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TSB starts paying out compensation for online banking outage

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Callum Mason
Callum Mason
News Reporter
26 April 2018

A TSB customer who complained to the bank just a couple of hours after its IT meltdown started is thought to be one of the first to be awarded compensation - after being paid £40 this morning.

Claire McAdam and her partner Ian Roddie complained to TSB via its website on Sunday evening after Claire was unable to access her bank account online or make a bank transfer from her account to repay money she owed on a credit card.

The couple, who live near Glasgow, told MoneySavingExpert they received a call from TSB to discuss their complaint on Thursday morning. After they argued their case, the bank eventually agreed to pay Claire £15 to cover interest charged for delayed payments on her credit card, and a further £25 for inconvenience caused. The £40 was paid into Claire's TSB account just before noon on Thursday.

TSB says it's dealing with complaints from customers on a case-by-case basis. It insists nobody will be left out of pocket as a result of the IT problems which have plagued customers for five days - but hasn't given details of any compensation it will pay for inconvenience.

If you've been hit by the TSB outage, see our guide.

What's gone wrong at TSB?

TSB warned 1.9 million customers that its internet and mobile banking services would be down over the weekend due to a system upgrade which was supposed to have been completed by 6pm on Sunday.

But since then the bank's customers have faced massive disruption, with many unable to access their accounts or make payments. Some who have been able to log in to their account since Wednesday have reported problems such as their balance appearing wrong or an inability to make transfers, while on Sunday a few customers claimed they were temporarily given access to other customers' accounts.

As of 5pm on Wednesday evening TSB said its online banking was operating at 50% capacity - so only one in two customers who tried were able to log in - while its mobile app was at 90% capacity.

Mobile banking and online banking went offline again for ALL customers at just after midnight on Thursday morning. TSB tweeted at 4am that both services were back up and running, but customers were still complaining about access issues by Thursday lunchtime.

How Claire successfully claimed compensation

Claire's partner Ian told us she first encountered problems with her TSB account on Sunday evening at 8.30pm, when she tried to make a payment to clear her Capital One credit card and couldn't get into her online account or mobile account to make a payment. She put in a complaint to TSB online, outlining the issue.

Claire then tried to make the payment to Capital One using her debit card, but because the sum was so high - more than £3,000 - it was delayed by TSB while security checks were made, and didn't go through on Sunday. As a result, Claire was charged interest on her Capital One credit card balance.

After receiving a call from TSB to discuss the complaint on Thursday, Ian, who handled the call, explained the situation. He had to argue the case and was put through to a second advisor before finally being offered redress of £40.

Ian said: "It seemed very clear to me when I spoke to the first person, they weren't going to pay anything. It was only when I got to the second person that they discussed what they called 'redress'."

How to claim if you've been affected

While the disruption this weekend was expected and customers had been pre-warned, if you think you've lost out as a result of the unexpected outage, you can try and reclaim - Claire and Ian's story shows it's possible.

Your chances of success here likely depend on what you're trying to claim for:

  • If you've lost money as a result of the outage, you should be able to get it back. If for example you've been unable to log into your account and make a payment, and incurred a financial penalty as a result, you should be able to reclaim this. For example, Claire was paid £15 to cover credit card interest she'd had to unexpectedly pay.

    If you've racked up additional costs indirectly, such as a large phone bill as a result of trying to sort out problems caused by the IT issues, you can also try and claim for these when you put in a complaint. Be specific, and include relevant evidence where possible.

    TSB's chief executive Paul Pester tweeted on Tuesday morning that "no one will be left out of pocket" as a result of the service issues, though TSB hasn't given any further details.

  • If you've NOT been directly financially affected, give it a go - but there are no guarantees. TSB hasn't given any official indication of what compensation it'll offer for inconvenience - it's said only that it has a complaints form on its website that customers can use if they're unhappy, though this case shows it is paying out to some.

    While there are no guarantees, it's worth submitting a complaint if you've been inconvenienced. It may help your case if you're very specific about how you've been affected, for example if you've had to take time off from work to sort out urgent problems.

You can submit a complaint to TSB directly via its website or using the free online complaints tool Resolver*. Let us know how you get on at news@moneysavingexpert.com.

'TSB should be open about what customers are entitled to'

Steve Nowottny, news and features editor at MoneySavingExpert, said: “The TSB meltdown this week has unsurprisingly infuriated customers and many are demanding compensation. Yet what they’re actually going to be offered still remains very unclear. “While it’s encouraging to hear at least one customer has now been paid compensation, there’s now likely to be a huge backlog of complaints for the bank to work through. “Of course TSB’s immediate focus is on getting its systems up and running again. But if it wants to try and salvage even a little customer goodwill, it should be open and specific now about exactly what those who’ve been affected will be entitled to – and then ensure redress is paid as quickly as possible.”

What does TSB say?

TSB said this morning that it will be waiving all overdraft fees and interest charges for all retail and small business customers for April. It says it will also be increasing the interest rate on its Classic Plus account to 5% AER from 3% AER from 2 May.

TSB's chief executive Paul Pester has also confirmed that "no TSB customer will be left out of pocket as a result of these issues."

Asked to comment on Claire and Ian's payout, TSB told us compensation claims will be dealt with on a "case-by-case basis".

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