Joseph left stranded in Spanish airport

Joseph, 29, from Derriaghy, was assured by his local branch of the Ulster Bank before he left that his salary would be in his account on Friday as there was a 24 hour backlog.

However, as the local man arrived in Spain expecting to access his account once he landed, Joseph was left without any money in his account, meaning he was unable to pay for the rental car he had ordered or travel the almost 100km to the villa he was due to stay in.

It was Monday afternoon before Joseph was able to get access to money when, eventually, his bank increased his credit card limit, allowing him to begin his holiday.

“I woke up for the first time in my destination on Tuesday morning and I leave on Thursday, so I have a two day holiday,” Joseph told the Star from the Costa Blanca.

Explaining what happened, Joseph stated: “This all started on Thursday June 21. I checked my bank to see if my wages had cleared because I was going to Spain the next morning. I phoned the local branch of my bank because my salary wasn’t in my account and was assured my salary would be there the next day because there was a 24 hour backlog. I thought okay, my money will be in tomorrow, so I arrived in Alicante in the early hours of the next morning and couldn’t get any money.

“I phoned my bank telling them my balance had not cleared and was told it would now be 48 hours because the system was not updating. I made them aware they were leaving me stranded with no money and no car. I asked them to increase my overdraft or increase the balance on my credit card, but they said they couldn’t do that.”

Joseph had pre-arranged a rental car and a villa in Torrevieja, which he was due to share with friends. However, he needed access to cash to pay for everything.

“I had a shared villa pre-booked but I had to pay cash for that and I couldn’t get in touch with my friend because he has a phone that doesn’t work in Spain,” said Joseph.

“I had 22 Euro on me, I was absolutely starving and had to ration my money. I had to wash in the airport; it was humiliating.

“It’s unbelievable, the worst thing that could happen. I was left on a seat, but I couldn’t get much sleep. It was uncomfortable and there were a lot of security. I had to carry my bag with me everywhere and keep going to a cafe to charge my phone, I will have run up a big bill phoning my bank.”

Joseph added: “I took the precaution of phoning my local branch and asking them ‘Will I be safe to travel?’ I was told I should be fine, but I was left completely stranded.”

On Tuesday, Joseph’s wage still wasn’t in his Ulster Bank account.

The problem followed a computer glitch across the RBS, which left people without wages, benefits and pensions.

Joseph was eventually able to get his bank to increase his credit card limit, allowing him to have access to money.

“By Monday I wasn’t taking no for an answer,” said Joseph. “I phoned the credit card line to ask for an increase to my limit and was told no, so I phoned my bank again and spoke to the complaints department and eventually they agreed to give me an increase - something they couldn’t do on Friday but could do on Monday.

“I’m now able to access cash but I don’t have very much money.”

Joseph added: “My bank asked me if a family member could get a Western Union transfer, but I have a small family and they couldn’t do it. I asked the bank if they could do a transfer instead but they said they couldn’t. The girl seemed genuinely sorry she couldn’t do anything.

“I have had a loan with the Ulster Bank, I have a current account and a savings account, I have credit cards, all of my financial resources are with the Ulster Bank. It’s unbelievable leaving a customer of years stranded in another country. I will be speaking with the bank manager when I return, I just don’t know what bank to trust. It takes years to make a reputation, but as we’ve seen, it takes minutes to break it.”

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