‘My mother died and Barclays won’t let me clear her debts’

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Dear Katie,

My mother died in September last year, leaving me devastated. I had to sort out her affairs so, after a few days, I informed her bank, Barc­lays. I was given a “bereavement” number to let staff members dealing with me know I had just lost someone close to me.

I sent Barclays my mother’s death certificate at the end of September and it was returned to me in early October. All seemed to be going smoothly.

But in mid-October I received a ­letter from Barclays stating that there was on “overall debit balance (excluding mortgages) with a total to pay back of £5,379”.

I duly paid this amount by bank transfer and thought no more of it.

Then, in mid-December, I received a strange telephone call from a company called Phillips & Cohen Associates. I was shocked when it said it was acting for Barclaycard, which had informed it that the debt on the Barclaycard was still unpaid and now overdue.

I also received a letter stating that my mother’s mortgage was in arrears and warning that her home could be repossessed if the repayments were not kept up. However, I have struggled to get Barclays to tell me how much is still owed on it because I have not yet obtained probate. But I can’t apply for probate until I have a full picture of all of the assets and liabilities.

I contacted Barclays’ bereavement team to ask it to stop sending me the letters, which I found deeply distressing. I was told it was a matter for the “arrears” department. When I eventually got through to this team, it said that there was nothing it could do as my name was not “specially listed” as the executor on the account and that I should speak to the bereavement team. So I’m just going round in circles.

I raised a formal complaint over the handling of these issues and was told someone would be in touch within 48 hours. No one phoned.

I called Barclays again and was told that it could be up to 40 days before someone was assigned to deal with my case.

My mother dying has been extremely upsetting, but having to deal with this level of incompetence from Barclays on top is just too much. I just want it to reassure me that the outstanding debt (aside from the mortgage) has been cleared and that the mortgage has been frozen until I can sell my mother’s house and repay what is owed.

– SB, via email

Dear reader,

I was very sorry to hear about the loss of your mother and the terrible treatment you subsequently received from Barclays over her financial affairs. After you were given a bereavement number you expected to be handled with sensitivity and compassion, but unfortunately the assignment of this number only set you up for disappointment when you received such dire service.

I got in touch with Barc­lays and it said that, because of a human error on its part, the payment you had made to clear your mother’s Barc­laycard debt had not been applied. However, following my involvement, this has now been rectified. The debt collection agency, Phillips & Cohen, has also been informed of this, so it should not be contacting you again.

Regarding the mortgage, Barclays has now provided you with the details you needed to proceed with obtaining probate. It has also vowed to support you in changing the name on the deed or issuing a redemption statement. So you no longer need to worry about this issue either.

A Barclays spokesman said: “Unfortunately, on this occasion we failed to provide the high level of service that our customers can rightly expect to receive, for which we sincerely apologise. We can confirm that the payments have now been applied to the outstanding credit card balance and we have provided the details needed for our customer to proceed in obtaining probate, after which we can support her further.”

Your case was wrapped up just before Christmas, which came as a huge relief, as it had been hanging over you.

I know this festive period, the first without your dear mother, can’t have been an easy time. But I hope the conclusion of this complaint lifted a weight from your mind so you could enjoy some precious time with loved ones, and hopefully a bit of peace and quiet. I wish you all the best.