Bruddy cash machine stole my card. More ranting.

Feek · 05-01-2008, 19:18

I had to work today (boo), but I get a day and a half off in lieu for it (yay).

On the way to work, I rang John to see if we were going to pop into Nicos for breakfast as we normally do. We discussed it and decided that because it was rubbish last time that I'd grab us all a sossie and egg McMuffin on the way in from the McDonalds behind the BP garage at Shenfield.

So I pulled onto the forecourt, parked the Feekmobile in excellent fashion in two of the spaces and bounded towards the cash machine, full of high spirits.

Insert card, type PIN in while hiding the keypad from any watchers and hit the "gimme fifty quid, you bastard" button.

The machine whirred and beeped a bit and then the following appeared:

"YOUR CARD IS NOT AUTHORISED FOR USE
CARD RETAINED"

CARD RETAINED???? NOT AUTHORISED??? Who are they kidding, it's my card, I've used it lots and there's money in my account.

I stared at the machine for a few seconds in shock. I considered kicking it as I was wearing my steelies but decided against that. I had a days work to do resulting in extra time off so I wasn't going to risk arrest, imprisonment, anal rape in the prison showers etc just for kicking a cashpoint so I trolled off back to the Feekmobile and drove to work. I called John en route to explain what had happened and that we were breakfastless.

At work I called Barclays. The nice man I spoke to (I thank Leon it wasn't an Indian callcentre, I couldn't have handled that) explained that the system was showing my card had been suspended by the branch and that if he put me on hold he could find out why. Cue gentle, calming muzak which just raised my blood pressure even higher.

Eventually he returned, I was breathless with excitement, wanting to know why my card had been ruthlessly stolen in Shenfield but sadly he said "I can't tell you". I said "It's OK, it's my card, you can tell me." He laughed and said that the system showed no reason for it and that I'd have to go into a branch for an explanation. I enquired what time the Brentwood branch is open on a Saturday and he said that it isn't. *sob*

I got off the phone and checked the Barclays website, did a branch search and checked the opening hours for Brentwood because I didn't believe what he'd told me. Joy! Open 09:00 to 13:00 on Saturdays. I didn't even care that they're bloody part-timers who go home early, it was open, yay!

I bundled into John's RX-8 (powered by a ****el Rotary Engine) and we motored to town. I went to the bank, he went to McDonalds. After a while I spoke to a lady with long legs, a short skirt and shoes with thick straps that looked like they was made out of pewter. Very that colour and very decorated. They were nice and I complemented her on them. I didn't mention her legs to her, they were nice between the shoes and the skirt, but I digress.

To cut a long story short (O RLY? - ed) it turns out that it wasn't the branch but the fraud squad* who had detected a suspicious transaction on my account and had suspended it accordingly. The odd thing is that that suspicious transaction happened on the 27th December at the Sainsburys cash machine in Stanway near Colchester where I took out £30 to buy Scene It! for the Xbox 360 from the Stanway branch of PC World. Nothing suspicious about it as far as I'm concerned. I've used it before and it's in the normal area that I use them.

It worries me that my card was suspended on the 27th but that nobody thought to tell me. In that time the fraud squad* could have phoned me, or written to me to check whether it was a real dodgy transaction or whether it was genuine or not and saved this hassle. I could quite easily have gone into a garage, filled up with fuel and then tried to take out cash to pay for it and been stumped. Luckily I'm not a complete idiot and I always get cash before I fill up.

So I returned to the office with an apology, a promise of a replacement card within 5-7 days and a wadge of cash that I'd withdrawn from the bank over the counter. Waiting for me was a double sausage and egg McMuffin meal which was a Good Thing.

Things aren't going too well at the moment. What's next?

*actually fraud department, but fraud squad sounds better.

Dymetrie · 05-01-2008, 19:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feek

Things aren't going too well at the moment. What's next?

I think you'll find this is the third thing so you should be in the clear...

Crappy work by Barclays though :/

killerkebab · 05-01-2008, 19:53

On the plus side, you still managed to get the best quick breakfast meal money can buy (that I've found thus far) so all is not lost.

