KUALA LUMPUR – A paralysed and sickly woman had to be taken by ambulance to a bank in Gurun, Kedah to renew her almost-expired ATM card.
This major inconvenience was due to the bank’s refusal to help ease the card renewal process, alleged the woman’s daughter known as Nur Hatini.
She shared the ordeal in a TikTok video, which so far garnered 1.1 million views, more than 48,000 likes and 5,000 comments.
Nur Hatini claimed that she tried to contact the bank to ask for an easier way to renew the ATM card, without her mother having to go to the bank.
However, she was told that her mother had to be physically there at the bank outlet, and because of that, the family had to pay for ambulance services.
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This did not sit well with most commenters and a consumer advocate as they condemned the bank for being inflexible.
Malaysia Consumer Movement secretary Sukhdave Singh urges banks to show more concern for their sickly customers.
“There is no point in publicising their corporate social responsibility work when they cannot accommodate their customers.
“The bank could have asked for proof from the family about the woman’s health and sent an officer to her house to sort it out,” he told Getaran, The Vibes’s Bahasa Malaysia news portal.
He also urged Bank Negara Malaysia to draw up guidelines on banking services for sick customers.
Other commenters seemed to agree, especially for the bank involved to be more proactive.
“It’s already 2022, there must be a better way for those who are terribly ill to attend to their banking affairs,” said a user known as Ibrahim Baim.
“Why can’t the bank send an officer to the house?” asked user Pandadada.
Some commenters even suggested that the family closes the account to teach the bank a lesson.
There were those who shared their experiences where other banks would be accommodating.
“I only had to drive my dad to the car park outside a bank outlet. An officer came out to help us renew my dad’s ATM card,” said a user named KakMunah1979.
User Faizal_Sidam said when his mother-in-law was bedridden, a bank officer showed up at her house to help sort out her banking issues. – The Vibes, September 3, 2022
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