The Frustrations of Unicaja

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Trooperman
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The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby Trooperman » Tue Aug 29, 2017 2:23 pm

:problem:
The background to this rant/complaint/question is that I recently moved home and downsized in a different village and moved from one Unicaja branch to another Unicaja one, with, as it happens, a substantial positive balance - the sort of thing you do as you get older and have to plan and manage resources. You'd think a healthy account would account for something...wouldn't you? :think:

I encountered a negative attitude when first I went into the bank to pay a water bill (from the town hall) ON THE WRONG DAY!! (shock horror) and, with a bank empty of customers, was told that such bills would only be dealt with on certain days and within one hour on each of the 3 designated days every and any week. Fortunately, the manager heard me telling the cashier that, basically I was "here today and want to pay this bill today", stepped in and processed it himself in his office.

Fast forward to this morning (one of the appointed days for bill paying albeit that I was an hour late!!!) when I went in with two utility bills - one in my name (for the basura) and one in the name of the previous owner of my new house for the IBI. The latter bill I got from the previous owner's relative who lives nearby. Much consternation ensued and Miss Dozy behind the counter had to summon Mrs.High and Mighty, (the previous refuser of service when I went before ON THE WRONG DAY) to ask why, for some reason, the computer was saying "No".

Mr.Pompous, the manager, was then summoned and probably thought "here we go again" when he saw it was me......again. After much screen reading, typing and phone calls with all three - Dozy, High and Mighty and Pompous - now on the case and a bank slowly filling with unattended customers, I was told that I had to give them a tarjeta from the UK that had seguridad social details on it. Mr.Pompous then flourished his own DNI and said "like this but from your own country". I then countered with my own Spanish NIE (the old one that we used to get issued with way back in 2002 and long since expired) but that, of course, didn't meet his requirement. I tried to explain that in the UK we did not have tarjetas such as he described, solely passports that, unfortunately, I had omitted to bring with me - silly boy that I was. But, "No" it was the tarjeta he needed and he then showed me his mobile phone that had some sort of message on it, in English, presumably from his bank's web site that, I thought, said that from April, confirmation was needed of (something) fiscal from my own country.

I'd had enough by this stage and in my (probably execrable) but best Spanish told him there were always problems when I came to "his" bank and that it was unacceptable and that I would probably close the account. (That was bluff and bluster from me but what else can you do?) :evil:

When I got home, I used the Unicaja web site to pay, without incident, the one basura bill that was in my name. (Duh?) It will not allow me, of course, to pay the other IBI bill which is in the name of the previous owner and I'll have to go with his relative and some cash into their bank to do that one!

Does anyone else have such problems? Does anyone know to what April rule/law he was referring? It is me? Or am I missing something?
nil illegitimum carborundum

maureenscot
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby maureenscot » Tue Aug 29, 2017 3:49 pm

Wow! That's horrendous

TorreDelAguila
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby TorreDelAguila » Tue Aug 29, 2017 5:29 pm

I fomd that Unicaja as a bank organisation is pretty efficient.
When it comes to individual branches, though, it can be a different story.
We have accounts at two: excellemt.
Opened a third, another branch: ceased using it within two weeks. Staff lazy, rude, unhelpful - manager ditto.
Chris

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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby TorreDelAguila » Tue Aug 29, 2017 5:29 pm

I found that Unicaja as a bank organisation is pretty efficient.
When it comes to individual branches, though, it can be a different story.
We have accounts at two: excellemt.
Opened a third, another branch: ceased using it within two weeks. Staff lazy, rude, unhelpful - manager ditto.
Chris

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jamesbowker
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby jamesbowker » Tue Aug 29, 2017 5:35 pm

Wow that does sound frustrating. My bank is Caja Rural de Granada and I haven't been subjected to any such additional information requests but am aware (from this and other forums) that some banks are asking for proof of source of income etc. Given the IBI bill issue as well it may, if the situation cannot easily be resolved, be worthwhile employing the services of a recommended Gestor. Of course in my experiences with the Town Hall and Spanish Admin in general it often depends on luck of the draw whom deals with your query at the time. A different day and you may well get a different, more helpful, response. Are you far from another Unicaja office - you should be able to get such bills paid in any branch I would have thought? Good luck, hope you get it sorted. I'm sure you are anyway but I've got everything set up to be paid by direct debit now to keep trips to the bank, and the town hall, to a minimum!

