Lloyds TSB > Reviews > Please Don't Hate Us Too Much

Author's product rating:   

Staff courtesy	Excellent
Promptness of service	Good
Efficiency of service	Good
Competitiveness of charges/rates	Average

Advantages:	Many
Disadvantages:	Also many

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I was preparing a review on a Tesco range of ice creams called Mmmm, but that will have to wait as after reading recent and old reviews on LTSB and other banks I feel I need to give the views of a humble bank cashier.

I am unable to comment on the economics, product design and profits of large financial institutions, I'm not that clever (if I was I wouldn't still be a cashier after 25 years), but I am able to give an opinion on customer service issues and give an insight into 'our side of the counter'.

Reading the reviews was not totally enlightening it confirmed what I already knew, people dislike banks for the following reasons - not treating customers as individuals, lack of communication, charges, poor training, call centres. There were other problems but these were the most common.
I was pleased to see that some opinions rated the helpfulness and friendliness of staff highly.

After many years in the bank I have seen the emphasis swing backwards and forwards from Sales to Service. Recently we have been told that the way forward is to provide excellent customer service. Sales are to be made to the customers needs and not the bank's. We are to adopt a 'can do' attitude, empathise with customers and make the customer feel valued. I really hope this lasts as this is the way I personally like to work. I think they are heading in the right direction with this one.

Lack of communication is a problem, especially between the various departments and admin centres. A lot of the tasks that a cashier would in the past have taken individual ownership of e.g cancelling a standing order, are now processed centrally. This cuts down on paperwork and queues at the branches, but I do feel uneasy about not seeing a task through to completion and the complications involved if errors occur.
TIP - If your bank uses an admin centre and your requests are not actioned then and there, ask for a copy of anything you hand in to be actioned, stamped as confirmation of receipt.

Call Centres, a lot of people are very unhappy about these. I have dealt with numerous complaints about wrong information being given, fobbing off and unhelpfulness. There are a lot of very good call centre staff but unfortunatly some are not so good, this is often due to lack of training. We do have a system to complain to the call centre, but more often than not the customers has not taken the name of the individual concerned, first name is not enough.
TIP - When communicating via a call centre ask the full name of the person you are speaking to and also note the date and time of the conversation.

Charges, a big issue. In some cases justified but in others harsh, automatic and impersonal. I can't really give an opinion on how necessary they are as I mentioned before the economics of the big banks is beyond me. In my own case I have a descretion given to me by my manager to refund small charges if I feel there is a case to do so. Larger charges can be refunded by the Manager if he feels the customer has a fair point.
There is provision set aside to do this and we do use it.
TIP - if you feel your charges are harsh or unfair, don't suffer in silence,do contact your branch, depending on the circumstances you may get a refund.

I would now like to give a little insight on what's required of a bank staff member. A recent TV programme put banks as the 2nd most hated organisation. I really hope that not all our customers feel this way as the counter staff at my branch work very hard to provide a helpful and friendly atmosphere.

We are not just sitting there counting money and spouting rules and upsetting people, here is a list of things we deal with on a daily basis.

SOCIAL SKILLS

Bereavement - One someone dies their finances need to be sorted out. It is a very difficult time for the family and we need to be professional,compassionate and offer as much help as is required. In most cases the deceased is elderly and although it is sad, in some ways it is just part of life.But some cases are extremely distressing and traumatic - just this year I interviewed a gentleman in his early 20's accompanied by his Aunt, he had lost his whole family in a car accident, Parents, Grandma and little brother. Another customer was a father of 4 who's wife had committed suicide due to post natal depression. Anothers customers daughter was murdered. You feel physically shaken yourself when dealing with this sort of thing, you wouldn't be human if you didn't.

Marital Disputes -Most people have joint accounts and finances are deeply entwined. When a marriage breaks down, the customer often comes to the bank distraught, angry and often tearful. They are worried about protecting savings, oustanding debts etc. Whatever we are told we obviously can't take sides. Joint accounts are frozen and we need to help the customers to come to a mutual agreement. This can be quite difficult as you need to assist them but not become involved.

The Elderly - There are a lot of lonely elderly people in society who do not have any close family to turn to for advice. Bills, junk mail, circulars arrive at their homes. They have difficulty in reading the small writing and are sometimes confused and frightened by them. Very often my colleagues and I are asked by elderly customers to help with this. We sort through carrier bags full of paperwork, seperating rubbish from bills. It can take a while but if it prevents an old person from becoming sick with worry, it's worth it. One regular lady brings us biscuits for the staff room because she is grateful.

