I went to the the bank today (HSBC), to pay some cash into my FirstDirect account. There was no one in line and the only clerk on duty was fiddling with some papers, so I went straight to her teller and grabbed the one-and-only available pen and quickly filled in a deposit slip. Just as I had finished, she called: "Next please." Then she (apparently) noticed me already standing in front of her window... She said to me: "Er, excuse me but there's a queue behind you." I looked around and indeed there were two people in the queue now. But I had got to her teller window when there was no queue. In a rather peeved voice, I pointed out that I was here before there was anyone in line. So she rather begrudgingly served me. I paid in £180 in cash, and she handed back my paying-in book without rubber-stamping the counterfoil. So I passed it back to her saying: "Would you mind stamping the counterfoil?". To which she mumbled: "Oh, I thought I'd done it. Then she made a really feeble attempt at rubber stamping the counterfoil. I knew what was coming: a rubber stamp that was barely visible, let alone legible! I passed it back to her asking: Would you mind stamping it such that I can read it?" She said: I'll tell you what: "I'll stamp it here." And she rubber stamped _the inside of the back cover of my paying in book_!! I said (politely but exasperated): "Would you mind stamping the *actual counterfoil of the paying in slip*?? I know it's not easy, but that's the important place with the relevant numbers on it!" She finally did it. (She managed it by holding one of her fingers behind the counterfoil and then carefully stamping it. And with that, I said "Thank you." and left the bank feeling pretty narked at all the hitches with that one transaction which should have been so straightforward. OK, she may have been a bit sleepy (it was 3.30pm and she may have had boyfriend troubles or whatever, but I've got half a mind to make an appointment with the manager to tell him of my...

She could have pocketed it I suppose. Why not talk to the branch manager and suggest s/he set-up a meeting with you and the teller where you offer to play the recording of her actions you took on your mobile phone. Remind him that you don't expect to be charged for the meeting. See what the managers reaction is to that offer.

How you react to this sot of (HSBC) bank teller experience?

Nov 08, 2006 61 Replies

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Gordon H 19 years ago

Ronald Raygun writes

If you pay it into the right account you could be in line for a peerage.

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Adam 19 years ago

True, but it's reassuring to know it's there in the case of banks.

No, but there are plenty of times when checking your statements would make a difference.

I guess the thing here is that trust is not an all-or-nothing thing. I trust my bank more than I would trust the guy who knocked on my door. I just don't trust them 100%. And even then, there's more to it than trust: if my bank got up to something unscrupulous, I'm guessing the police would probably be able to find them, which they wouldn't do for the guy who turned up at my door.

Strange that you should use that analogy anyway, as it just happens my roof does need fixing, and the only quote I've had so far was a lot more than

1k.

Then my bank certainly doesn't trust me!

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