Money problems at BCA

I am a film director working in the advertising industry in Jakarta. Originally from the United Kingdom, I have been resident in Indonesia for just over a year.

I recently TT'd a large sum of money from my bank in London to my bank in Jakarta. Several days later the money had not arrived and I began investigating. LLoyds TSB assured me the money had been sent. BCA assured me it had not arrived.

After several days of anxious phone calls, I was eventually informed that the transfer had been rejected.

Astonishingly the money was not returned to sender as is usual, but held in limbo whilst BCA's head office investigated this mysterious rejection.

Three weeks after it commenced, BCA's head office completed its investigation, discovered my branch had been in error and offered to deliver my money to me at the prevailing exchange rate -- considerably worse than it had been three weeks earlier.

Naturally I was hugely unimpressed by this and insisted they return my money to my bank in London. It took them over a week to do so.

This debacle has cost me several million rupiah, a great deal of time, worry and inconvenience -- I still have to resend the money -- and has made me realize that BCA has little regard for ordinary customers, no sense of accountability and their customer service standards are woefully inadequate.

KEVIN RYAN Jakarta