A mother from Liverpool says her bank froze her account for four days, leaving her struggling to provide food for her two young children.
Account restricted for four days
Leanne McCarthy, 38, from Croxteth, says she was down to her last nappy for her two-year-old daughter Scarlett-Ella when her account was frozen by Manchester-based online bank Suits Me.
The mum-of-two feared she would be unable to buy birthday presents for her son Leighton. She said she spent hours trying to get the account unfrozen after the bank requested additional documentation relating to Universal Credit payments.
She said she was unable to upload the required documents to the online account provider's portal.
Mother's account of the ordeal
Leanne said: "I got a message on my online banking on Thursday (August 13) saying my bank account had been restricted. On Friday morning, I spent four hours on hold trying to get through to Suits Me bank."
"I eventually got through to someone after calling back, and he said he needed documents, so I sent everything he asked for. I've phoned them at least 20 times and emailed them over 20 times. I've sent these documents three or four times to them. I can't wait any longer because I've got two babies who need food and nappies."
"Suits Me is an online bank, so they don't even have a branch you can go into to get cash out. I've already opened a new bank account elsewhere."
Bank's response and account restoration
Upon opening the app, Leanne encountered a notification stating her account was "temporarily restricted" for security checks. The alert informed her that while she could still receive funds, spending capabilities were "currently unavailable". It finished with: "We'll contact you if any action is required."
Leanne continued: "I think it is absolutely disgusting the way they treated me. I've got a two-year-old daughter and my little boy is four. I need to buy things for his birthday and get shopping in, but it's just so stressful. I've only got a few bits left at home, including just one nappy left for my daughter."
Suits Me stated it was unable to comment on an individual customer's account or circumstances due to privacy and data protection obligations.
Leanne's account was subsequently restored following the ECHO's intervention with Suits Me on Monday, August 17. Suits Me told the ECHO Leanne could contact the online account provider via its urgent support team.
