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ShareMeister
ShareMeister (@guest_893868)
January 30, 2020 17:24

Worst Banking Experience ever out of 34 + Accounts

Ask for more documents after opening account, lock your account and access until additional documents are sent

Even after sending additional documents did not unlock account. Hung up on by 2 separate reps in same day. Countless times total (All foreign terrible support)

No exaggeration, literally weeks of calling daily or every other day only to be treated like a criminal. Ask for all sorts of verification but will never give any details about any problems with account or what to do to solve.

Still in the middle of this nightmare and wanted to let others know the potential headache.

mike
mike (@guest_802966)
August 26, 2019 12:18

I am considering opening an HSBC premier acct with direct deposit and getting the bonus. There is no physical branch location within two hours from me. With all the angst and despair in this thread, what is the consensus view on using HSBC? Yea or Nay?

DP719
DP719 (@guest_809924)
September 13, 2019 22:35

Mike – I did the previous bonus deal of $350, which required $10k to be kept for three months, and can be parked in savings after checking is opened. It took about a month to get the checking account to finally open. By then, I got so sick of the process that I had no interest to open savings to earn the 2% interest. Kept my fingers crossed that the bonus would ultimately post and fortunately it did, about five months after the account was funded. Some posters say you can close the account before the supposedly six months but I don’t want to deal with it, and ‘happy’ to wait a few more weeks.

So, it’s a nay for me. If you go forward, be prepared and have patience.

Layne
Layne (@guest_795568)
August 8, 2019 13:59

This thread/article is from 2 years ago but I was still wary of the whole process because of all the issues people had experienced. But the $750 bonus was just too good for me to ignore so I soldiered on.

Commenters weren’t exaggerating when they said the online application is cumbersome. It’s definitely longer and more tedious than any other I’ve done. I applied for the Premier Checking account on a Friday and did have to wait over the weekend to do my deposit verification because the tiny deposit amounts didn’t show up in my funding account until Monday. Shortly after I completed the verification I got an email saying that my account had been approved. However there was no account number and I got no online access info. Hmmmm..

The approval email did say that the information I needed to register for online access (the Electronic Banking Number or EBN, and the 6-digit auth code) would be coming in two separate letters via snail mail in 5-7 business days. Afterfter a couple of days, I declared bullsh!t and called their customer service team. They went through A LOT of verification of my identity and then had to ask special permission from their “account access team” but were able to send both of these pieces of information (EBN, and auth code) to me electronically. One by email and the other by text.

When setting up my online access, I also needed to select a digital device for 2-step verification, where I needed more auth codes texted to me AND had to set up a separate password JUST FOR MY MOBILE DEVICE. Their security measures, while respectable, are SUPER ANNOYING.

Anyway, all this to say, yes the process is annoying and cumbersome (mostly related to their security measures) but overall I was able to apply on a Friday, get funded the next Monday and gain full online access and request checks by the next Thursday. Maybe the 2.5 years since this article was written has seen some streamlining of the process…crossing my fingers that setting up direct deposit and actually getting my $750 bonus goes smoothly. 🙂

mike
mike (@guest_802325)
August 23, 2019 18:28

Did all of you get the bonus?

Layne
Layne (@guest_802362)
August 23, 2019 21:35

I just filled the application out this month. I still need 3 consecutive mos of direct deposits before I qualify for the bonus…THEN in the fine print it says it can take up to 8 weeks to appear in your account. So ask me again in January. 🙂

Layne
Layne (@guest_854509)
December 7, 2019 11:08

I just got the bonus on Dec 5th. Just shy of 4 months after opening the account. Now I need to re-read the fine print and make sure I know when I can close the account without penalty! It was a nice bonus but WOW, HSBC is not a great bank.

Fred
Fred (@guest_854533)
December 7, 2019 12:32

Thanks for following up (too many people don’t). I had difficulty with an HSBC bonus probably 12 years ago. Unwilling to try again since.

