comparison.

A business should be able to sell a fair product or service for a fair price. If it can't then it's not much of a business.

Banks do as they please with impunity - much as muggers now do and can. Rarely will they be caught out, and if they are the punishments are negligible.

I'd say the comparison is very fair.
(dchurch bah, Wed 22 Jul 2009, 9:57, closed)

No, I am sure it's a poor comparison
you're comparing a direct criminal act with a business. You may not agree with the way the business works, that's fine, but it's not setting out to directly commit a criminal act. The comparison is extremely fatuous.

As for your comment about muggers being able to do what they please "now", you're vearing dangerously close to daily mail territory.
(Bazongaloid, Wed 22 Jul 2009, 10:22, closed)

Well, it wasn't
actually me that made the comparison.

However, just two weeks ago, my GF had 30 quid taken from her account without her consent and despite her protestations.

Her account was several thousand in credit, yet they had decided that there wasn't enough in the account to cover a £10 direct debit.

Clearly this is a mistake.

The banks answer: "Sorry, there is a court case regarding bank charges and there's nothing we can do until the case is finished...blah...blah"

So, taking money with impunity, whilst the person having the money taken protests, with no recourse to having the money back.

If it sounds like mugging, smells like mugging...etc...
(dchurch bah, Wed 22 Jul 2009, 15:14, closed)

Escom
Anyone buying the Commodore brand is doomed.
(MrPSB, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 18:17, closed)

Escom
Escom a classic long company run by German thieves.
(nee22 NL ExPat, Mon 20 Jul 2009, 13:08, closed)

and 3's tinfoil nonsense that you've made up.
I only wish this were true.

Have a look through the public records of the number of CCJ that banks have against them that are STILL unsettled - and have a look at the reasons.

You will find, for example, instances where people have withdrawn £5000 from a cashpoint machine, wheras in fact the amount is 500 or even 50, they have refused to refund the money, been taken to court and still blatently ignored the will of the court and still refuse to pay the money back. There are quite a few instances of this.

I personally know of three occassions (all within a mile or two of where I live) where large sums of cash have just 'got lost in the system'.

You continue to believe that I'm making it up if you please, I'm not offended, I just pity those that cannot see it or be bothered to look depite all the evidence being in the public domain.

...as for 2) - I'm not all that bothered about them trying to sell stuff, I am bothered about the way in which they engineer 'defaults' and then abuse the system to maximise the amount they can extract from you without actually providing any product or service. It's far more profitable to be underhand.

I too thought at one point, that it must be paranioa - until my account was frozen every Friday morning and not unfrozen until the following Monday - every week for nearly a year.

It was then that I was informed by (someone who, and I know how this sounds, I am unable to mention) that this sort of thing is commonplace. It's petty and underhand, and it does go on.

At one point, I co-funded a BBC program in which a 'spy' was placed inside Barclays. Lots of this sort of stuff was uncovered.
(dchurch bah, Wed 22 Jul 2009, 9:52, closed)

Banks
123...let's breathe in and out.
( Fr_Jerry_McGwier looked over both shoulders at, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 14:17, closed)

...
How do you manage without a bank account? Where do your wages get paid and so forth?

Not shocked, just curious!
( vix0r was not Matthew on, Sun 19 Jul 2009, 22:49, closed)

No bank?
Wages: Cash.
Bank: Safe.
(dchurch bah, Wed 22 Jul 2009, 9:53, closed)

the thing is right
banks, no listen right

they have like, a big list, a list of all the people that dont have accounts

its like the bbc - they dont actually have a list of people who HAVE licences what they actually have is an 'agreement' *taps nose* with Alcan and probably like, Bacofoil as well.

so the more 'tin'foil you buy the more lights go on in a bunker hidden deep under ann widdecombe

sorry got to go
( spimf ™ is whoever you want him to be, Mon 20 Jul 2009, 0:30, closed)