Disregard for the elderly by rude front desk assistant

Good day

I would like to bring to your attention a very unpleasant experience I had at your midlands mall branch this morning.

I brought my 84yo grandmother, an Alzheimer’s patient, to replace her card this morning. I explained to the assistant at the door that she has NO short term memory (thus her reason for forgetting her PIN number and her card being retained by the machine). The assistant explained that due to covid, even though I am an existing Nedbank client, I will not be allowed into the bank with her as I was not transacting.

I attempted to explain multiple times to him that my grandmother did not even remember the reason why she was at the bank, and would definitely not be able to attend to the query herself in terms of resetting a pin etc. He refused to allow me into the bank to wait with her, and I had to stand outside watching my distressed grandmother sit alone looking around the bank, waiting for a teller to call her up, oblivious as to why she was even inside the bank.

When she was called to the teller, I reported to the same assistant that she was being attended to, and he STILL refused to allow me inside, telling me to wait outside and that I would be called if need be. Being a medical doctor and living with her, I am totally in tune with her condition and her limitations, however this assistant refused to acknowledge that.

The teller dealing with my grandmother asked another assistant to come and call me from outside as he recognised that my grandmother had no idea as to why she was there; and the card replacement was thereafter dealt with smoothly.

I unfortunately did not get the assistants name, but the above incident occurred on 21/10/21 at 9am. The assistant was a male, wearing a grey Nedbank jersey.

I am very disappointed in what occurred this morning. I understand that banks/stores have covid protocols in place that need to be adhered to but there should be certain cases where allowances are made for clients and their comfort, especially the elderly or those with medical conditions. As mentioned, I am an existing Nedbank client, who recently took out a home bond for a large sum of money and this incident has made me reconsider who I bank with. The unpleasant, dismissive attitude of someone working at the front of the bank, a clients first point-of-contact with the brand, has left a very sour taste in my mouth so much so that I am now considering moving my bond over to another bank.

After finishing at Nedbank, we went next door to FNB for me to attend to a personal banking issue and I asked my grandmother to wait outside for me. The assistant at the door immediately asked me to bring her in to wait and offered her a seat. This, although a small gesture, is the type of service I would expect of a premium banking service.

I hope that the above complaint is brought to the attention of the banking manager and the individual concerned. I have subsequently attained a power of attorney on behalf of my grandmother so that I, and more especially her, never have to experience this poor, inconsiderate level of service again.

Regards,

Dr YS Chetty