Bad Service

I was at Standard Bank Sunnyside branch earlier last week to downgrade my account from a Prestige Account to Elite Cheque Account as i was paying such a high monthly fee and yet anytime i need help from the bank there is always a reason why i cannot be helped, i approached the help desk who referred me to a consultant to help with the downgrade, i was told my application has been referred to the credit control department for approval and that i will be contacted as soon as the downgrade has been approved.

Few days later i was called and informed that my application to downgrade was denied and was asked to come to the bank with my ID, Proof of residence and my latest payslip, reason for this was unknown neither was it explained to me as to the reason for requesting all those documents again since i was not opening a new account nor requesting for a credit or loan from the bank, since i was keen on downgrading my account i went to the bank with all the documents required, after some days of going back and forth to the bank almost everyday eventually i was called that the downgrade has been done and was successful and that i must pass by the bank to sign some few document to complete the process which i did today at Sunnyside branch of the bank.

However, immediately i requested the downgrade earlier last week, i discovered i could not do any transaction via my app and Internet banking, i have 4 different accounts with standard bank which are all funded for various reasons, i tried to move fund between those accounts but could not, i visited a branch to complain about this but no one could help, i was told an incident has been raised with the relevant department and that it will be resolved in 2 hours. Later today i was at a store to buy some things for my family since the promotion is ending today, i already did my shopping and while at the till point when i was supposed to pay, i tried moving funds to my cheque account from my other account(s) and was denied access to my money, i tried calling the customer care who referred me from one department to another until the store closed, i was so embarrassed in the store because i looked like a chance taker who was up to something fishy as i bought a couple of things but yet could not pay for all my stuff, it was so embarrassing that i had to leave in shame and just had to buy something little with the little funds available in my cheque account to maintain my dignity. i called the prestige contact centre again whom after i explained my ordeal confirmed to me that my account has been suspended and can only be unblocked by a certain department who is presently closed at the moment and will only be operational as from 09:00 tomorrow morning. The reason for blocking my account was not stated on the system and he cannot tell why all my accounts were suspended.

I find this so embarrassing and shameful to my personality, i am a family man with kids who can run into any emergency at any time and i have money that i cannot assess, i was not informed of any reason for suspending my account nor do i have any outstanding document to be submitted to the bank, yet my account was suspended without my knowledge. This is very unprofessional and uncalled for from a bank that claimed to always look out for the interest of their customers, if downgrading my account is the cause for this, ill rather close my accounts with the bank and join another bank. I demand an explanation from the bank as i am really unhappy and disappointed with the kind of service i get from standard bank, the humiliation of not being able to pay for my shopping when i have more than enough funds to pay my bills, the extra cost of having to pay more for the same shopping as it was a special price that was ending today, the lack of communication from standard bank on the reason for suspending my account and denying me the right of moving my own money as i please and finally the unprofessional ism exhibited in handling my case on the requested for an account downgrade.