HSBC

HSBC = EVIL SPAWNS OF SATAN!

I've only been in the UK for a little over a month but that's enough time to convince me that HSBC has horrible customer service.  Our relationship started out quite well. On the day after we arrived in London, we walked into the bank and opened an account with no problem. But then it all went downhill from there.

I was supposed to receive my debit card, credit card, checkbook and pay-in slips within 5-7 days.  About 3 days later we received our checkbook and pay-in slips. Great. Then nothing.  So about 10 days go by and I go to the bank to complain. Turns out they had sent our cards to our US address (we still own that house but are renting it out).  They promised to send new cards to my London address. The only bright spot: they paid me 20 quid for my troubles.

Another week goes by and I'm told the card is ready for pick up...at a bank branch far from my flat. I go anyway and pick up the cards. But my wife's cards were AGAIN SENT TO THE US!  This time, the bank deleted all records of our US address so it wouldn't happen again.  So they again issue new cards to my wife.  in the meantime, I received a PIN for my debit card but not my credit card. As of today, I still have not received a credit card pin.  And to boot, I cannot get my debit card to work for Internet purchases.

Last week, we get another letter from the bank. My wife's cards are ready for pickup...AT AN HSBC BRANCH ABOUT TWO HOURS NORTH OF LONDON!!!  I forgot the name of the town, but even my local bank manager had never heard of the place.  He calls the bank and gets the cards sent directly to our local branch.  As of today, my wife has received the PIN number sfor both cards, but still no cards.

Keep in mind also that every trip I've made to the bank took at least an hour. It took nearly 3 hours just to open the account on our first visit whilst they asked overly-person questions like our moms' maiden names, etc.  The attendants are just down-right rude. Nobody ever seems to know what the other person is doing. Turns out the original lady who opened my account has since left the company (hopefully fired) so the could not quiz her about this situation.

And by the way, I paid the extra fee for the Premiere Plus account. So much for premier service. I'd hate to see what the regular service is like!

P.S. HSBC clerks have awful uniforms. Whoever designed those hideous pink checkered shirts and ties ought to be strung up by their own necktie.

That totally stinks. I've called a few times, and went in and have had really good serivce. *shrugs* I suppose I;ll find out when I go to upgrade.
As for the uniforms, I can't even remember what they look like. 

And by the way, I paid the extra fee for the Premiere Plus account. So much for premier service. I'd hate to see what the regular service is like!

It seems upgrading your account is the problem.  I have a regular account and have had no issues at all. 

HSBC = EVIL SPAWNS OF SATAN!

 they asked overly-person questions like our moms' maiden names, etc. 

Sorry to hear you have had such an awful time (all banks are shite, including the one i work for!)... however,  asking for your mother's maiden name shouldnt be considered overly personal. 
It's a standard question that probably all banks and credit card companies will ask, because they use it as a security/ identity verification question.  Like if you phone up with a query about your account, they will ask for your mother's maiden name and usually some other question,  before they discuss your account.