I have had a credit card with First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) for 10 years. I have been using it since day one and paying credit shield every month for 10 years.
I am a good customer of the bank, because I have never defaulted in my payments.
I was terminated from my job on January 7, 2018, and the reason for termination was: “Company restructure”. I had an outstanding amount of Dh13,310 on this card.
Then, I visited FAB to process an “Involuntary Loss of Employment” (ILOE) claim using my credit shield.
The bank told me to continue paying the minimum due amount for a period of two months for the processing of the claim. They also told me to send one ILOE form every month. I kept paying this minimum amount and ILOE without fail until March, even though I was struggling to pay my children’s school fees and family expenses. Then, I contacted the bank but I didn’t get any update on the status of my claim application.
Now, the bank is sending me messages, emails and legal notices and is telling me that they are going to put me on a blacklist, with a travel ban and criminal case against me.
I do not understand what is the use of credit shield, if it is not fulfilling its purpose. The accumulated amount of the credit shield I paid to the bank, except interest for the past 10 years, is more than my current outstanding credit.
From Mr Ajith Meledath Satheesan
Dubai
The management of FAB responds:
FAB supports the growth ambitions of its stakeholders and goes beyond financial products and services, and as such, we are grateful for all customer feedback as we strive to consistently deliver the highest standards of service. The bank has been in contact with Mr Satheesan via email, and confirmed that his claim will be credited next week.
Mr Satheesan responds:
I got a call from the bank last week and they told me that they would credit the claim in one week. Yesterday, two instalments of the outstanding amount were credited to my card. Thank you very much for helping to resolve this issue.
(Process initiation: June 24. Response from organisation: June 28. Reader confirmation: July 3.)
Editor’s note: Do you have similar issues that you would like to raise with us? You can write to us at readers@gulfnews.com.
