Habib Bank Limited (HBL) gave me a tough time

On February 04, 2017, I received a message from HBL as “Dear ARIF HUSSAIN, The activation code for your HBL DebitCard ending with XXX is :X X X X X. For activation, please visit any HBL ATM with your CNIC number after receiving your card”. I was shocked because my card was getting expired in 2020. Secondly I was at my village at that moment, I needed money and I had left my chequebook at home.

On February 13, 2017 I received another message from them as “Dear Customer, Your HBL DebitCard has been returned as undelivered on 13–02–2017. Please call HBL PhoneBanking 111–111–425 to request re-delivery”. It makes sense, because I wasn’t at home so the card was returned back to the bank.

Some days later I came back to Islamabad, went to the bank and asked about the reason of my card’s cancellation. They told me it was some security matter. Later that day I meet a friend who works at HBL (won’t disclose his name, because I don’t wanna make problems for him), he said that because HBL was getting some package from The American Express Company (Amex) or MasterCard, so they are cancelling old visa based cards step by step.

I needed the card because chequebook isn’t handy, you can’t withdraw money through chequebook when the bank is closed. So I called 111–111–425 several time, and every time they either told me that the card is already at the bank so I should check it there, or I should check it 2 days later. Then it became my habit to call them every month and check the card in the bank 2 or 3 times every month.

Today on July 27, 2017 I went to the bank to withdraw some money through cheque, so I also talked to the girl sitting on the front counter about my card’s issue. She didn’t find my card among the debit cards. Then she called twice in between 10AM to 12PM to the helpline from the bank’s phone and handed over the phone to me.

The second time I talked to a very problematic guy. He asked me to tell him the story of why my card was cancelled. I said “You people said that it was some security issue, but someone told me that your bank was getting some package from MasterCard or ExpressCard (American Express pronounced wrong) that’s why you people are cancelling Visa cards step by step.

It’s impossible that a person who creates web applications won’t know the name of American Express card, because every web developer creates many E-Commerce applications in his/her career, and those applications involve online transactions either through services like Paypal and Skrill or cards like American Express, MasterCard, Visa, Discover, JCB etc. Sometimes we developers use third party services like Stripe or Authorize.net to make our life easier by not dealing with every single financial service company.

As soon as I said the word “ExpressCard”, the guy on phone started abusing me on that word. When he abused me for a minute or two, I said “I’m sorry for pronouncing the word wrong, and I’m sorry if you disliked the whole story, but whatever is the reason I need my debit card. I can’t come to the bank for a small transaction every single time”. He didn’t stop abusing me because that call was from the bank’s number, not from a customer’s number which can be recorded, so it was a chance for him to release all of his depression.

When he got tired of abusing me he asked me to call from my own number and request for the card renewal, and that sentence wasn’t of any use for me because I had already decided to stop using their services and instead open an account in another bank. Because everybody has the right to be respected, even if he/she isn’t a multimillionaire.

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