Attempting to close an account.

Zennith

Hi,

I'm actually asking this on behalf of a relative. She is an elderly woman who recently lost her husband. She went to her branch in north Co. Dublin to close her joint account that is held there. She arrived with all neccessary documents that would be required ( death cert etc.). When she asked to close her account she was told that they could put it in her name. However she wanted to close the account.

With this she was told, that they could not give her money there but would be issued a cheque by post for the balance of the account. This was no issue. However, a number of days later, a letter arrived stating that the account had been ameded and changed solely to her name as this was your policy.

This is not what she wanted. She had verbally requested that the account to be closed but yet she can't and that this is your policy? Can you please advise if this is correct and why she cannot close her account as she wished?

Thanks,
Z.

Bank of Ireland: Sean

Zennith wrote: »

Hi,

I'm actually asking this on behalf of a relative. She is an elderly woman who recently lost her husband. She went to her branch in north Co. Dublin to close her joint account that is held there. She arrived with all neccessary documents that would be required ( death cert etc.). When she asked to close her account she was told that they could put it in her name. However she wanted to close the account.

With this she was told, that they could not give her money there but would be issued a cheque by post for the balance of the account. This was no issue. However, a number of days later, a letter arrived stating that the account had been ameded and changed solely to her name as this was your policy.

This is not what she wanted. She had verbally requested that the account to be closed but yet she can't and that this is your policy? Can you please advise if this is correct and why she cannot close her account as she wished?

Thanks,
Z.

Hi Zennith,

Sorry to hear about the recent loss to your family.

Your relative will be best off contacting the account holding branch directly to discuss this.  We have no access to account specific information here, and we would not be able to comment on this situation without further information.

Apologies we could not be of anymore help.

Seán

Zennith

Bank of Ireland: Sean wrote: »

Hi Zennith,Sorry to hear about the recent loss to your family.Your relative will be best off contacting the account holding branch directly to discuss this. We have no access to account specific information here, and we would not be able to comment on this situation without further information.Apologies we could not be of anymore help.Seán

Hi Sean,

I understand this. What I want to know if this is bank policy not to close accounts now when requested? Or is this on certain account (eg 90 day deposit account, joint account etc) which it has to be transferred into a sole account first?

Thanks,
Z

Bank of Ireland: Sean

Zennith wrote: »

Hi Sean,

I understand this. What I want to know if this is bank policy not to close accounts now when requested? Or is this on certain account (eg 90 day deposit account, joint account etc) which it has to be transferred into a sole account first?

Thanks,
Z

Hi Zennith,

In the majority of cases this is not the procedure, the account should have been able to be closed if it was a basic joint account.  There are certain situations where a delay may occur for example if the account is a deposit based account that requires notice.

If your relative contacts her branch directly a representative will be happy to look into this on her behalf.

Thanks

Seán

Zennith

Bank of Ireland: Sean wrote: »

Hi Zennith,In the majority of cases this is not the procedure, the account should have been able to be closed if it was a basic joint account. There are certain situations where a delay may occur for example if the account is a deposit based account that requires notice.If your relative contacts her branch directly a representative will be happy to look into this on her behalf.ThanksSeán

Thanks Sean,

It was a basic joint account and was told in the letter that this was BoI policy. We contacted the branch by phone and again were told the same. I would understand if there might be an issue if it was a notice deposit account or such but this is not the case. We also had to ask for a different representative as the person we were dealing with was making more of a sales pitch than anything else. Some which were strange as she is a 78 year old woman.

It's unfortunate that this was the case but she will be closing all her accounts held due to this.

Thank you for the prompt resopnse on this issue though.

Regards,
Z

Bank of Ireland: Sean

Zennith wrote: »

Thanks Sean,

It was a basic joint account and was told in the letter that this was BOI policy. We contacted the branch by phone and again were told the same. I would understand if there might be an issue if it was a notice deposit account or such but this is not the case. We also had to ask for a different representative as the person we were dealing with was making more of a sales pitch than anything else. Some which were strange as she is a 78 year old woman.

It's unfortunate that this was the case but she will be closing all her accounts held due to this.

Thank you for the prompt resopnse on this issue though.

Regards,
Z

Hi Zennith,

We are sorry your relative experienced increased difficulty during this difficult time. However as previously stated if your relative contacts her branch and requests to speak with a staff member in the deceased customer unit, they will be more than happy to look into this.

Thanks 

Seán