Forum Moderators: buckworks
I explained to the prospective customer that he should have placed the order via the site and that we would have given him a different, more direct address to send the cheque (we don't work at the registered office - mail is forwarded from there to us every couple of weeks).
Anyway, there is no sign of the cheque. The registered office staff say they have not received anything for us recently.
The customer accepts that and says he will send a new cheque.
That's fair enough but he's now asking us to write to his bank and absolve the first cheque. Here's his request - it has poor english.
It's difficult to not think that this is a scam. Being a bit sceptical I assume that he's going to use the absolve letter to cancel the real cheque which he will send.
Then again. He could just be a genuine customer and this is something the bank / building society do regularily.
[edited by: Frank_Rizzo at 3:38 pm (utc) on Sep. 8, 2006]
[edited by: lorax at 7:42 pm (utc) on Sep. 8, 2006]
I'm out of pocket in phone calls, paperwork but mostly in time all for a customer who may or may not produce a £34.95 order.
I know I could have mowed the grass instead and let the customer worry about the cheque that HE lost but think of this.
In another thread somehwere here (Foo) a poster says that he was gifted $20 because his doctor didn't want to accept somekind of payment. He wanted to know what he should do with the $20.
Well my situation is the reverse!
BTW, did you ask the snippy bank clerk for HER name? (and perhaps the name of her superior? LOL)
I couldn't complain to the branch manager about the lady because she was the branch manager!
Before going forward, I would confirm with the head office their requirements to re-issue the check.
I would confirm with the head office their requirements to re-issue the check.
That's a good point. I'll also queery why I have to write directly to the customer and not send the letter straight to the building society.
The branch manager's attitude is very odd. Real bankers take ID theft seriously. As I said earlier, the intended victim may be the bank, not you.
As for fraud, ask for all employee names. THEN, they will take your call seriously.
At this stage I mentioned to the lady that surely it is her problem and nothing to do with me. AFAIK he may have lost the cheque down the side of his sofa - it's not in my building. She gets a bit shirty asking if my company treats all customers like that!
It is her, and the fella that supposedly sent your the check problem, not yours. You should have asked her if her organization treats all their customers this way also.
Being that she got "shirky" so quickly smells like a fish.
Move on and forget about it.
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I contacted their customers services dept. It is standard procedure (for this building society) to ask the receiving company to produce a letter confirming that the cheque will not be banked if found.
She said that I can write directly to the branch and do not have to send the customer my details.
Wanna come to work for me as a customer service rep.?
This seems like a pretty simple solution to me. Ignore it and move on. If the cheque ever appears, return it immediately.
Who needs the headaches?
