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I want to get a couple of business credit cards for a couple of my employees. Nothing extravagant, just a £1,000 limit each so they can easily buy essential stuff for the office / business without having to refer to me all the time.
I've banked with HSBC since I founded the business 10 years ago. Their business credit card Ts & Cs are OK, their fees are OK, so I decided to get some cards with them. I like keeping things simple.
I logged on to my HSBC account and started the online card application process, but it seemed to insist that the 'primary' cardholder had to be me. However I don't want / need one. You can add additional cardholders later in the process, it said. OK I thought, start the application with me as the primary cardholder, add my other two employees, and then delete me. Will that work? No.
So I decided to call them instead and do it by phone. Sure, they said, can do. The process takes about 45 to 60 minutes, can you spare that amount of time? Really? 45 to 60 minutes? Yes, they said, we have to conduct a review of how you run the business, and then we have to go through credit scoring exercises for both the business and for you personally as the sole director. You can probably guess how I felt about this. I mean, why do they need to review how I run the business? They've had my account for 10 years, they can see that my turnover is close to being 7 digits, they can see that my account balance is usually in 6 digits. They can see that I'm not a risk. How hard is it to say yes to a £2,000 credit limit?
Well, the lady helpfully suggested, you could do it online. Just get a third card for yourself as well as the two you want, don't use it, and cancel it before the fees are due at the end of the first year. It won't cost you anything and you can still keep the two cards you do want.
OK. Back online, and ... "You are not eligible for a commercial credit card. Please call us...."
Back on the phone. Oh, that's odd, I don't know why the website would have done that sir, it's obviously a mistake, but I'm afraid we cant over-ride it. You could apply by phone though. No, I don't want to, it's far too slow and tedious. Actually sir, it doesn't really make much difference. The online application captures the basic information from you, but then it asks you to call us so we can run through the business review and the credit scoring exercises, and it ends up taking the same amount of time in total. Oh good grief. Still, I'm here now, so let's get it done.
Transferred to the "lending team" ... on-hold music ... more on-hold music - which really is unspeakably awful, by the way, it sounds like it was played by non-musicians on de-tuned instruments, recorded and then played back on a £2.99 transistor radio at the bottom of a well - more on-hold music .... Sorry sir, our lending team seem to all be busy right now. Would you like me to schedule a call back when they are free? Yes, I guess so, but when would it be? Only I have stuff to do between 12 and 2 today. Oh it probably won't be today, sir. They are very busy. They will try to call you back within 5 working days though.....
HSBC made $17 billion profit last year. Yet in order to apply for a credit card with a limit which is less than 2% of the cash I have in the bank, and considerably less than the amount of income I get in a single day at this time of year, I have to wait potentially a week for somebody to call me back, and then I face a 45-60 minute grilling.
Time to look for a different bank, I think.
</rant>
I've banked with HSBC since I founded the business 10 years ago. Their business credit card Ts & Cs are OK, their fees are OK, so I decided to get some cards with them. I like keeping things simple.
I logged on to my HSBC account and started the online card application process, but it seemed to insist that the 'primary' cardholder had to be me. However I don't want / need one. You can add additional cardholders later in the process, it said. OK I thought, start the application with me as the primary cardholder, add my other two employees, and then delete me. Will that work? No.
So I decided to call them instead and do it by phone. Sure, they said, can do. The process takes about 45 to 60 minutes, can you spare that amount of time? Really? 45 to 60 minutes? Yes, they said, we have to conduct a review of how you run the business, and then we have to go through credit scoring exercises for both the business and for you personally as the sole director. You can probably guess how I felt about this. I mean, why do they need to review how I run the business? They've had my account for 10 years, they can see that my turnover is close to being 7 digits, they can see that my account balance is usually in 6 digits. They can see that I'm not a risk. How hard is it to say yes to a £2,000 credit limit?
Well, the lady helpfully suggested, you could do it online. Just get a third card for yourself as well as the two you want, don't use it, and cancel it before the fees are due at the end of the first year. It won't cost you anything and you can still keep the two cards you do want.
OK. Back online, and ... "You are not eligible for a commercial credit card. Please call us...."
Back on the phone. Oh, that's odd, I don't know why the website would have done that sir, it's obviously a mistake, but I'm afraid we cant over-ride it. You could apply by phone though. No, I don't want to, it's far too slow and tedious. Actually sir, it doesn't really make much difference. The online application captures the basic information from you, but then it asks you to call us so we can run through the business review and the credit scoring exercises, and it ends up taking the same amount of time in total. Oh good grief. Still, I'm here now, so let's get it done.
Transferred to the "lending team" ... on-hold music ... more on-hold music - which really is unspeakably awful, by the way, it sounds like it was played by non-musicians on de-tuned instruments, recorded and then played back on a £2.99 transistor radio at the bottom of a well - more on-hold music .... Sorry sir, our lending team seem to all be busy right now. Would you like me to schedule a call back when they are free? Yes, I guess so, but when would it be? Only I have stuff to do between 12 and 2 today. Oh it probably won't be today, sir. They are very busy. They will try to call you back within 5 working days though.....
HSBC made $17 billion profit last year. Yet in order to apply for a credit card with a limit which is less than 2% of the cash I have in the bank, and considerably less than the amount of income I get in a single day at this time of year, I have to wait potentially a week for somebody to call me back, and then I face a 45-60 minute grilling.
Time to look for a different bank, I think.
</rant>
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) and if anything like my big(?) branch you will not see anyone immediately but either join a queue and wait for a first (give me help) chat and/or an appointment booked. NB I have waited from 5 mins to 20 mins to get seen