By Andy McCue, 16 October 2006 11:45
NEWS
An HSBC network crash left thousands of customers without cash and unable to use their debit and credit cards at the weekend.
The outage meant HSBC and First Direct customers were faced with service messages when trying to take out cash at ATMs or they had their cards declined when trying to pay in shops or restaurants.
The system went down between 12:00(BST) and 15:00(BST) on Sunday afternoon and affected thousands of customers, mainly in the South of England, although other parts of the country, including Yorkshire, were also affected.
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A spokesman for HSBC apologised to customers for the outage and said the problem has now been fixed.
He said: "We had some issues which meant the card reader in the ATM or in the device in the shop were unable to communicate with our system and approve transactions. It was our fault."
The spokesman said the bank is currently investigating the cause of the glitch and why it only affected certain areas of the country.
Comments
There are 13 comments. Join the discussion
1. Neil
A trip to the Cinema shouldnt have been that difficult.. so now who's going to say that having multiple cards is a bad thing!
2. anonymous
Oh, the glitch also came across the border into Scotland, and lasted about an hour!
3. Nicola
I have banked with HSBC for over 10 years and as far as I am concerned their service is fantastic.
Anyway these days people have hundreds of credit cards...so whats the problem really?
Another case of "instant culture"...one small glitch and everyone collapses into a heap! Honestly!
4. DSM
Tried to use HSBC Switch card, couldn't, made to look like a card theif in the shop. Had to then use Credit card, will now have to pay the interest from using my credit card.
5. anonymous
No doubt HSBC and First Direct will be compensating customers they severely embarrased? I also believe in fairies.
6. Michael Dixon
The last time it happened they refused a personal petrol purchase. The branch later knew of the problem (when asked), but no apology or explanation.
And no, I do not want to carry several cards - and certainly not an HSBC one now.
We have already moved the limited co's a/c.
7. Mr.X
A perfect example of how our world will come to a standstill if the banking industry is ever hit bigtime by criminals or terrorists.
Most of us have forgotten about cash until we can no longer get our hands on it?
8. Dan B
I only use cash and was happily unaffected by this - I don't think cashless has any advantages over cash except for banks. Given current levels of ID theft you can be robbed of a lot more if you use electronic cash than if you don't...
9. Roy Corneloues
Dear DSM,
You comment is unfounded. The fact that you had to pay by credit card does not mean you have to pay interest.
The fact that you had must have had the money in your account to pay by Switch mean that you are more than able to pay your credit card bill before the due date and therefore avoid any interest charges.
However if you re looking for a cheap excuse to get compensation out of HSBC then go for it!!!
Roy
10. anonymous
I am in Scotland and my card was also affected.
Thanks
11. Ian
Attn Micheal Dixon - oh arent you the big important man !
Mistakes happen ! HSBC are a fab bank, and even though I was affected by the issue, I will be staying with them. The other banks are all worse !
12. Kim
Oh for goodness sake it was a small glitch, could have happened to any of the banks, and their customers would be moaning as well...my husband was ask before he paid which bank's card he would be using so he able to avoid the embarrassment felt by some...it happens, it's fixed, get over it and move on I'm sure you will find something else to moan about if you look for it.
Oh by the way imagine what would happened if for some reason no could take money out of their account...Ohhh how exciting for you all.
13. anonymous
Nicola -everyone does not have hundreds of credit cards, in fact some have none. Also, many people live from paycheck to paycheck, if that. You have made quite an ignorant statement. This 'glitch' could mean not eating for some.