Smile bundled accounts

[alisindebt]

Hi

 

I am with Smile Bank and have a bundled account with them: that is to say I pay a monthly fee and get various "benefits".

 

One of them is for an airport lounge pass. You get a small number of free passes each year and can pay a small fee to take a guest in with you.

 

I recently found out that if your information changes, for example, your credit card expires and you are issued with a new one, of course with a new expiry date, or if you change address, this is not notified by Smile to the company offering the lounge service, called Priority Pass".

 

If the bundled account is with the bank, albeit it supplied by various external companies for the different services in the bundled account, are Smile not supposed to supply them with information about updates? For example, Smile know when they have issued a new card, and they are also aware of address changes.

 

Or is this a sneaky way of making more money by not honoring bundled services?

[Ford]

seems they should do.

is that what you found in the a/c terms, what do the terms say.

packaged accounts have recently been found to have been missold (yet another banking missell).

was yours missold? if you were thinking of that?

[filrobbo]

If you think it's been mis sold you can claim back all charges

[dx100uk]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2547073/Backlash-rip-fee-paying-bank-accounts-Thousands-customers-complain-claims-widely-mis-sold.html

[alisindebt]

Thanks dx100UK for the Daily Mail article: actually, I had not noticed it before.

 

An airport lounge pass is OK, I fly quite a lot, but I feel that I have been cheated.

 

The bank gives the package as part of my current account, but does not tell the vendor, "Priority Pass", any changes that I have notified the bank with, such a new address; nor do they tell them when a new credit card is issued, with, of course, a new expiry date.

 

I smell a rat here.

 

I think that the system is rigged so that I cannot male a claim, that is to say that my "Priority Pass" card would be invalid if I, NOT THE BANK, did not notify them of these changes. But my contract is with the bank, surely?

 

Otherwise, the bank would have to say, your monthly fee for the packaged account is dependent upon your (i.e. me, the customer) doing all the admin. work, not the bank

[Ford]

so, are you accepting the account re the lounge pass, or do you think it was missold?

[alisindebt]

The Smile website says. for my "Smilemore Account" (this is the Smile current account with the paid monthly package): Airport Lounge Passes

Four airport lounge passes per year, per account, for the account holder(s) only to enjoy. If you wish to take guests with you, additional passes can be purchased at £15 per person, per visit. (Subject to terms and conditions)

Registration to activate the policy is required. You can do this online at co-operativebank.co.uk/benefits or by calling 0845 602 5783.

 

I am looking for the terms and conditions, but it clearly says registration is with the Co_op bank (the owner of Smile Bank).

 

It does not clearly state that any changes in address or the issuing of a new credit card (by Smile) have to be notified to "Priority Pass".

[alisindebt]

Well, it was missold if they didn't explicitly tell me that I had to notify a third party of changes that the bank already know about. The bank issues the new credit card from time to time, so why is it my responsibility to tell their 3rd party vendor, " Priority Pass"? That was not explicit in the advertising blurb that I posted above. It was not mentioned. It said quite impliclty, if you get the Smilemore Account, which I did, then these were the benefits.

[Ford]

ok, then go for the missell. there is a sticky/newsletter item on it i think on cag. see that to start.

[alisindebt]

Got'em!

 

This is the relevant term and condition of "Priority Pass":

 

15.In the event of the cardholder cancelling

or not renewing their (i) Priority Pass

membership or (ii) payment card with the

card issuer, the Priority Pass card shall

be invalid effective from the cancellation

date of their (i) Priority Pass membership

or (ii) payment card. Any lounge visits

made by a cardholder using an invalid

card, including any guests, shall be

charged to the cardholder.

 

The specific term is here: In the event of the cardholder cancelling

or not renewing their (i) Priority Pass

membership or (ii) payment card

 

The credit card was renewed by Smile; all credit and debit cards have expiry dates and are renewed automatically by banks. So Smile did not tell "Priority Pass" about the new card.

 

This is a real [problem], since it means that if I turned up at an airport lounge, I would be refused access because they did not have an up to date payment card, even though for a single traveler it is free, it would show up as an unauthorized account.

 

Consequently, Smile bank sell a packaged policy, include benefits such as free airport lounge passes, then put in a trap that means that when you get to the airport you are declined entry to the lounge.

 

In simple terms, Smile sells the package for a monthly fee, then the so-called benefits are not applicable. Nice cosy little earner for Smile in cahoots with Priority Pass.

 

They've been rumbled.