Friday, 24 July 2009

You Live and Learn

I've just come off the phone from 'talking to my bank' - i.e. keying in endless streams of numbers, barking out single words to a machine, and finally, after a long muzak-accompanied wait, ending up with some hapless phone monkey in a call centre somewhere. Yes I know, these calls are always the same and always leave us 'customers' seething, but on this occasion I learned something new. This is that when you order a new cheque book (in my case by text message - how cool is that? Clue: Not very) they send it to you by 2nd class mail - and that, according to the bank's official line, can take up to 14 days from the day of posting. Yes a whole fortnight. I wonder if the Post Office has been told...
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4 comments:

  1. Mark24 July 2009 at 17:45

    Oh well, I ordered a new one via ATM a week ago and I've already received not one but two new books. Clearly the bank is keen that I run up a monster overdraft as soon as possible.

    A good blog post on these outfits and their wiles is here. The figures she quotes amount, effectively, to charging interest on the debt at more than 1,250 per cent.

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  2. Susan B.24 July 2009 at 18:08

    I hate doing everything via automated machine. I've been reserving hotel rooms in Scotland this way and I made two different reservations -- with my credit card data -- for one in Glasgow. Twice it came back saying my reservation didn't work. I finally booked a dif hotel, but boy am I gonna be annoyed if I get a charge on my credit card for the phantom reservations.

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  3. malty25 July 2009 at 18:50

    Cheque books ? blimey, Luddites r us, recently went into a shop in York with a friend who tried to pay by cheque, they rang for an ambulance to take him away.
    Susan, Glasgow's an interesting town at the moment, the murder rate has dropped, shortage of knives, apparently. Going to the Edinburgh festival ? you may just miss the monsoon, make sure you get your swine malady jab, according to the sawbones we're dripping with it.
    Mark, the people who have most benefited from ATMs are the good folk of Dundee, where NCR have, for many years, manufactured them.

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  4. Susan B.26 July 2009 at 17:58

    Malty and Mark -- Get thyselves to Scotland while we are there, Aug. 17-27. We will stand you both a few pints. I'd love to meet you guys, who I've known virtually for so long!

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