That said, did they ever tell you why it was a suspicious transaction?

vix · 05-01-2008, 19:53

Funny that. Phil had a similar experience with his Barclays card - they put it on stop, called him and sorted it out, then the next time he tried to use it, it was declined :/ Methinks Barclays are being a bit over-cautious at the moment.

Fayshun · 05-01-2008, 20:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feek

..****el..

*snigger*

Justsomebloke · 05-01-2008, 20:40

Dude, How frustrating must it be to have moeny but not be able to get it. I have sod all so it don't matter but man i would be kicking the door in. Better still Hook my winch up to the cash machine & away i go. MMMMmmmmmmmmm Back in around half hour, Wealthy

BBx · 05-01-2008, 21:36

Big hugs Mr Feek

Awwww *hugs*

BB x

Del Lardo · 06-01-2008, 04:10

I can never understand how banks can justify being closed on a Saturday afternoon especially the ones on High Streets. IMO they are money shops and as such should be the same hours as normal shops preventing the need for ****el snigger powered trips into town.

Tak · 07-01-2008, 10:04

I remember a machine in london pinching my card for no other reason than the machine was faulty. I phoned up while stood in front of the machine to make sure it got cancelled and the woman asked me for my card number "erm...the machine has eaten it, how can I tell you what the number is?"

Feek · 07-01-2008, 11:33

I was asked the same question when I called them.

"What's your card number?"

"I don't know, the card is in the machine"

"OK, what's your account number and sort code?"

"I don't know, they're on the card and the card is in the machine"

"Well you can find them on your cheque book"

"I don't have a cheque book."

"They're on your statement"

"I'm at work, 55 miles from home, I don't have a statement here"

"We'll do it the old way, I'll ask you some questions"

*a few questions later*

"Finally, what's the second and fifth number from your PIN"

"I don't have a PIN"

05-01-2008, 19:18	#1
Feek ex SAS Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: JO01ou Posts: 10,062	Bruddy cash machine stole my card. More ranting. I had to work today (boo), but I get a day and a half off in lieu for it (yay). On the way to work, I rang John to see if we were going to pop into Nicos for breakfast as we normally do. We discussed it and decided that because it was rubbish last time that I'd grab us all a sossie and egg McMuffin on the way in from the McDonalds behind the BP garage at Shenfield. So I pulled onto the forecourt, parked the Feekmobile in excellent fashion in two of the spaces and bounded towards the cash machine, full of high spirits. Insert card, type PIN in while hiding the keypad from any watchers and hit the "gimme fifty quid, you bastard" button. The machine whirred and beeped a bit and then the following appeared: "YOUR CARD IS NOT AUTHORISED FOR USE CARD RETAINED" CARD RETAINED???? NOT AUTHORISED??? Who are they kidding, it's my card, I've used it lots and there's money in my account. I stared at the machine for a few seconds in shock. I considered kicking it as I was wearing my steelies but decided against that. I had a days work to do resulting in extra time off so I wasn't going to risk arrest, imprisonment, anal rape in the prison showers etc just for kicking a cashpoint so I trolled off back to the Feekmobile and drove to work. I called John en route to explain what had happened and that we were breakfastless. At work I called Barclays. The nice man I spoke to (I thank Leon it wasn't an Indian callcentre, I couldn't have handled that) explained that the system was showing my card had been suspended by the branch and that if he put me on hold he could find out why. Cue gentle, calming muzak which just raised my blood pressure even higher. Eventually he returned, I was breathless with excitement, wanting to know why my card had been ruthlessly stolen in Shenfield but sadly he said "I can't tell you". I said "It's OK, it's my card, you can tell me." He laughed and said that the system showed no reason for it and that I'd have to go into a branch for an explanation. I enquired what time the Brentwood branch is open on a Saturday and he said that it isn't. sob I got off the phone and checked the Barclays website, did a branch search and checked the opening hours for Brentwood because I didn't believe what he'd told me. Joy! Open 09:00 to 13:00 on Saturdays. I didn't even care that they're bloody part-timers who go home early, it was open, yay! I bundled into John's RX-8 (powered by a ***el Rotary Engine) and we motored to town. I went to the bank, he went to McDonalds. After a while I spoke to a lady with long legs, a short skirt and shoes with thick straps that looked like they was made out of pewter. Very that colour and very decorated. They were nice and I complemented her on them. I didn't mention her legs to her, they were nice between the shoes and the skirt, but I digress. To cut a long story short (O RLY? - ed) it turns out that it wasn't the branch but the fraud squad who had detected a suspicious transaction on my account and had suspended it accordingly. The odd thing is that that suspicious transaction happened on the 27th December at the Sainsburys cash machine in Stanway near Colchester where I took out £30 to buy Scene It! for the Xbox 360 from the Stanway branch of PC World. Nothing suspicious about it as far as I'm concerned. I've used it before and it's in the normal area that I use them. It worries me that my card was suspended on the 27th but that nobody thought to tell me. In that time the fraud squad* could have phoned me, or written to me to check whether it was a real dodgy transaction or whether it was genuine or not and saved this hassle. I could quite easily have gone into a garage, filled up with fuel and then tried to take out cash to pay for it and been stumped. Luckily I'm not a complete idiot and I always get cash before I fill up. So I returned to the office with an apology, a promise of a replacement card within 5-7 days and a wadge of cash that I'd withdrawn from the bank over the counter. Waiting for me was a double sausage and egg McMuffin meal which was a Good Thing. Things aren't going too well at the moment. What's next? *actually fraud department, but fraud squad sounds better. __________________

