Barclays faces ongoing banking issues, affecting payments and access for millions
London: Barclays is still having problems with its banking services. This outage has lasted three days, leaving many customers unable to send or receive money.
People started reporting issues on Friday. Barclays says these problems aren’t due to a cyber attack. However, the disruption affects over 20 million customers across the UK.
On Sunday morning, users trying to access their mobile banking apps saw a message saying, “Thank you for bearing with us.”
Barclays explained that many customers see outdated balances. They also can’t see recent transactions. The bank admits fixing this is taking longer than expected.
Some customers, like civil servant Paola Mereu, are facing tough situations. She couldn’t complete a payment for her new home due to the outage.
Paola shared that they sold their house but couldn’t finish the sale of their new one. Now, she and her family are staying with her mother until the issue is resolved.
The technical problems also affect card payments and branch banking. However, ATM withdrawals are still working. Barclays advises customers to withdraw cash and use their cards.
On Friday, many people reported issues, especially since it was payday. The Down Detector tracker showed thousands of complaints, with most about mobile banking.
Friday was also the deadline for self-assessment tax returns. HMRC is working with Barclays to help those affected. Customers won’t face late payment penalties until March 1.
On Saturday, Barclays apologized for the ongoing issues. They assured customers that no one would be left out of pocket due to the outage.
A spokesperson said some customers might still see outdated balances. They advised not to attempt payments again until the issues are fixed.
Barclays is keeping call centers open longer this weekend. They will also reach out to vulnerable customers directly.
For those struggling to access funds, the bank suggested seeking help from friends or family. In urgent cases, they recommended visiting food banks.
