Natwest
Contents
Description of Charges
Card Misuse Fee (Changed to Guaranteed Card Payment Fee)
Cheque Return Fee
Default Notice Fee
Guaranteed Card Payment Fee
Paid Referral
Unarranged Borrowing Fee NB (Unarranged Borrowing Fee- Name Change. Natwest are changing the name to "Maintenance Fee" with effect from August 10th
NB These will appear on statements this month)
Unpaid Item Fee
Contact Details
REGISTERED ADDRESS: -
NATIONAL WESTMINSTER BANK PLC
2M 3UR
DATA PROTECTION ACT
Retail Regulatory Risk
2nd Floor
Cornerstone
60 South Gyle Crescent
Edinburgh
EH12 9WF
Preliminary and Letter Before Action
NatWest Customer Relations
225 Shenley Road
Borehamwood
Hertfordshire
WD6 1BR
New Address for Prelim and LBA as from 25th August 2007
Customer Service Response Unit
The Cornerstone
60 South Gyle Crescent
Edinburgh
EH12 9WF
COMPLAINTS DEPARTMENT EMAIL ADDRESS: -
or send to feedback@NatWest.com
CUSTOMER SERVICE/COMPLAINTS CONTACT NUMBER: -
Contact Your Branch
INTERNET BANKING WEBSITE: -
HOW TO OBTAIN YOUR STATEMENTS ON LINE: -
Only 6 Months available online so send S.A.R - (Subject Access Request)
OTHER CONTACTS: -
Card Services - fax number + Data Protection Act....01702 278306
NatWest Customer Relations,
Freepost NAT12685,
Borehamwood,
Hertfordshire.
WD6 1BR
NatWest (or Royal Bank of Scotland).
Fred Goodwin
Group Chief Executive
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc
PO Box 1000
Edinburgh
EH12 1HQ
OR
Gordon Pell
Chairman and Chief Executive, Retail Banking
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc
PO Box 1000
Edinburgh
EH12 1HQ
NatWest Charges-A Guide
Uarranged Borrowing Fee
This is when you have an overdraft or not and you go over that. The bank charges through charging periods which last a month and the charge goes out at the end of the month.
In 2000 it was £14 which then increased to £20 from April 2003 and then £28 from September 2004.
Unpaid Item
This appears on the statement and is when there is not sufficient funds in the account the previous working day(mon to Friday) to cover either a cheque, a direct debit or standing order to cover the amount going out. The bank "bounces" or does not pay the item and you get charged for it.
In 2000 it was £30 which went up to £38 from March 2005 (for businesses this is currently £35)
Card Misuse or Guaranteed Card Payment Fee (gtee card pymt) This is when an item is paid by switch and goes through the account when the account is over its agreed or unagreed overdraft.
In 2000 this was £25 and then went up in March 2005 to £35
Referral Fee This is when an item is, rather than bounced is paid which takes the account over an agreed or unagreed overdraft by more than £26. 3 charges maximum a month on that last one.
It was £25 per item (maximum of £75 per month). This changed in September 2004 to £30 per item (maximum of £90 per month).
Card Recovery Fee
This is when someone comes round to your house to recover your bank card
The fee is £125
Advantage Gold and Unarranged borrowing- The guide
Advantage Gold is a service fee so cannot be claimed and Unarranged Borrowing is going over an agreed or Unagreed overdraft without prior consent which can be claimed. A quick tip as to whether it is or is not an Advantage Gold account is that at the top of the statement it says Advantage Gold. If it was converted back the fee goes out at the end of the following month.
Some background info first
In 2001, NatWest was taken over by the Royal Bank of Scotland Group and replaced the NatWest computer systems as well as aligning charges to the RBS Bank model of charges. That means that the Advantage Gold charge and the Unarranged Borrowing Fee were put together as one from October 2002.
How much was Advantage Gold and what was the amounts in question?
October 2002 The Advanntage Gold fee was £6
September 2003 The fee went up to £9
July 2005 it was £10
June 2006 it is up to present total of £12
A quick note though, during 2002/3 there was a special charge for certain people trialling the newer Advantage Gold benefits which was £7.50.
So how do I work out what is the Advantage Gold and Unarranged Borrowing charge?
