The learning might help you all - Banking Ombudsman comes to rescue

Well this is regarding a small win i had with Banking Ombudsman a body deployed by RBI to attend and mediate the harassment and related issues faced by customers from banks.The Office of Banking Ombudsman has considerable powers http://www.bankingombudsman.rbi.org.in/

The Banking Ombudsman (BO)Office is housed in the RBI building at Sansad Marg. The case was that in 2006 i had made a final settlement of my credit card payment with ICICI bank to their agents and got a full and final settlement receipt from them. After 4 years, last September i found my saving bank account in the same bank impacted by some Lein charges notified to me by regular post hardcopy mail. The bank had charged my savings account to claim Rs 8000 against their self proclaimed dues against the surrendered credit card without any prior notification or my approval.. I immediately wrote to the branch manager of the GK branch with the scanned copy of the receipt. For first few times he did not acknowledge my mail giving some excuse or the other finally when he did that he asked me to reach his debt department, he even in undertones tried to warn me that i should not be aggressive giving me some lame excuse. After first few calls he stopped answering my phone and the person in debt department did the same. This was a very frustrating experience. I reached out to a friend who is well versed with registering complaints regarding consumers and he told me about Banking Ombudsman.

Mid November after 1.5 months of following up with the bank  i reached BO office through a mail putting my case and scanned copy of my documents. They laised with bank and i received a response from Bank in Feburary through the BO office which i contested. The bank was again quoting their rule book completely glossing over the receipt and the gap in their communication with their collection agency. I charged them with cheating me of the trust i had in putting my money in their saving account and they impacting it to recover funds they deem fit without my approval. The BO office called for a face to face meeting at the RBI office. I went there to present my case with all original receipts.

Guess what before i could enter the BO room the ICICI representative a 55 - 60 yrs old gentleman reached me in the reception area and told me that he was sorry and that they were losing a lot of customers because of the credit card department and that we should settle the case outside without the presence of the BO. He asked me what i wanted i informed him i wanted my money credited back and my account closed with ICICI for good. He gave it to me in written to remit my money back within 4 days and helping me close the account. The written agreement was shown to the BO and i was told that in case the bank does not comply i should reach back to the BO office again. The concerned debt officer was also present and the only answer she had for BO was that she receives 200 calls a day and she cannot attend all unmindful of the 5 months and botheration the customer went through.

I am wondering how many of us keep receipts that long and how many of the customers the bank must be cheating. Not many people bother to reach BO office or really know that one exists. In the meanwhile the bank simply meets its accounts by hook or by crook.