‘I sent my son a £200k house deposit, but Santander took £5k'
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Dear Katie,
On March 3, I visited my local Santander branch and asked for £200,000 to be sent from my account to my son's GBP account in Zurich, Switzerland. I paid the £25 fee and was told that the funds would land overnight.
However, this did not happen. I made multiple attempts to get Santander to sort it out, and then when the funds did finally arrive, they were presented in Swiss Francs, having suffered significant exchange rate and handling fees.
On March 6, I complained to Santander that the money had been sent via the wrong route (the one that triggers a currency conversion rather than a straight transfer, which is far cheaper to do).
I was told that the complaints team would be in touch within three to five working days, as this had been flagged as urgent. However, no one called.
It was only on Friday, March 14 when I phoned repeatedly that I was able to make contact with someone. The lady promised 'prompt action', but another three days have now passed – nothing has been done and no one has been in touch.
If my son accepts the funds into his account, he will lose another £4,700.30 due to conversion rates and fees. My son needs this money soon to help him purchase a home in Zurich.
The funds are an advance from the Bank of Mum on his inheritance as – while I really do not want to play the 'poor me' point – I deal with advanced, incurable cancer.
– PE, via email
Dear PE,
Your receipt shows the transaction was made in Swiss Francs, which is in line with Santander's usual policy.
When you visited the Bristol branch for the second time, two days later, you advised that your son had not received the expected funds, as the receiving bank could not deposit the Swiss Francs into his account.
At this point, Santander became aware that you initially intended to send the funds in pounds.
In order for the money to be applied to your son's account, it was converted from Swiss Francs to pounds, with the currency conversion rate reducing the amount of pounds he received by £4,702.30.
Following my involvement, Santander has now arranged to send this amount back to you, as well as £300 to acknowledge that it could have resolved this issue sooner. It has also reimbursed your original £25 transaction fee.
I hope your son is able to now proceed with his house purchase, and I wish you all the very best with your cancer management.
A Santander spokesman said: 'At the time, Mrs E made her international transfer it was not clear that she wanted the payment to be made in GBP. Mrs E clarified this two days after the transfer was made, when it became clear that, due to currency conversion rates, her son would receive less than she intended.
'We're sorry we did not act sooner to review this once she raised it with us, and we can confirm that we have now arranged for the shortfall to be sent to her son, as well as offering an additional £300 for the delay in reviewing her complaint, alongside a further £25 to reimburse the transaction fees.'
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