Peter Salthouse sent a message to Lloyd Blankfein that said:
Dear Mr.Solomon,
Account 04065727 ?
Apologies for the email but feel you should be aware of the misleading information given on the Saga website!
I have recently retired and wish to open an easy access bank account. On the âMoney Saving Expertâ website they recommended two, namely Marcus and Saga. As the Saga account was administered by Goldman Sachs, I decided to open a Saga Easy Access Savings Account.
I applied online without too many problems â being aged 71 and with limited computer skills, thought this was an achievement. Then the problems started! I tried to deposit an initial nominal amount of £100 as I did not wish to send my considerable amount initially. When I tried to transfer money from my HSBC nominated account I received the following notice âUnable to check details - We canât check the details you entered, as the payeeâs bank doesnât offer this service. By choosing âContinueâ you accept you could send money to the wrong account and may not get it backâ. I was very concerned about this, so contacted Saga who assured me this was normal as Goldman Sachs was not linked to the main British banks, hence my nominal initial deposit. I decided to continue despite this. I then received an email from Saga âYou recently tried to pay some money into your Saga Savings account ending ****5727. We need some more information about your linked account, so we've had to return the money to the bank account you sent it from. It should be there within one working dayâ.
I was amazed at this as the website stated I could transfer money straight away. I phoned again to find out why this had happened, and where my money was! I was told that Goldman Sachs could not verify accounts from the âBig Fiveâ, which I found rather unbelievable. I was also told that on occasions further information is requested. Nowhere on the online application is this mentioned. The lady I spoke to did not know why I was asked for this, appears rather peculiar! Why was I singled out? I have had the same bank account for over 50 years, and been at my present address for over 30 years!
I feel like you are treating me as being dishonest in some way, and that you not prepared to answer relevant questions. I consider this very strange from a well-known and respected Bank; which will be losing the respect of the public due to the Saga website.
I feel that I have no choice other than open an account with Marcus.
I look forward to hearing your comments.
Exceedingly disappointed and frustrated,
Regards, Peter Salthouse
