What Happenned To Common Sense?

[Titehead]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-22208720
all for £6! you couldn't make it up.

[jim360]

Possibly a case of "computer says no"?

[Sqad]

jim...LOL

[Old_Geezer]

He probably died deliberately to get away with the £6.

[Gromit]

// All for £6 //

Do you expect a dead person to pay that even though it is not owed? Just because the bank is inefficient does not mean everyone else has to obey them. She had to take his ashes before they would believe he was dead. They made a£6 debt, £619 with daily charges. No wonder the banks are more unpopular than politicians.

Don't uou work for a bank Titehead. Might have been worth mentioning which side of the fence you are approaching this from.

[Titehead]

No gromit, I'm saying that the administration at the bank is run by idiots with the "computer says no" mentality described by jim. It's a feateure these days that so many people seem incapabale of independent thought.

This may turn out to be urban myth but I think it's another case of this that illustarates what I mean more obviously:

http://www.snopes.com/business/bank/deadcard.asp

[Titehead]

Still , you carry on with the default "jump down throat" - Gromit mantra, eh!

[VHG]

Another example of a lack of independent thought.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-22212456

[LazyGun]

Its a horrible example of administration by computer. Should never have reached that point.

[youngmafbog]

Looks like Gromit was in such a rush to decry you he didnt read the question correctly!

I agree titehead, common sense seems to have all but disappeared. and it is not just Banks.

[McMouse]

When my father died the bank were quite happy with a copy of the Death Certificate.

[Titehead]

she showed the death certificate early on.

[Gromit]

It isn't really computer error or lack of independent thought though is it? She sent a death certificate to his branch. It must have been opened by a human and there must be a set process for closing the account of a dead person. This was not done. Can't really blame the computer or lack of a system. Just sloppy.

Not sure she is blameless though. If you close an account of a dead relative you would check the balance and possibly transfer any money out. You would make sure direct debits were cancelled and check that there were no charges after the death date. And get confirmation from the bank that the account was shut. Maybe due to grief or just couldn't be bothered, she let it go on for 2 years.

[jim360]

True, but once the initial error was made, it's not unreasonable to assume that it carried on because the computer carried no warning - so "computer says no" could still be a part of this at some level. Human error is what leads to "computer says no" anyway.

[Titehead]

so you are taking the side of the banks now then gromit? There's no Italian in you is there?

[Gromit]

A fuller report in the Daily Mail

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2310404/Siobhon-Peers-Grieving-daughter-took-fathers-ashes-bank-prove-dead-settle-6-charge.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

She show / sent A COPY of the death certificate to the bank. They refused to close her account until they had seen the original. Not sure why it took her 18 months to do that, but when she took an ORIGINAL to the bank, it was all sorted out.

[youngmafbog]

Not only that, Gromit has pulled in the DM to aide him!

Wonders will never cease!

[Gromit]

Titehead / Youngmafbog

The BBC report did not make clear that the copy of the death certificate sent to the bank was a photocopy and not an original. The mail report tells us it was not an original.

I can now see that the bank is being perfectly reasonable not to accept photocopies. An old person could have their accounts stolen by an easily forged photocopy.

I would normally believe a BBC account without verifying it, but on this occasion they succeeded in misleading me.

[Titehead]

Yes thanks to the DM and it's loyal readership for clearing this up.

[Gromit]

Of course the DM knew it was a crappy photocopy the bank refused to accept, but still ran it as a sob story.

[Titehead]

That's more like it!