[pfgpowell]

I trust some bod from Tesco Bank monitors these community exchanges and will get in touch. If no one does, my suspicion - that they essentially don’t give a flying eff about us customers - will be proved true.

Here’s a very straightforward question and in order for Tesco Bank to take notice, I shall be as offensive as possible: why doesn’t Tesco put its customers first BEFORE handing out dividends to shareholders. More to the point: why, despite the PR schmooze does Tesco Bank treat us, its customers, almost as an optional extra?

Let me flesh that out: earlier today I wasted the best part of an hour sorting out a problem which should never have arisen in the first place. I wanted to register my Tesco credit card with JustPark and once I had supplied the card details I was advised I had to authorise the card – just open the Tesco Bank mobile app and click ‘authorise’. Except it never did and as I found out, never would.

I finally rang through – and the ‘options’ are NEVER relevant: this was a specific problem but none of the options fitted. So I entered ‘O’ and got through to a guy. He informed me that my iPhone and the IoS I was using were not compatible with the mobile app. OK, though odd as I had successfully authorised payments that way quite recently.

The solution, he said, was to delete, then download and re-install the app and it would all work.

First question: if this problem was known, why not flag it up to customers? Why go through all the hassle of failing several times before I had to sort it out. But it gets worse.

I did what he suggested but it still did not work. So I had to ring again. The next guy, just a friendly, said it might be best I no longer had to authorise through the app but by getting a text message. He set it up for me and now things are fine. Well, kind of . . .

It took me two phone calls and at least 40 minutes of frustration to sort all this out. But as I told the first guy, why should WE - the customers! - run around like blue-arsed flies doing the donkey work correcting matters?

Has it not occurred to Tesco Bank to flag up the problem somehow? Obviously not. Ergo, we are not quite as important to them as they piously claim.

[ChristopherP]

@pfgpowell Hey there, thanks for getting in touch! I'm sorry to hear about this experience you had and can understand your frustration at having to call us a couple of times to resolve this.

From what you've said it sounds like you're using a device or operating system that may no longer be compatible with our app.

You can read more about this on our FAQ page here. If you read through this and this doesn't apply to your device, please let me know so we can take a further look into it for you.

I will also pass your comments on to the relevant department as feedback.

[pfgpowell]

@pfgpowell

You completely miss the point, and that in itself is not encouraging.

YES the app is no longer compatible - but I told you that, so why are you repeating it? And after many failed attempts to get it to work I had no way of knowing what was wrong until the first call to Tesco. And even then the advice given - delete and reinstall app - was totally useless ********: it didn't work because it couldn't work.

it was only after the second call to Rashid who changed my 'authorisation' method text message that I was able to authorise my card.

More to the point: why don't you even attempt to deal with what I write in my message? ALL you do is resort to that hoary and cheap standby of 'consult our list of FAQs'. That's it. Basically that amounts to 'we don't care, frankly, so sort it out yourself'.

So some questions: when did Tesco Bank become aware that its mobile app had become useless as a means of authorising a payment? What did it do about it to alert customers of the problem? Does it affect the app on all versions of IoS or just some? Does it affect Android phones? What is Tesco Bank going to do to try to sort out the problem: just blame Apple or pull its finger out and re-write its app code?

Come on, tell us! I can be the only iPhone user who has been affected so show that you 'care about your customers' instead of just claiming that in PR schmooze.

- - - Updated - - -

@pfgpowell

PS The asterisked word begins with 'b' and rhymes with 'hollocks'. Shame Tesco Bank aren't as attentive about thinking of their customers as they are about 'bad language'.

[ChristopherP]

@pfgpowell Sorry you didn't feel I addressed your questions. However, you asked us why customers weren't informed of this and I pointed you to the page that outlines the devices and systems that are (and aren't) compatible with the mobile app.

I'm sorry you had to ring twice to resolve it and were given incorrect information; I understand that is frustrating. If you'd like me to provide feedback to the agent involved then please send a private message or you can raise a complaint here.

I understand this has agitated you however please be mindful of the language you use on the forum, the filter is there for this reason as I'm sure you understand.

[pfgpowell]

I informed you in a roundabout way what the word I used was and it is most certainly NOT at all bad or offensive. And if you and other Tesco staff are so super-sensitive and so easily offended I trust that for many years they have stopped watching TV after 'the watershed'

I am NOT complaining about the first agent and assume he will not be blamed. I AM complaining about Tesco Bank's lack of care for its customers and how the overall impression is that we are rather less important to the bank than they care to make out.

If you are on Tescon's staff, please specifically address the questions I asked in my first response, mainly when did Tesco become aware of this glitch for some (I assume some) iPhone users and WHAT did it do about it - to sort it out and alert customers. Simply telling me now that the matter was touched upon in FAQs is more than pointless - how often to customers check the FAQs to see whether there have been changes that might affect them. Get real.

Note: no 'offensive' language in this comment, though you might well be offended by how unimpressed I am by your responses so far.

[ChristopherP]

@pfgpowell We updated our security measures in June 2023, and this meant that some of our customers using older devices, operating systems or app versions may no longer have access to our app.

Although I appreciate you don't feel this is an adequate way to inform people, it was communicated on our website and our FAQ page.

As you've mentioned you're complaining about this above, you can raise one at the link I supplied before or we can raise it for you if you send a private message.