Postbank customers in Berlin and Brandenburg complain about IT problems - a financial expert expresses concern.

Postbank customers in Berlin and Brandenburg complain about IT problems - a financial expert expresses concern.

According to a report from www.rbb24.de, numerous Postbank customers in Berlin and Brandenburg are complaining about IT problems. Complaints about incorrect transfers, incorrect debits and blocked accounts have been increasing since the beginning of the year. Despite Postbank's statement to the contrary, the anger does not go away after the switch to a new IT system.

The consumer advice centers in Berlin and Brandenburg are still receiving many complaints from frustrated account holders. The rbb has also received more requests from viewers expressing their anger at Postbank. Customers criticize the bank for extremely long processing times, lack of communication and unavailability. There have been cases where customers were unable to access their account for 36 days and in another case for almost half a year.

The problems began when Postbank integrated the data of twelve million customers into the computer system of its parent company Deutsche Bank at the beginning of the year. The bank's management justified this with the aim of saving costs and offering better service.

The financial expert Hermann-Josef Tenhagen commented critically on the situation in the consumer magazine Super.Markt. He described the IT problems as a disaster and emphasized the importance of customer service. A bank where you cannot access your account is useless.

The Postbank communications department, however, claims that there are no fundamental IT problems, but only individual problems with individual customers. However, the bank admits that there is currently an increased number of requests relating to IT issues, resulting in longer processing times.

Postbank's hotlines are still overloaded and the technical problems have not yet been resolved. Consumer advocates have therefore called in the banking regulator Bafin, which has appointed a special representative to monitor the processes at Postbank.

Affected customers have the option to seek an injunction to gain access to their money or simply change banks, even if the account is frozen. Since the beginning of the year, 60 customers in Brandenburg and 70 in Berlin have contacted consumer advice centers. However, this is only “the tip of the iceberg,” as a spokeswoman for the Brandenburg Consumer Center emphasizes.

Postbank's IT problems are particularly serious because the parent company Deutsche Bank will close up to 250 of Postbank's current 550 branches in the next few years. This means that online banking is playing an increasingly important role. However, customers' trust in Postbank's ability to offer seamless online banking is unlikely to grow due to the current problems.