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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby wollie » Tue Aug 29, 2017 6:48 pm

First of all it is not the done thing in Spain to pay a bill in the name of another person, i did this on the advise of another person. The end result was the bill for €250 was re-issued in my name and i had to pay again. The person who's name i paid it in can claim it back by presenting passport plus the proof of payment which i have and a bank account to return the money to, this person is long gone so there no point in fallowing up.
The way the banks operate everywhere is they want to lead people to do it as they want to do it, i had a similar experience as the bank only takes utility bills on Tue/Thur 8.30 to 10.30 and i was 5 mins late so i got the same treatment as you.
I now go on the given day/time, i must be the only ex-pat with a house in Spain who doesn't have a bank account.
My advise is play the game on their terms as regards day/time, if you really want to annoy this guy arrive with cash with a big smile.

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Wicksey
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby Wicksey » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:09 am

When we banked with Lloyds here as it was not one of the clearing banks for paying bills I used to have to go to another to pay (before a direct debit was set up for everything). I used to go from bank to bank until someone accepted payment outside of the one hour a week designated for bill payment!

One thing I did used to be told was if I had a bank account with them I could have paid at any time, and it was like that at Sabadell before I set up direct debits for everything, I could go in and pay whenever I liked. Isn't there another local bank you can change to?

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gerryh
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby gerryh » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:15 am

I'm also with Sabadell.
I can go in there any time they are open and pay a bill. No time restrictions and no hassle.
Cheers
Gerry
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby masterob » Thu Aug 31, 2017 11:27 am

I thought the day restriction only applies if you use a bank other than your own? I banked with CajaSur and, like Gerry, could pay any bill on any day/time they were open.

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Trooperman
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby Trooperman » Thu Aug 31, 2017 12:15 pm

I thought the day restriction only applies if you use a bank other than your own?
Not so here! The rules of Mrs.High and Mighty and Mr. Pompous are what counts in THIS Unicaja :lolno:
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scs3jb
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby scs3jb » Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:14 pm

Interesting thread, I paid last year's IBI which did not have my name on it at UniCaja (they are not even my bank!). I paid an IBI on behalf of the previous owner in the unicaja in Malaga centre and it was literally hand over the form, give him the cash, get the stamped receipts back and my change and I was off on my merry way.

They didn't ask for any form of ID as I was paying a bill and it isn't necessary.

Did you go in with the printed invoice from https://sede.malaga.eu/ with the bar code to be scanned? That has all the information they need on it. If you get the form from the Gestrisam office it plops directly into the machine they have.

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Trooperman
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby Trooperman » Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:32 pm

As I think further and as I recall how I managed to pay the one bill that was in my name after the bank visit by using my own computer at home and using my online Unicaja account, I'm wondering if, when I went to the bank, they merely accessed the same Unicaja web page that I accessed (which shows all and any Patronato Recaudacion Malaga bills in my name) and (obviously) couldn't find the bill for my IBI which is still in the name of the previous owner and thus "couldn't" pay it in the way I was asking.

At that stage, the manager and his hopeless, dim, staff could have taken the cash from me (which I offered as it's "only" a couple of hundred euros) - as mentioned above in the previous post - and stamped it and given the receipted bill back to me....simples?

Anyway, I've now arranged for the previous owner's relative, who passed the IBI bill on to me, to come with me to their bank - same Unicaja branch as it happens - and I will pay cash with them in tow, so to speak. Surely they can't reject that?

Seems that lateral thinking ain't allowed/encouraged......Computer says "No".........
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Re: The Frustrations of Unicaja

Postby oliveview01 » Sun Oct 01, 2017 1:36 pm

We used to bank with Unicaja but decided to transfer to BBVA when they offered free banking, which at the time Unicaja did not.
We had paid the quarterly charges the previous week to Unicaja for the pleasure of our account always being in credit. We asked to withdraw the final amount, about 14€ the cashier then handed me about 6€ said the rest was a charge for closing the account. I stuck to my guns, got all my money after she spoke to the manager.
Up until then the manager always spoke in the street, he then ignored us! :lolno:


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