Shocking service from ABSA small business Chatterton branch

<p>I requested several bank statements for my Trust from my banker, Nkosikhona Zondi, via email on the 14th August 2016 (ABSA randomly stopped posting these statements to me, creating a need to manually request them). I made it blatantly clear that my request was urgent.</p> <p> </p> <p>After 3 ignored emails and two unreturned phone calls overall several days, I threatened via email to complain. This resulted in an immediate response and a day later, I received some of the statements requested. The remainder had apparently been requested from the archive statements division.</p> <p> </p> <p>Several days later, after several email reminders, I had still not received all my statements. Most of my emails were ignored – in fact only one was acknowledged and the response received was unhelpful. On the 02 September, after further emails and unanswered phone calls, I managed to get hold of Nkosikhona. I expressed my dissatisfaction and indicated how urgently I required my statements. Nkosikhona indicated that he would send forms through to me for signature, as this was required by the archive statement division. After not having received the forms as promised, I contacted him again and thereafter received the forms. I immediately signed and returned the forms.</p> <p> </p> <p>A further email was sent on the 7th of September requesting feedback. This was ignored. I called a few days later and clearly expressed my frustration at the poor service received to date. Nkosikhona undertook to speak to his manager to get back to me. No further correspondence was received.</p> <p> </p> <p>I called Nkosikhona on the 12th September to get an update on the whereabouts of my statements. He mentioned that he had been trying to get hold of the statement division without success. I pleaded with him to find an alternative or to get assistance from a manager. He agreed that he would get assistance and have this matter resolved.</p> <p> </p> <p>No longer trusting the advice received from my allocated banker, I decided to call the business support centre. The consultant I spoke to immediately advised that my account was in FICA lock, and as such, no statements could be released until this was resolved.</p> <p> </p> <p>I was horrified. How can ABSA simply lock my account without notifying me, or without providing me with due notice? And how it possible that my own banker could not see that my account was in FICA lock? Clearly Nkosikhona had been trying to retrieve statements in vain over the past month.</p> <p> </p> <p>I immediately sent him an email to inform him of the situation. My email was ignored. I called late on 13th September, a full business day later, and Nkosikhona confirmed receipt of my mail but no explanation was provided for not having responded. Clearly my requests, despite the many threats and pleas over the preceding month, were not on his priority list.</p> <p> </p> <p>We discussed the way forward and agreed that he would speak to his manager today to resolve this issue. We further agreed that no matter the outcome, he would provide me with feedback today (14 September). Needless to say that once again, no feedback has been received.</p> <p> </p> <p>I am at my absolute wits end with the ludicrously poor service received. 16 emails, 5 phone calls later, I’m no closer to getting my bank statements than I was a month ago. I cannot express how angry or disappointed I am with ABSA Small Business Chatterton and Nkosikhona Zondi in particular. This simple request for bank statements has proven to be extremely stressful and a complete waste of my time. Simply deplorable. </p> <p> </p> <p>This is my final attempt at having this issue resolved before I am forced to move my business accounts elseware.</p>