shivanandshrivastava007
TF Buzz
Hello everyone, I need your opinion on something.
Back in December 2020, I needed a second bank account, so I opened a zero-balance Basic Savings Deposit Account with Standard Chartered Bank. The account opening process itself was stressful, but that’s a separate story. Within just a week, I started facing issues. I couldn’t reach the customer care because the phone numbers in the welcome kit and on their website were less than 10 digits. Every time I tried calling, the number was marked as invalid. Somehow, I managed to connect with them, but I kept running into other problems, especially with UPI services. So, I decided to close the account just two weeks after opening it. I went back to the branch and spoke to the same employee who had helped me open the account. He wasn’t happy with my decision and said it would affect his performance. I was clear that I wanted to close it, so he filled out a closure form for me, writing my name, account number, and the closure request, then asked me to sign it. I asked if I should put the date on the form, but he told me not to, saying he’d close it within a week so it wouldn’t hurt his record. I agreed, but just to be safe, I took a photo of the form as proof that I had submitted the request. I emptied the account and completely stopped using it. But to my surprise, the account was never closed. It’s now 2025, and it’s still active. Since submitting the closure request, I’ve only used it maybe 5–10 times for small online transactions. I didn’t raise another request because going to the branch again felt like a hassle, and their customer service was nearly impossible to reach. I did get a call sometime in 2023 or 2024 from the bank, saying my account had been inactive for a long time and that I should visit the branch to close it. I told the caller that I had already submitted a closure request back in 2020. She asked me to do it again, but I didn’t see why I should repeat the process when I had already done it once. Lately, I’ve come across stories of people receiving compensation from banks after filing complaints with the RBI for delays in processing closure requests. That made me wonder does my case qualify for compensation? I did everything I was supposed to, but the employee never acted on it. As proof, I still have the photo of the closure form. I also have a screenshot from Google Photos showing it was taken in December 2020.
Can anything be done in my case? If yes, what are the steps I should take to get compensation?
Back in December 2020, I needed a second bank account, so I opened a zero-balance Basic Savings Deposit Account with Standard Chartered Bank. The account opening process itself was stressful, but that’s a separate story. Within just a week, I started facing issues. I couldn’t reach the customer care because the phone numbers in the welcome kit and on their website were less than 10 digits. Every time I tried calling, the number was marked as invalid. Somehow, I managed to connect with them, but I kept running into other problems, especially with UPI services. So, I decided to close the account just two weeks after opening it. I went back to the branch and spoke to the same employee who had helped me open the account. He wasn’t happy with my decision and said it would affect his performance. I was clear that I wanted to close it, so he filled out a closure form for me, writing my name, account number, and the closure request, then asked me to sign it. I asked if I should put the date on the form, but he told me not to, saying he’d close it within a week so it wouldn’t hurt his record. I agreed, but just to be safe, I took a photo of the form as proof that I had submitted the request. I emptied the account and completely stopped using it. But to my surprise, the account was never closed. It’s now 2025, and it’s still active. Since submitting the closure request, I’ve only used it maybe 5–10 times for small online transactions. I didn’t raise another request because going to the branch again felt like a hassle, and their customer service was nearly impossible to reach. I did get a call sometime in 2023 or 2024 from the bank, saying my account had been inactive for a long time and that I should visit the branch to close it. I told the caller that I had already submitted a closure request back in 2020. She asked me to do it again, but I didn’t see why I should repeat the process when I had already done it once. Lately, I’ve come across stories of people receiving compensation from banks after filing complaints with the RBI for delays in processing closure requests. That made me wonder does my case qualify for compensation? I did everything I was supposed to, but the employee never acted on it. As proof, I still have the photo of the closure form. I also have a screenshot from Google Photos showing it was taken in December 2020.
Can anything be done in my case? If yes, what are the steps I should take to get compensation?
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