SHOCKED customers were left fuming after their bank account was suddenly closed by Barclays with no explanation.
Ogmore Valley Male Voice Choir were stunned to discover their account with the major bank was closed with immediate effect and feared their power would be cut off.
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The community organisation puts on free concerts for locals in Ogmore, South Wales, and raises money for local charities.
And the choir had banked with Barclays with no issues for 40 years until the chairman was notified in October that three accounts had been closed.
Barclays was unable to give him any explanation as to why it had been closed.
The choir’s chairman, Peter Morgan told This is Money: “We have no idea why Barclays bank has closed our accounts after having been regular customers for so long.
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“They have left us in limbo and it has put ourselves and I’m sure many others in a difficult position.
“We don’t borrow and we have always been in credit – so why has it suddenly been closed?”
The choir has its own premises and has standing orders for energy and insurance which regularly come out of the account – leaving them worried that their supply will be cut off.
The move came as a huge shock to many of the 45 choristers who pay their contributions by standing order.
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But Barclays informed the choir that these would not be honoured.
Mr Morgan continued: “We are worried that our energy is going to be cut off because we don’t have access to our account to pay the bills.
“Our treasurer has spoken to Barclays, and they say that they are going to open new accounts for us, but it will be another seven days before that happens.
“We have probably close to £30,000 in the accounts which we use to keep this building of ours going, and they say they can’t just transfer it over. It has to be a completely new account.
“We think because we are a charity and we don’t pay fees, this could be part of the reason that they have suddenly closed us down.”
However, Barclays has since confirmed that the choir’s account will be reopened and the other accounts will no longer face restrictions or be under threat of being shut.
A Barclays spokesman says: “As part of our ongoing responsibility to help prevent financial crime, and to meet our regulatory obligations, we are required to keep up to date information regarding our customers’ business accounts and this includes community groups.
“We engage with our customers through a series of communications including by post, banners on our digitally active customers’ online and mobile banking as well as reminder SMS text messages and emails asking them to provide us with important information relating to their business account.
“These communications do include warnings of account closure. In cases where we do not receive a response with up-to-date account information, we will proceed with the application of card blocks and account restrictions, followed by warnings of possible final closure arrangements if issues remain unresolved.”
What are your rights?
In July, it was revealed that lenders will have to give account holder three months notice before shutting their account under new plans, the Treasury has confirmed.
They will also have to explain and delay any decision to close an account under new rules designed to protect freedom of expression.
Banks will be forced to be more clear in their reasoning and up front when making those kinds of decisions.
A bank is obligated to return your money should your account be closed, though it’ll probably easier to make any transfers before the deadline.
If you are concerned your bank is being unfairly closed, speak to Barclays or whichever institution you bank with.
When can a bank shut down your account?
There will still be a few reasons why banks can shut down accounts, such as criminal activity and national security concerns, according to the reports.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) say the recent changes will not take away a banking firm’s right to close accounts of people deemed to be a reputational or political risk.
As it stands, the banks should allow a customer 30 days to make alternative banking arrangements before axing their account.
Lenders will suspend accounts if they detect any “suspicious activity”, which might include sending or receiving large amounts of unexplained money.
It covers any transactions that don’t fit with the users typical spending pattern.
If a bank suspects a customer has been victim of a fraud – where large sums of money are sent – it will close the account.
Earlier this year one woman was left in tears when her bank locked her out of her account for weeks after receiving a large amount of money from a family member.
Last September, a single mum-of-four was left unable buy food for her kids after her bank account was suddenly blocked with no explanation.
And a few years ago, a man’s bank account was shut with no warning and he went through “absolute hell” rearranging his Universal Credit payments.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