05-01-2008, 19:53	#3
killerkebab Vodka Martini Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bristol/Reading Posts: 656	On the plus side, you still managed to get the best quick breakfast meal money can buy (that I've found thus far) so all is not lost. That said, did they ever tell you why it was a suspicious transaction? __________________

05-01-2008, 19:53	#4
vix Penelope Pitstop Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 4,426	Funny that. Phil had a similar experience with his Barclays card - they put it on stop, called him and sorted it out, then the next time he tried to use it, it was declined :/ Methinks Barclays are being a bit over-cautious at the moment. __________________

05-01-2008, 20:40	#6
Justsomebloke The Night Worker Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 5,228	Dude, How frustrating must it be to have moeny but not be able to get it. I have sod all so it don't matter but man i would be kicking the door in. Better still Hook my winch up to the cash machine & away i go. MMMMmmmmmmmmm Back in around half hour, Wealthy __________________

07-01-2008, 10:04	#9
Tak L'Oréal Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Portsmouth Posts: 9,977	I remember a machine in london pinching my card for no other reason than the machine was faulty. I phoned up while stood in front of the machine to make sure it got cancelled and the woman asked me for my card number "erm...the machine has eaten it, how can I tell you what the number is?" __________________ The look on your face when a toddler rips out your heart and shows it to you? Priceless.... For everything else, there's FWOOSH!

05-01-2008, 21:36	#7
BBx Reverse SuBo Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: London Posts: 8,673	Big hugs Mr Feek Awwww hugs BB x

06-01-2008, 04:10	#8
Del Lardo Absinthe Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Cambridge Posts: 2,539	I can never understand how banks can justify being closed on a Saturday afternoon especially the ones on High Streets. IMO they are money shops and as such should be the same hours as normal shops preventing the need for ***el snigger* powered trips into town.

07-01-2008, 11:33	#10
Feek ex SAS Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: JO01ou Posts: 10,062	I was asked the same question when I called them. "What's your card number?" "I don't know, the card is in the machine" "OK, what's your account number and sort code?" "I don't know, they're on the card and the card is in the machine" "Well you can find them on your cheque book" "I don't have a cheque book." "They're on your statement" "I'm at work, 55 miles from home, I don't have a statement here" "We'll do it the old way, I'll ask you some questions" a few questions later "Finally, what's the second and fifth number from your PIN" "I don't have a PIN" __________________