The statement may say:
October 2002: Charges - £20 so that is £14 Unarranged Borrowing and £6 ADGD fee,
September 2003: Charges - £29 which is £20 Unarranged Borrowing and £9 ADGD fee,
September 2004: Charges - £37 which is £28 Unarranged Borrowing and £9 ADGD fee
July 2005: Charges - £38 which is £28 Unarranged Borrowing and £9 ADGD fee
June 2006: Charges - £40 which is £28 Unarranged Borrowing and £12 ADGD fee.
However, if you converted the account back from advantage gold partially through the month it may have something like this:
31Jan06 Charges - £34.50 which is £28 Unarranged Borrowing and £6.50 ADGD fee
How do i get the account number when it is closed?
How can NatWest find an account that had been closed?
This advice is specifically for those who's account was open on or prior to October 2002 and information is unfortunately incomplete for post October 2002.
Why is October 2002 an important date?
On 4th October 2002, NatWest PLC computer system ran for the last time. On October 5th 2002 RBS Group PLC computer system became live with real time banking.
Why is this important?
Effectively NatWest PLC computer system froze in time at the above date. The old NatWest PLC produced a note on customer accounts everytime correspondence, marketing, complaints and charges- when a letter WAS actually sent out to you on every ocassion.
How does that help me to get my account number?
The new RBS Group PLC computer system still has access to the old system called the NatWest Archive which has a search system under name, sort code and gender. Very simple and accessible to all branch staff. So if your account was open on October 5th 2002 then you can go to your branch and get the account number with simple straightforward information.
What else would I need?
Address details for October 2002, identification for yourself(or the branch would be in breach of Data Protection Act and ID procedures) and the details mentioned above,
What about for accounts after October 2002?
On this point Ithis information is incomplete For what its worth NatWest can do a search under name and branch name but it may be difficult to confirm account details as there is no address on this search engine.
A lot of staff working for RBS Group PLC Data Protection Unit are unaware of a search engine to locate accounts so i thought i would add it here:
Back Office 04, 26, 45, option 1. This produces 12 options one of them is a search facility. You do need the sort code of the branch you opened the account at plus the post code, Date Of Birth, name, but it takes approximately 30 seconds and any NatWest employee can find it.
Abbreviations on Statements
ATM - Automated Teller (Cash) Machine
BAC - Automated Credit
BGC - Bank Giro Credit
CHG - Charge
D/D - Direct Debit
DIV - Dividend
DR - Account Overdrawn or Debit Item
IBP - Inter Branch Payment
INT - Interest
ITL - International
NDC - No Dividend Counterfoil
OTR - Online Banking
PO - Post Office
POS - Point of Sale - Switch/Maestro
S/O - Standing Order
SBT - Funds Transfer
TLR - Teller Transaction
TMS - Travel Money Service
TSU - Telephone Banking
Reasons for Account Closures
This are the main reasons for account closures. I am sure someone will say what about this but most will fall within the 9 reasons and not all examples will fit your exact circumstances.
1) Customer Request- This is where you go into the branch or post a request to close the account. The account can only be closed if the balance is at zero or brought to zero if account is overdrawn.
2)Dormant account- This is when the account has not been used for a number of years and attempt to contact the customer has been fruitless.
3) Account Opening Irregularities- This is when the identification used has not been in accordance with bank procedure or where information on the account opening form does not tie up. The account is closed within 24 hours of opening.
4) Credit Management Services- This is where the account has been incurring charges and has gone past the point in which it considered that it can be maintained by the customer. The account is transferred to them and the account is closed once the balance has been paid off.
5) Breakdown in Relationship with customer- This can include threats to staff, other customers in the branch and telephone threats.
6) Declared Bankrupt- This is bank policy that if someone who is a Bankrupt or made Bankrupt will have their account closed.
7) Dubious account activity- This includes using the account for fraudulent purposes.
8)Government Sanctions- This is my terminology, where the Government ask for account to be closed because of terrorist activities, global sanctions and the like.
9) A second Gesture of Goodwill Payment- This is a rare occurrence that after 2 gesure of goodwill refunds that the account is closed.
Other Banks
See the Banks page for a list of other banks and credit cards
Created by Me01273 23:17, 28 May 2007 (BST)