Bad service from Standard Bank

I have been a client of Standard Bank and on the UCount loyalty programme for a number of years, regularly using the points when they add up to a significant amount. At times, I have used up the points to a level where there was just a minor balance to my credit remaining. Recently, I received a reminder that I need to renew my card after 5 years which is the usual process. Shortly thereafter, I received a notice that 773 points would reach their 5 year expiry at the end of the current month (Jan 2024). On contacting the call centre I explained to Rene Mehana that it did not make sense that I had been spending the points regularly and there were still points that were 5 years old and still unspent. She kept me holding on for a long period while she checked with the Complaints division for an explanation. When she eventually reverted, she informed me that points were allocated on a recurring basis and these points had not been spent since being allocated 5 years ago. I asked her if the oldest points were used first and she agreed that that was how it should operate. I then asked her again how those 773 points could have been unused over a period of 5 years and she said she did not know but would transfer me to the Complaints department so they could explain exactly how the system worked. When she got back to the call, she said Complaints could not take my call but would log a complaint to get back to me later. Since the points expire today, I explained the urgency and asked for her name and staff number as a reference. I was rather surprised when she informed me that, although she worked for the bank, she could not supply a staff number. On a previous occasion when I had an issue with the bank, I was advised to always obtain the staff number so that the relevant individual could be identified to assist with resolving the issue. This is not the first time that I have had to deal with bank staff at a call centre who are not equipped to deal with queries - and then you have to hold on while they speak to someone who can help, but that person will not take your call directly. To the bank's credit I did receive a call later from Ashley at the UCount centre who agreed that the points usage system should be that the oldest points are used first and he could not understand the notice sent to me. He also has to refer to someone else for an explanation of this illogical notice. Besides the frustration of having to resolve a situation that should not have arisen in the first place, it begs the question of the adequacy of internal controls that the bank has in place to avoid notices being sent that even their own staff agree makes no sense. I also learnt that the bank outsourced the call centre function and that those staff were not knowledgable on all processes - which explains why clients are left holding on while the call centre contacts the bank to provide answers. Clearly, the bank is quite happy to cut their operational costs while clients incur the costs of long calls to their outsourced call centres.