Cheats and Liars

I really get mad when people try to do things behind your back and then try to cover up when asked.
I got hopping mad when I found out that the bank which I got my credit card from has been doing this. You see, I could have changed my credit card for one which didn’t charge me annual fees. I could have. But darn loyal me. I see credit card promoters each time I go to Tesco, Giant and Komtar. Everyone’s trying to get me to change to a card which doesn’t have annual fees. Free for life.
But you see, it was too much of a hassle for me. And then, I assumed that SBB would not charge me any annual fee because I’ve been their credit card holder for 4 years now. I thought that meant something to them.
Apparently, NO. I was just another customer. And they conveniently forget to let you know certain things.
Last month, they added the annual fees to my credit card statement even though my aunt told me that SBB was having this promo where they waive credit card fees for life or something. She advised me to cancel my card if they charged me the fees because New Applicants got this fee waiver.
And SBB bloody did charge the fees to me! That’s RM210.
When I called up to enquire why I wasn’t privy to that fee waiver, a Razif who answered (and firstly, why no toll-free number?) said that he would put in the recommendation to refund me the fee. He said that those who were eligible for the fee waiver were those who had an SBB savings or current account.
So a couple of hours later, Razif called again. Oh, the recommendation went through. The bank has decided to refund me my RM210 and it will be reflected in the next month’s statement. But there’s a caveat: it’s not free for life, it is free until 2007.
While I am happy to get back my RM210, I am thinking: what if I didn’t find out about the fee waiver? Then the bank would happily collect RM210 from me and others who never knew! What fat earnings!
Anyway, speaking of banks, I think the only bank which deserves my admiration is Public Bank. No wonder Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow gets the Best Bank Award yearly. He and his team and the bank deserves it. Public Bank is fast, efficient and never give you problems.
I don’t mind going physically to Public Bank because the staff are truly amazing. I have never been in the bank for more than 5 minutes the most because the staff serve me fast and queues have never been an issue.(This is the Kampung Jawa branch in Bayan Baru.)
Their banking forms are simple, easy to fill up and never ask for unnecessary info. I like the fact that their number slips (you know, the slips of paper with numbers which you get from the machine) are highly economical – it’s a narrower strip compared to most banks. After all, it’s just the number which people are interested in. Less paper, less costs, more savings.
Plus their website also reflects their zeal for customer satisfaction. Easy to locate info. Easy to find out what I need. That’s what website usability is all about. Other banks’ websites makes me confused – so many blinking things, so many things to click. I get lost in a sea of text.
And yes, I do have a Public Bank credit card.

3 thoughts on “Cheats and Liars”

  1. YAY!! I am a public bank account holder too. got tired of all the freaking hassle other banks gave me. PBB’s online banking is also quite seamless! very effortless and reliable. it’s good to know that your money is in the right pair of hands!

    Reply
  2. Hi Marsha: Yeah,I know. I want another PB credit card now…haha. Just to spite SBB!
    Hi Lydia: Yeah. That is definitely in the works. I won’t let SBB eat my money so easily.

    Reply

Leave a Comment