Deductions: Diamond Bank customers threaten to close accounts

Some customers of Diamond Bank in Plateau State, on Thursday, threatened to close down their accounts over what they described as “frivolous deductions’’.
Virtually all the bank’s branches within the Jos-Bukuru axis were inundated with such threats as customers gathered to inquire about the reasons for the deductions.
Some of the customers said that they were shocked and surprised by the recent turn of events at the bank.
According to them deductions in regard to Stamp Duty were made from their accounts even when there was no transaction.
“In fact, I came here (bank) to just close down my account because the kind of alerts I have been receiving recently, even at nights are alarming and annoying.
“I lodged in N44,000 into one of my sons account, which had N1,500 balance last Monday, but to my greatest surprise, before Tuesday evening, only N42,600 was left.
“I would have closed down my account and those of my children, if not because they begged me with án assurance that the anomalies will be corrected,’’ Mr Charles Dawell, a customer, said.
Another customer, Ms Mabel Osomobegbe, a civil servant, said: “can you imagine that this bank has just been deducting money from my account indiscriminately without cause and without any apology?
“What pains me most was when I went to their British-America Branch, the officer I met was just laughing at me and told me to go and put my complaints in writing and send it to their main branch for redress,’’ Osomobegbe said.
According to her, “out of annoyance I went to their website and wrote to them that they are stealing from me and must stop as well as return my money, else I will sue them to court’’.
She threatened to close down her account if nothing was done to stop the frivolous deductions.
“But why is it that it is only Diamond Bank that is making such indiscriminate and strange deductions? I have accounts with GT Bank and such is not happening there, why,?’’ she asked.
Another customer, Mrs Helen Wumba, a Surveyor, told NAN that the deductions so upset her that she felt like closing down her account with Diamond Bank.
“Can you imagine, very early on Wednesday morning, I received several debit alerts of Stamp Duty over what I do not know anything about?
“I think there is need for the regulators of these commercial banks to look into their activities and stop them from indiscriminately cheating their customers,’’ she suggested.
When contacted, an official of the bank, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the complaints and threats, saying that the deductions were caused by computer glitch.
He assured the customers that most of the wrong deductions would soon be corrected.
“It is just a computer problem; in a matter of time, all the deductions being complained about will be reversed.
“We are appealing to our aggrieved customers to be patient with us as we are doing something about their complaints,’’ the official assured.