NCB satisfies client, clarifies banking fee

THE EDITOR, Sir:

There has been much public debate surrounding this paper's publication of a complaint letter from a National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCB) customer which spoke to the levying of charges on a current account and was carried in your Saturday publication on February 7, 2014.

Let us first offer the assurance that this matter has been speedily resolved to the satisfaction of our customer, who assured us that he merely needed clarity and that the headline ascribed was not his. Notwithstanding, we publicly acknowledge and apologise for whatever difficulties were experienced by our client.

We are constrained by the need to keep our client's affairs confidential to the furthest extent possible in responding to the letter. However, in investigating the matter, we discovered that one of the charges was an error and have accordingly reversed it.

online channels

While we seek to ensure that errors are avoided, there are rare incidents in which they occur. This is one of the reasons that financial institutions generally encourage customers to regularly make use of our online channels to check their accounts, and to make contact if there is any transaction or charge that the customer does not understand or expect.

The change relating to the charges based on the balances held on current accounts, to which the letter made reference, was in fact communicated to customers by placing a notice on our website one month prior to the adjustments, in accordance with Fair Trading regulations.

It is a change in how the charge is applied and is not a new charge. Previous to the change, where the balance was not maintained at $20,000 (or above), the customer was charged per cheque negotiated on the account. Where the balance remained at $20,000 or above, the customer was not charged per cheque negotiated, but instead saw a flat fee. The change was to increase the minimum balance at which the flat fee (of $650.64 plus GCT) would apply from $20,000 to $50,000, recognising the change that has occurred in the value of money and average balances held by customers since the former threshold of $20,000 was first introduced.

reputation

NCB stands behind its reputation for maintaining high service-quality standards, with the full understanding that this is an imperative for any institution that seeks to provide financial guidance and support to its customers. In fact, our corporate policy of ensuring that our customers experience high levels of service satisfaction is what underpins NCB's Complaints Management System.

Through this means, we consistently have resolved complaints and effectively handled service issues that invariably occur from time to time, as is the case with similar organisations across the world.

We continue to encourage all our customers to utilise this mechanism in order to have their issues properly logged and dealt with speedily and effectively. This mechanism also helps us ensure that we address the issues in a way that reduces the likelihood of them impacting other customers.

NADEEN MATTHEWS

Senior Assistant General Manager

Strategy, Marketing and Communications

NCB Jamaica Limited