Charity anger as Barclays return over £1,000 in cheques written in Welsh
The secretary of a Welsh charity has said that she is angry after Barclays Bank returned over £1,000 in cheques written in Welsh saying that they could not cash them.
Mari Lloyd Williams, the secretary for Gofal Dydd y Waen, said that she was “so disappointed” with Barclays who returned 40 Welsh language cheques with a note saying ‘not as mandate’, meaning that they were not authorised by the customer to process them on their behalf.
Gofa Dydd y Waun based in Waen near St Asaph care for people suffering from conditions such as cancer, MS, dementia or who have suffered a stroke.
Barclays has responded to Mari Lloyd Williams by asking her to write to the company with her complaint.
Mari Lloyd Williams, who is a Professor in Palliative Medicine at the University of Liverpool, told Nation.Cymru that she was “so disappointed with what Barclays have done”.
“They have returned over £1,000 in cheques that have been written in Welsh back to us with a note saying ‘not as mandate’,” she said.
“We have to raise £30,000 a year to maintain this with no outside help and because we were unable to maintain any events to raise money since March 2020 as we usually do, we have made Christmas cards to raise money and pay the bills.
“The fact that they’ve sent all of these cheques back to us is a source of real concern.
“This kind of thing should not happen in 2022. Why should we have to write to them to ask them to accept cheques in our own language, as they suggested?”
North Wales Senedd Member Llyr Gruffydd also took to social media to call on Barclays to act.
“Surely Baclays should be able to recognise this is a fundamental error on your part and not ask for a formal complaint,” he said. “This is basic human rights and your failure to accept as much is a huge corporate failure.”
Barclays responded to Mari Lloyd Williams to say they were “really sorry to hear” about the problem. They also asked whether Barclays had written back to confirm that the language was the issue. When she replied that they had not, they asked her to log an official complaint.
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
When is that bank of Wales starting up? I already wanted to change my Barclays account and this has just added icing to the cake. Hurry up with the national bank ffs!!!
2023 (yn ôl https://llyw.cymru/gweinidog-yr-economin-nodi-cynlluniau-ar-gyfer-banc-cambria-banc-cymunedol-newydd-cymru).
The withdrawl from local services clearly is effecting Barclays relationship with Wales as we customers all predicted.
My former Welsh Language Board colleages Eddie Rae and Gwilym Owen – Tories who loved our language and culture worked hard to see the major Banks supported bilingual choice.
Gwilym who led the former Midlamd Bank in Wales amd Eddie from the IOD succeeded on developing working Vol schemes.
Mari is right to share this experience and has come up no doubt with Barclays lack of public face at Wales level….and unknown leadership structure.
I’m old enough to remember when students boycotted Barclays for supporting Apartheid. A lot of people closed their accounts then, as you should do now. The quicker we get Banc Cambria set up the better.
“lol” to you too mate. There again you don’t know what “lol” means in Welsh.
Just look at how many charities tell people in Wales to send money to English addresses.
No guesses for wondering who decides where our donations go
The sooner the Welsh Bank opens the better i for One will transfer All my accounts too the Welsh Bank straight away i think that they will have a bombing business in a short time
If I had the power would create a National Bank of Wales, then I’d go all out to attract Barclays customers slighted by their Anti-Welsh language policy, basically anybody who wants to move their account to a truly Welsh owned bank that not only Invests your money but invests in Wales too.
.
I don’t understand this I was writing cheques in Welsh with Barclays in the early 70’s when at Barry teacher training college.
This story is very interesting, my mother is Italian and she has held a current account with barclays for yrs, she signed and issued two identical cheques for Christmas gifts, one cheque was paid and the other was returned, the reason given by barclays customer service was that the signature was not within the mandate and blamed it on the computer programme that scrutinise the cheques, my mother has signed her cheques for the last 10 yrs to date without no issues whatsoever. Looks like the Italians are having it too!
English is the language used to to communicate in the uk not Welsh
As it is in the majority of europe. It is the universal language of commerce. Grow up and just write it in English and save the unnecessary hassle. Oh and before I’m accused of being a troll or any other description handed down to me by the nationalists on here, I am a proud born and bred welsh man, just one with common sense.
Those who accuse others of being nationalists (nothing wrong with being a nationalist – it does not imply superiority, or dislike of other nations), are often imperialists.
Broaden your linguistic horizons.
This is pathetic. Barclays should know better. Many years ago, I received an expenses cheque written in Welsh from my employer. It was in my wallet when I travelled to London. I paid it in at a Santander branch in Acton, in the London borough of Ealing. OK, so the teller left the counter to get some advice. She returned and said words to the effect: “We see that it is written in Welsh, so that’s fine.” She wasn’t a Welsh speaker, so I guess she had to check it. My main bank, Natwest, also has never played up when… Read more »