- The bank was this morning still unable to confirm how many of its 17million accounts remain affected
- RBS Group boss Stephen Hester admitted customers have been 'let down'
- Treasury is monitoring the situation as chaos continues
By Vanessa Allen and This Is Money
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IT glitch: RBS Chief Executive Stephen Hester said he was sorry for the difficulties customers were facing
Bank boss Stephen Hester faced calls to resign as the computer chaos at NatWest ran into a sixth day today, prompting the Treasury to monitor the situation.
The bank was this morning still unable to confirm when customer accounts would be returned to normal - almost a week after a systems failure that has left wages unpaid and customers unable to withdraw money, pay bills or use credit cards.
Hester, who is chief executive of RBS Gorup, which owns NatWest, promised that 'no one will be left permanently out of pocket' by the computer glitch.
He last night admitted account holders had been ‘let down’ and promised that those facing penalties for late payment of bills or missed direct debits would be compensated.
He said: 'Our customers rely on us day in and day out to get things right, and on this occasion we have let them down. This should not have happened.
'Right now my top priority, and the priority of the entire RBS Group, is to fix these problems and put things right for our customers.
'This is taking time, but I want to reassure people that we are working around the clock to resolve these problems as quickly as we are able.
'I also want to be clear that where our customers are facing hardship or difficulty we can and will help them.'
But his words will do little to appease those customers who believe he should shoulder the blame for the fiasco.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister David Cameron’s official spokesman said: 'The Treasury has been in contact with RBS and been kept informed of developments.
'This is clearly primarily a matter for that company and they are working hard to resolve the issues they have had, but they have been keeping the Treasury informed.'
RBS yesterday said that it was 'cautiously optimistic' that majority of NatWest and RBS accounts would be updated and back to normal today - but the bank was unable to confirm how many of its 17million accounts remain affected this morning.
At best it means some customers face another day of chaos with reports that the disru ption is having serious consequences for vulnerable customers.
No money: A mother with a baby passes a NatWest cashpoint which says millions have been left high and dry due to 'tecnical difficulties' in Olney, Buckinghamshire
Susan Allen, RBS Group’s director of customer services, said: ‘I’m cautiously optimistic that RBS and NatWest customer account balances will be largely back to normal from Monday.
‘The knock-on effects mean there will bumps in the road. Customers have our commitment that they will not be out of pocket from this issue.’
She said it would make sure credit scoring agencies did not give customers a poor credit rating for missing bills or mortgage payments.
Yesterday, account holders queued as 1,200 branches opened for the first time on a Sunday to clear the backlog of payments.
However, many complained that the banks were open only from 9am to noon, which did not give them enough time to take money out to pay for food and other essentials.
Those moving home were also left unable to complete their purchases.
Joanna Jachimowska, 29, said she was worried about what to do if her four-year-old diabetic daughter needed treatment after she arrived two minutes too late to withdraw money from a city centre branch in Leeds.
She added: ‘I have not received my wages, it is a disgrace. If they are having these problems they should be open all day on a Sunday.
What happens if I need to get my daughter to hospital? I can’t pay for a taxi because their mess-up means I have no money. You should be able to trust your bank but I cannot trust NatWest after this.’
Another customer, a mother-of-three from Broadstairs, Kent, was one of many to vent her frustration on Twitter, writing: ‘Ok so 3 days so far with no money! Things getting desperate now, the cupboards are empty and have no nappies for the baby. Well done.’
The bank’s own website was flooded with complaints and appeared to crash several times.
Jasmin Brady, from Cheshire, wrote: ‘This just gets better, not able to log on to banking all morning then when you finally can all direct debits have been taken early leaving me -£1,944!
‘Also a real sweetener included in this massive overdraft is £17.79 in charges! Thanks NatWest!!’
The bank said all fees and charges resulting from the problem would be fully refunded.
Last night, Ci ty regulator the Financial Services Authority demanded that NatWest’s parent company RBS, which is more than 80 per cent owned by the taxpayer, gave a ‘complete account’ of what went wrong.
RBS said it was ‘making progress’ to clear the backlog but has not ruled out further disruption. It said it had solved the initial problem, which was triggered by a faulty software update on Tuesday night that stopped payments going in and out of accounts on Wednesday.
Customers reacted with incredulity that a simple software fault had been allowed to wreak havoc with their accounts.
CAN I FORCE NATWEST TO COVER ANY PENALTIES?
The crisis-hit bank has so far refused to confirm specifically whether it will compensate customers if they are hit with late payment fees from third parties - through no fault of their own.
Our banking correspondent explains customers' rights when it comes to getting justice from financial services firms.
READ MORE: Can I force NatWest to cover late payment penalties?
On the NatWest website, one man wrote: ‘I cannot think of any other industry that would allow untested software changes to be applied to live accounts.’
The fiasco has hit customers from NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank. It is not known how many of NatWest’s 7.5million personal banking customers were affected. Ulster Bank said about 100,000 of its customers had difficulties.
Customers also criticised the bank’s failure to set up a free phone emergency hotline instead of its 0845 number, which customers have to pay to use.
Around 7,000 employees were on duty in branches yesterday and staffing levels were doubled at its call centres, with technical and head office staff also working overtime to cope with the crisis.
Some branches will be open for 11 hours today, from 8am to 7pm and the bank’s overtime bill is expected to cost millions.
Shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Rachel Reeves said it was ‘absolutely imperative that RBS gets a grip on this situation’.
She added: ‘It’s causing real hardship and to say “We’ll put it all right in the end†isn’t really good enough.’
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Hester could always go back to huntin,shootin 'n fishin. He could lend Rebbeca Brookes a horse....or Dave....
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Cornelius - Nope, sorry, but your conspiracy theory is wrong. There is a computer issue. This in and of itself is no biggie, but the fact that RBS group had the arrogance and stupidity to fore it's UK based IT staff and outsource to india, is an issue. That's the problem - Computer issues, can't get fixed quickly because the guys in india just do not have the expertise and knowledge their UK forbears did. Check out the Register website to find out more.
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Just move banks a.s.a.p. !!!!!
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Perhaps outsourcing is morally wrong? Not the best money saving idea RBS.
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Natwest is 83% owned by the taxpayer. Who represents the taxpayers? Hester shouldn't resign - Cameron should!
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I keep trying to find out how to use my debit card while abroad and I get emails from NatWest telling me I can get cash in a branch or I can get more than my credit balance on my credit card...... don't they read my mail to them? My card won't work and I'm 10,000 miles from the nearest branch.....
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I can only speak as I find and that is, I use Nat West in Gibraltar, and also obviously cannot get a balance of my account, but until I knew that this 'glitch' was national I was ringing them every half an hour........then I felt ashamed when I knew just what a huge problem it is.The girls that answered my calls were most apologetic to the extent I almost thought they were blaming themselves, but no, they were just doing their job in the most professional manner that we have all become so used to.......pat on the back to them I say!
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You have to wonder if the software upgrade was outsourced to somewhere like India where labour is far cheaper!!
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What was the software - exactly who supplied the software ?
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And you can bet the IT team at RBS will still get a bonus next year....
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