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“One of the conditions to receive the railcard is that...”

written by on 05/09/2010

One of the conditions to receive the railcard is that you must check a box to stop receiving statements by post when you sign up to online banking. Upon receiving my activation code etc. in September 2009, I went to the website and entered all the appropriate information in order to activate my online banking, which included a tick box asking me whether I wanted online statements only, which I ticked. I then applied for my railcard, well aware of the condition that I must register for paperless statements, and assuming I had done so. After my first term at university, I had not received my railcard, and when I came home, I noticed I had received several bank statements. I found this odd, since I knew I had asked not to receive them. I logged into my online banking and found that for some reason I was still registered to receive statements by post, so I immediately altered this setting so that I would not receive them in the future. It was also obvious why I had not received my railcard. Upon calling the Natwest student centre, I explained that I had signed up to paperless statements and submitted my application long before the application deadline, and that having statements sent to a place I wasn't living was of no benefit to me. The only record they had of me registering for paperless statements was in December, after the railcard application deadline, so they would not honour my application.



The only reason I went with this account is because of the railcard, so it's not as if I wouldn't have made sure I had satisfied all of the conditions in order to receive it.



The level of customer service, ease of use, and the overdraft facility are largely irrelevant in this respect, as all banks offer much the same service, if not better. Therefore, as far as I'm concerned they may as well receive 1 star each, as I have received no benefit from having this account, that I couldn't have received elsewhere.