Grupo Santander: Extortionate bank charges!
I would just like to personally thank Grupo Santander for;
- Extortionate bank charges applied to my account
- Seriously winding me up
- Spoiling my day, which me being me has a knock on effect for others
- Wasting my time correcting a situation that should not have arisen
Here’s the story…
On the 13th of September I deposited a sterling cheque in our local branch of Santander; not a large cheque and of course I was expecting some charges to be applied. On the 18th my account was debited with €72.50. I had no idea what the charge could possibly be for, then it hit me that it must be charges for the cheque so I questioned the manager who confirmed it was and suggested I talk to my own branch in Playa Blanca where the account is held.
€72.50! I was livid. That was roughly (allowing for the terrible exchange rates from high street banks) 15% of the value of the cheque.
Surely, there must have been a mistake? On returning home I called my branch – apparently no mistake was made this is what they actually charge! Prior to that call I’d confirmed with our other bank (Banco Sabadell) what they would charge for the same service – I was told around £20. Twenty to twenty five pounds (or euros) was the ball park I was expecting.
I was not told when I paid the cheque in that it would cost me so much. Had I been made aware I would have laughed and walked out. I was not told the charge would be debited before the cheque cleared. And, I was not told that it might take up to six weeks to clear!
To say I am appalled at the level of charges and the fact that I was not given the information I should have been to make an informed choice is an understatement.
As a result of talking to my own manager who was apologetic, understood my anger, and told me that in the Playa Blanca branch they always inform their customer of these charges, she escalated my (animated) complaint to Madrid. I have since been promised a refund of €47.50 thus taking it to the same level as I told them I would have been charged by Banco Sabadell.
I have no doubt between terrible exchange rates and the £20 fee Banco Sabadell are making a reasonable and healthy profit. How Santander can justify and additional €47.50 is beyond me. I felt insulted; I was bloody angry, and frankly felt this extortionate charge pretty much tantamount to theft. They must be making a killing from people who aren’t the type to complain!
Who’d have thought that the bank that has just appointed Rodrigo Rato to its advisory board could behave like this? A man who is under investigation in connection with allegations of fraud at state-rescued Bankia when he was chairman? Says it all really doesn’t it. (Click here for the story)
Alan, along with Elle, is the owner of Spain Buddy. He was born in the North of England (Lancashire) and travelled extensively before eventually settling in Almería. Alan has 3 sons from the first of his 18 marriages, (Sam, Joe & Ben) who are all now adults. You can read more articles by Alan on his personal blog at AlanGandy.com and see more of his photography on his photography website as well as on Flickr and Instagram.
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