INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightGetty ImagesA computer failure at TSB that caused up to 1.9 million people to lose access to online banking services is being
investigated by the financial regulator.The introduction of a new IT system in April left customers struggling to make transactions and see
their balances.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said the bank's boss, Paul Pester, had given an "optimistic view" of services.He is due
to appear before MPs for a second time on the crisis later.FCA chief executive Andrew Bailey said: "We do not normally make this information
[the investigation] public, but, given the level of public interest, I want to be clear that we will be conducting this work." The FCA has
powers to impose unlimited fines.He added that the bank's poor communication may have hit customers' trust in banking.Some TSB customers are
still facing problems with services after its five million customers were moved to a system run by its Spanish owner Sabadell six weeks
ago.In the midst of the crisis, Mr Pester told MPs on the Treasury Committee that most TSB customers could carry out transactions as
normal.In a letter to the committee, the FCA's Mr Bailey said that view was optimistic and too positive."Greater caution would have made
sense," he wrote, adding that Mr Pester should have shared more details about the problems with MPs on the committee.The customers
themselves were told by the bank that the vast majority of them could use their online accounts, when only half could do so.Mr Bailey wrote:
"The FCA has been dissatisfied with TSB's communications with its customers and we have had concerns that TSB was not being open and
transparent about the issues experienced."Image copyrightBen AlfordImage caption
Ben Alford and Francesca Cuff pictured
in Barbados shortly after they got engaged
One TSB customer told TheIndianSubcontinent Radio 4's You and Yours last month
that he watched thousands of pounds in wedding savings being stolen from his internet account as he waited on hold for the bank's fraud
department.Ben Alford, from Weymouth in Dorset, said it took more than four hours to get through to TSB, by which time most of the money had
TSB said it had put in "additional resources" to support customers.Lorna Connolly, formerly Lorna McHale, told the TheIndianSubcontinent how
she was unable to access her account days before her wedding day.The 26-year-old said she had to "ring to grovel" with suppliers for the
told the TheIndianSubcontinent's Today programme that his organisation was still getting about one complaint an hour from disgruntled TSB
customers.He called on the FCA to make the compensation rules much clearer because TSB's "communication with customers has been
atrocious".Nor was TSB alone, he added
Banking IT systems were "creaking", and the TSB failure "doesn't seem to be an "isolated incident".When TSB split from the Lloyds Banking
Group, it continued to use its computer system while a new one was developed
When it was ready, TSB moved customers' data from the Lloyds platform to its own
This was a long-planned disruption to the service
The bank said it informed customers of the change, and that it would lead to them being unable to use online banking or payment systems that
weekend.That led to two problems
First, many customers said they were unaware of the changes and so were caught out
Second, customers experienced difficulties long after the deadline that TSB had promised things would be fixed
Media captionTSB chief executive Paul Pester during his last appearance before MPsMany services have improved, but the situation remains
unstable, with 40% of those trying to call the bank unable to speak to someone, while waiting times have run to more than 30 minutes.Fraud
has become a problem, with confused customers being tricked into allowing access to their accounts
Yet the FCA said that TSB had failed to refund their money quickly enough.The FCA has had its own team embedded with TSB since the crisis
unfolded, with as many as 14 supervisors from the regulator and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) deployed
millions of customers unable to access accounts
That investigation, carried out jointly with the PRA, took 18 months.Nicky Morgan, who chairs the Treasury Committee, said she was "deeply
concerned by TSB's poor communications about the scale and nature of the problems it has faced, by its response to customer fraud, and by
the quality and accuracy of the oral and written evidence provided by Mr Pester to the committee"
The committee will question senior members of the FCA and TSB bosses on Wednesday afternoon.A TSB spokesperson said it was "doing whatever
it takes to put things right for our customers and ensuring that no customer will be left out of pocket as a result of the recent IT issues"
Are you a TSB customer still affected by these banking problems Email haveyoursay@TheIndianSubcontinent.co.uk with your stories.Please
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