Ei näin, Santander

En voi olla jakamatta vilpitöntä neuvoa kenelle tahansa missä tahansa: älä ryhdy espanjalaisen Santander-pankin asiakkaaksi. Alla firmalle eilen kirjoittamani palaute, joka kertonee tarpeeksi.

Today, it is four weeks since I registered for online banking at Santander. Upon registering, I was told that my online banking numbers should arrive within 10 to 12 days. They did not.

Earlier this week, after repeatedly contacting my branch manager about the issue, I was told that the numbers that were originally sent to me seem to have disappeared. A replacing set of numbers was now dispatched, and I was told that they should arrive early next week.

Whether the numbers really do arrive next week, giving a total of almost five weeks of waiting, remains to be seen.

My experience with Santander, since opening an account in June, has been thoroughly negative. There have been inexplicable and unannounced delays, not just with the online banking numbers but also with opening the bank account itself. In addition to these delays with opening the account, discovering which required me to repeatedly visit the branch instead of the manager emailing or calling me, I even received at one point a call to return to the branch to give a signature that the manager 'forgot to ask me for'. At another point, my account application was apparently misplaced altogether.

Also, I have discovered the inability to make, in person, a simple bank transfer from my Santander account to another British account using an IBAN number and a BIC code, a finding which completely astounds me.

The overall impression that Santander conveys is that of unprofessionalism and indifference towards the customer. I am writing this in the hope that you will take the sincere effort to improve your service on a fundamental level.

Regards,
Eero Holmstrom