How could NatWest lose all my tenant's rent money?

He had proof he paid in his cheque but the bank couldn't find it
    • The Observer,
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My tenant paid £795 rent by cheque into my NatWest account in October. NatWest insists it has no record of this, despite the fact the tenant has a correctly completed paying-in slip.

My tenant has complained to his bank, the Halifax, but received no response, so we referred it to the ombudsman but were told it may take five months – by then my tenant will have moved out. JF, London

Initially, NatWest tells me it resolved your complaint in December. By "resolved" it means it apologised for the fact that your 10 attempts to contact the branch where it was paid in were ignored, confirmed it had no idea what had happened to the cheque and offered you £30.

So I ring the Halifax, it contacts NatWest and, lo and behold, it discovers it was paid into another customer's account. The amount has been refunded. As for NatWest, it went quiet when I asked about its spectacular incompetence.


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