SINGAPORE — United Overseas Bank (UOB) has once again come under criticism on social media, this time from a customer who reported a blunder in their services. The customer alleged that the money that was deposited was not reflected in their account.
On Saturday (4 Mar), a Facebook user took to the ‘Complaint Singapore’ group page to share his experience with a UOB Cash Deposit Machine (CDM).
The user, who goes by the name Daniel Sim, shared that he deposited $6,000 at the UOB Bukit Batok Central branch using the CDM 695 on 2 March.
“Happily, I left the machine, thinking that the money has being credited.”
In the next day, around 6 pm, he noticed that the money had not been credited into his current account.
Mr Daniel then contacted the UOB call centre. Waited for about 20 minutes, and a customer service officer attended to him. He alleged that the officer was unhelpful and rude.
“She replied that she will ask the relevant department to call me back, and ask to wait for 7 working days, she was extremely rude to me.”
He then requested to speak to the duty manager. But even the manager insisted Mr Daniel to wait for 3 to 7 working days to get the answer.
“Just imagine $6k, is lost from your account. Are you extremely anxious. Still got to wait?”
Mr Daniel questioned UOB’s reliability and encouraged other Singaporeans to consider their options before choosing UOB.
Other group members expressed their dissatisfaction with UOB’s inconsistent service standards
A netizen commented in the post shared by Daniel Sim, said banks typically take five working days to credit accounts due to the centralized collection and distribution of notes at CISCO. The commenter also advised others to keep a copy of the acknowledgement receipt as it can fade over time.
In response to the commenter’s post, Daniel Sim shared his experience with a UOB CDM where CISCO reported an incorrect amount credited to UOB. He expressed doubt about UOB’s reliability, questioning whether customers could trust the bank’s services.
Other members of the Complaint Singapore group shared their own experiences with UOB bank, shedding light on potential systemic issues.
One netizen claimed that while UOB is well-known in Singapore, it has a poor reputation for customer service.
According to the netizen, the bank’s efficiency declines once it secures a customer’s investment. They described a scenario where UOB would bounce customers around between different departments without actually resolving their issues.
Another netizen shared a personal experience where her father passed away in August 2022, and she requested the cancellation of his account in November 2022.
Despite requesting to be kept informed, she received a letter in March 2023 stating that her deceased father owed the bank $400. When she visited the branch to view the statement, the staff was unable to do so.
“Put me thru a 30mins wait to the call centre, the staff still said not them in charge and wants to transfer again!”
She expressed disappointment in the bank’s treatment of her late father, who had been a loyal customer for 40 years.
A disgruntled UOB customer shared his negative experience with the bank’s credit card where it took the bank months to settle the issue, and the customer had to repeatedly ask for assistance. Despite informing UOB to cancel all the cards, the bank failed to call the customer.
“…first time call them, they will push here push there.. just that ding dong took 3weeks to finally someone to assist me… than to settle my issue its take them months to complete.”
Another group member on the Complaint Singapore page expressed his frustration with UOB’s inconsistent system, asking how a bank can have such an unreliable system.
UOB spokesperson apologized, assured the incident are uncommon
According to Must Share News, a UOB spokesperson apologized to Sim and confirmed that his cash deposit had been credited to his account on Monday, 6 Mar, four days after the deposit was made.
The spokesperson assured customers that incidents like this are uncommon and that money deposited into UOB’s CDMs is safe.
Another netizen also posted a lengthy complaint on ‘Complaint Singapore’, complained about UOB regarding the bank’s handling of fraudulent transactions.
As a fraud victim of unauthorized transaction, UOB froze the bank account and allegedly asked the netizen to pay for the transactions charged on her card, or face late charges and incur interest.
Ng filed two police reports and demanded a 100% reimbursement of the payment made without her authorization. She told TOC that the investigation on the matter are ongoing and that the bank has not relented on the position that she would have to pay for the fees incurred on her card.