AllwaysLearning22
AllwaysLearning22 (@guest_948654)
March 31, 2020 01:04

I opened an account online in December 2019 without any issues. Process is confusing, but compared to 3 years ago is much improved. Still have not completed requirement (April is the last month). Hoping the bonus will post in May.

lisa
lisa (@guest_747888)
April 12, 2019 19:17

Total nightmare!
Tried to log on after opening an account only to say my online access was suspended. At this point it was unclear whether i actually had managed to open an account or not as i’d received no confirmation or account number. However they had taken the money from my other bank. Received an email saying i had to call their fraud dept. 2 hours, yes 2 hours, 7 people & multiple ridiculous questions later i was assured everything was fine now.
The stupidest thing was they kept asking why i was calling them & they needed an account number!
My reply was i have no account number that i know of, i don’t know if the account was opened or not but you did take my money! I’m calling you because it says i have to & here is the email reference number your email BOLDLY states i MUST give you yet nobody there wants to take it!
Rep number 7 sorted everything in 5 mins, but why oh why did i have to go through 2 hrs & 6 people to get to him. Total nightmare, that bloody bonus had better show up, i had to work for it lol.

cvas
cvas (@guest_753078)
April 28, 2019 14:33

What was the reason they suspended the online access? Check deposit verification?

winjy
winjy (@guest_742251)
April 2, 2019 06:03

It took 21 days for my advance checking application to be approved. The initial review was started 10 business days later. They also asked me to call them for additional information.
They always tell me due to high volume of application, it is delayed.

Brandi
Brandi (@guest_691054)
December 14, 2018 13:28

I opened an account on a Friday, it seemed fairly easy, opened same day. Set up a deposit for the fee-free amount ($1,500). ACH was processed on a Wednesday. I checked today (the following Friday – two days after the ACH deposit). I was told the account was closed, and they can’t give me any further information. They will mail my money back to me in 7-10 days. WOW!

Parkerthon
Parkerthon (@guest_658059)
October 16, 2018 00:25

Thanks for this. I suspect this is because HSBC is UK based. My other experience dealing with a UK based financial institution, Barclays, has been similarly not consumer friendly. Not as much of a nightmare as this, but clearly they don’t seem to be anywhere close to what’s “normal” as far consumer conveniences whenever dealing with them. In any case, this doesn’t sound like it’s worth the time(and more importantly the aggravation) of chasing the bonus.

Natalia
Natalia (@guest_561149)
February 16, 2018 02:21

They refused to give a bonus to my husband on an excuse that even if he didn’t make 3K deposits three months out of first five. He opened an account at the end of July (July 27th), and they counted five months from July 1st (not from July 27th). As it takes longer than 3 days (usually 2 weeks) to redirect you payroll direct deposit. If five month had been counted from July 27th (as it is logical to do), my husband should have received his bonus. But with July 1 starting date, it is three months out of four. I am not sure what they want to achieve treating their customers like that. Especially that no one at the branch didn’t give any warning that 3 days of July are counted as a full month.

Romeo
Romeo (@guest_365766)
March 7, 2017 12:01

They finally opened my account (around Nov. 5) a month after I applied. I made at least two bill pays in Nov., Dec., Jan., and Feb.

During January, I started getting letters that they were going to close my account unless I called them. So, I called them and gave them the information they wanted. Then we did this dance a second time…a third time….and finally a fourth time. Each time they asked the exact same questions.

The last time I spoke to HSBC I mentioned that I wish I had a girlfriend that contacted me as much as they do. Then a couple of weeks later, a received a check for my balance (with the $350 bonus…yea!!).

So, umm…….I guess the data point here is to not get fresh with HSBC?? To steal my heart like that and then just toss me aside is so cruel.

Drew
Drew (@guest_555201)
January 29, 2018 12:07

Romeo, Romeo, oh wherefore art thy bank account bonus delayed Romeo??

Jeff H
Jeff H (@guest_365612)
March 7, 2017 02:32

My application date is November 1. I had similar delays as reported here.
I contacted HSBC on line chat for unrelated reasons.
Despite that, their rep looked into and verified that two Bill Pays done in late December, January and February qualified for the bonus. The chat rep indicated I should be paid no later than April 21, 2017.
I am still doing two or more bill pays plus some DDs each month to insure the process is not infected by Murphy.