LEGAL LIABILITY

Legislation regarding money laundering, drug trafficking and terrorism have put a lot of pressure on bank staff. We are now PERSONALLY liable if we are ignorant of, or turn a blind eye to suspicious transactions. We receive regular and repeated training on what to look for. Failure to recognise suspicious transactions or behaviour can result in a large fine or prosecution for the staff member.
If a customer is being investigated and a member of staff says something which alerts the customer to the investigation, this is classed as 'tipping off' and can result in a jail sentence.
Also the strict identification procedures for new account opening must be adhered to. We are not being fussy or awkward, we just can afford to bend the rules.

A few years ago I had to attend court in Portsmouth, due to a customer I had opened an account for using it to launder drug and prostitution money. She told me she was a model and her partner bought and sold property. I suppose it was true in a way. ( she got 17 years)

There are many other laws which impact on bank staff e.g Consumer Credit Act, Data Protection, Financial Services. All can have serious implications for staff who do not follow the correct guidelines. We are regularly inspected for compliance.

We are resposible for looking after peoples money. Dealing sometimes in very large amounts, sending money to other banks and abroad, dealing in currencies. Mistakes can be very costly.

CRIME & VIOLENCE

In 25 years in the London region I have been in 4 branches during armed raids. On one occasion the gun was pointed at me and a note was passed saying "give me the money or I'll blow your F'ing head off." ( I gave him the money- seemed the sensible thing). This was in the 80's before 'traumatic stress & counciling'
We closed the branch for 3 hours while the police took statements and fingerprints. We then opened up for the afternoon and carried on serving. Incidently I was repremanded for handing him £1711 when my till limit should have been £1500. Things are a lot different now, thankfully.

I have witnessed many acts of violence which range from threats and verbal abuse to physical attacks. Not just towards staff also towards other customers e.g someone pushing in the queue.

Fraud - You would be amazed at how much goes on. Stolen credit and debit cards, people forging the signatures of elderly relations, stolen cheques, counterfeit cheques, people falsely reporting card losses after a spending spree, the list is endless, where money is involved anything can happen.
We can't really afford to trust anyone on face value. People do get very upset when we ask to ID them, we are not doing it to be irritating and don't wish to offend, just to protect innocent people.

These last two incidents are not really crimes but are horrible nevertheless and in some ways humourous.

At one branch we used to get human excrement posted through the letterbox regularly, we guessed it was human as there were bits of loo roll attached. (Guess we must have upset somebody)

The same branch again, we used to get regular visits from a vagrant who bought saucy knickers from a local sex shop and gave them to the cashiers in brown paper bags, he never said anything just pushed them under the counter and left. They were new with labels attached, we used to throw them away as we didn't know what he had been doing with them Yuk!

SALES, COMMISSION & WAGES

Branch Managers and staff do have sales targets and often feel under pressure to achieve them. It is important only to sell to the needs of the customer and not to your own agenda, although I admit that the past I have seen some hard sell tactics. I believe we are changing from that now,but it can still happen if an individual is being pressurised.
TIP If you are not totally happy with something the bank is trying to encourage you to do. Don't feel pressurised, take time to think about it and ask all the questions you need. Always check out the competition.

A popular misconception is that branch staff are all on commission. We are not. We do have a points system, a bit like Ciao community points. You can exchange them for goods. After 2 years of achieveing my objectives I had enough points to buy a bread maker!

Another misconception is that because we work with money we must earn loads too. Oh definately not true. If I worked full time on my hourly rate I would earn just over £14K per year. That's not high earning for the South of England in a job with such responsibilities.

Why do I stay - I enjoy the job, the staff and regular customers are lovely. The bank are very flexible regarding part-time work,maternity arrangements and are understanding regarding kids being ill swapping days around etc. I suppose they need to keep the dedicated workforce happy,as at lower levels it mainly consists of part-time women.

THE FUTURE

I'm not sure how long there will be traditional large banking organisations. With the increase of internet banks, telephone banks and supermarket banking. I believe their only chance of survival is to provide outstanding customer service. So far they haven't been getting it right. My impression is they have now recognised the need to change and hopefully things will improve for the better.

It will be difficult to do the star ratings on this one. I will base it on my branch, myself and my colleagues.