Why I Sued Diamond Bank -By Sesugh Akume

Months ago I was to do a transaction with the missus’ ATM card, for some inexplicable reason I misplaced and I’m sorry for that. That same day she applied that it be blocked and requested for a new one. Diamond Bank promptly deducted their fee and said it’d be ready in 3 working days. She called customer service to be sure that the transaction went through. She again emailed them to relay that she was told that by customer service on phone that the card will be ready in 3 working days. All she wanted was to be sure that it was the next Friday as she had been told. Diamond Bank promptly replied to her email that it was best to go on Monday to pick it up.

On Sunday she emailed them to confirm that the card was ready for pick up the next day Monday as earlier stated. That was the beginning of stories. We’re talking a simple ATM card that had been paid for. Why was she calling, sending emails and seeking confirmations over a simple matter like an ATM card? Once beaten, twice shy. Her experience with Diamond Bank hasn’t been pleasant at all. Today it’s the person handling that matter went on leave, tomorrow it’s one ‘kind’ staff who took the pains to sleep the matter out but this and that happened. Next tomorrow yet another story.

On this issue of a simple ATM card replacement, Diamond Bank’s stories never ended. She reminded them of the last incidence that occurred and how their service delivery failure costed her. All they did was to apologise profusely, and admit culpability. I wondered, Why apologise and retain the status quo? Why not give the lady her ATM card and then apologise? She got fed up and let the matter be. I caused the whole matter, so months later having gotten fed up waiting I got our lawyer to write Diamond Bank. It’s actually fraud to be paid for a service and not render it. It warned about an impending suit if the matter wasn’t resolved. This must have been 5 months later.

Next some rude, impudent Diamond staff from the pick up branch called her to ask if she was aware that her ATM card had been at the branch? ‘Really, since when?’ she asked. ‘For a while now’ was the answer. The question was how long precisely is ‘a while’? And was there any email or SMS notifying her that her ATM card was ready? No answer. The arrogant, unprofessional Diamond Bank didn’t reply to the lawyers’ letter to them either. So in Diamond Bank’s mind, you woefully fail at a service and further to treat customers with contempt. You deign it to email or reply to correspondence. Some insignificant, inconsequential low-level staff calls out of the blue to say there hasn’t been any issue at all. In fact it’s your fault that you didn’t come all along, as the matter had been resolved a long time. What is expected is for Diamond Bank’s loyal subjects is to sheepishly put a tail between their legs, go pick up the ATM card that was to be ready in 3 days which took 5 months after a lawyer’s intervention, only to wait for the next time to be treated poorly and with impunity and contempt?

Like I said, I caused it and would have to fix it. Our attorneys filed at the court claiming modest general damages, specific damages, and of course Diamond Bank will have to pay for the cost of the litigation. The matter comes up tomorrow in court. Now Diamond Bank are all of a sudden so nice. They can call 10 times a day promising heaven and earth, how the ATM card is ready and will be sent across for pick up at no extra cost. Are you kidding me, no extra cost to who? And how is this a favour? Wasn’t all of that paid for already? These people never learn. It appears they simply don’t get it. And they have guts too. Another caller from Diamond Bank asked wifey to ‘forget everything’. That’s, all the months of stress, inconvenience, merry-go-round all simply forgotten, just like that! so that same or worse would happen next time, seeing as it happened before and they learnt absolutely no lessons.

Not a problem. My job is to drive wifey to the court whenever it’s sitting and back. The ATM card we’ll get. I believe that should no longer be a problem if what Diamond Bank says is anything to go by. It’s this culture of mediocrity, unprofessionalism, service delivery failure, lack of empathy, and the impunity that makes just everyone — from the public to the private sector — feel that they can treat people like trash and nothing will happen, that needs to be addressed. We can’t continue being a society of no consequences.