Postbank's IT move causes hundreds of customer complaints - financial expert calls for solution and damage settlement

Gemäß einem Bericht von fundscene.com, hat der IT-Umzug der Postbank in ein „Cloud-basiertes Online- und Mobile Banking“ der Deutschen Bank Hunderte Beschwerden bei den Verbraucherzentralen verursacht. Im ersten Halbjahr 2023 gingen insgesamt 583 Kundenbeschwerden ein, was annähernd so viele Beschwerden sind wie im gesamten Vorjahr. Die Hauptprobleme waren unzureichende Erreichbarkeit des Kundenservice und unzufriedenstellende Reaktionen der Bank. Kunden berichteten von mangelnder Hilfe und Standardschreiben als einzige Antwort.

The IT move was carried out in four phases over several weekends last year and, according to Deutsche Bank, went smoothly. However, some customers claimed that they were unable to access their money for several weeks and received Schufa entries due to returned direct debits. These problems could possibly even violate applicable law, according to the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (VZBV). Such a technical change must be well prepared and have sufficient human resources, emphasized the VZBV.

The complaints were also tracked by the financial regulator Bafin, which monitored the move from a consumer protection and banking supervisory perspective. Before the measure, Deutsche Bank significantly increased its customer service capacity and informed customers about the plans. According to a spokesman for Deutsche Bank, customer complaints were in the low single-digit per thousand range.

Impact on the market and the consumer

Postbank's IT move to Deutsche Bank has a significant impact on the market and consumers. The high number of complaints to consumer advice centers shows that many customers had problems with the new system. This can lead to a loss of trust in the bank and potentially lead customers to bank with other providers.

The difficulties in payment transactions and customer service can also have legal consequences. If customers are unable to access their funds for several weeks, this may violate the rules that require banks to unfreeze blocked accounts immediately as soon as the reason for the blocking no longer applies. The privacy and data security aspects of the move may also play a role and could lead to further legal issues.

For consumers, this means, above all, uncertainty and possible financial damage. If customers cannot access their money or receive Schufa entries, this can lead to financial bottlenecks and problems with other financial transactions. It is important that Deutsche Bank investigates the case thoroughly and takes measures to help customers and limit potential damage.

Overall, this incident shows how important careful preparation and sufficient resources are when implementing major technical changes. Banks should ensure that such projects run smoothly and do not harm customers. The impact on the market and consumers will show how Deutsche Bank deals with this situation and whether future changes are better planned and implemented.