11 Jan 2018 12:51 PM:
A brief message for anyone contemplating a property purchase in Spain and the necessary opening of a local bank account might want to consider my experiences with Cajamar.
I opened an account with Cajamar in 2006 for a property transaction, and without going into how the developer went into administration and the whole drama about eventually getting part of my money back (I was luckier than some), I contacted them at the beginning of last year because I knew I had a few hundred euros left in the account, this being the remainder of some funds which had been deposited for the use of my solicitor who helped in the property deposit return process. By the way, high praise to Maria Luisa de Castro and her team at Costaluz Lawyers.
From the very start of this current process Cajamar have been obstructive. It wasn't until I mentioned getting the Defensor del Cliente involved that customer services eventually told me I had to deal with the branch directly although they wouldn't give me any english speaking contact details. In August last year I had the opportunity to visit the branch in question (oficina 0874, Torre del Mar) while on holiday nearby but I was disappointed to find that despite signs to the contrary on the front door, no english speaking staff were available. As a result of this visit, someone from that branch (no names allowed!) did eventually contact me. After being informed that my account would have to be 'reactivated' so that I could get my deposits back, I paid for a new non-resident certificate and signed some dodgy looking paperwork but since then that person has ignored all requests for progress information while more recently the central customer services office have continued the trend and ignored further threats of passing this to the Defensor del Cliente.
I shouldn't be treated any differently to someone who has an active account. Cajamar has my money but despite numerous requests and even verbal assurances, they won't even give me copies of my statements so I have no way of knowing if the account has or has not been abused by a third party over the last few years or even if all my money is still in there.
I would urge anyone thinking about starting off any financial dealings in Spain to seriously consider avoiding Cajamar for the provision of their banking services because if you ever want to close your account you could well find yourself in the same position. I can't speak for any other financial institutions in Spain, but I'd be very surprised if there were any worse service providers out there.
Of course, this isn't a purely altruistic message. I would hope Cajamar customer services read this and deceide they have not only the integrity but the common sense to recognise they've fallen down on their responsibilities on this occassion, and act accordingly to rectify it as soon as possible. I will continue this thread on a regular basis with details of how and if things are progressing.
Forum thread:
Advice on Cajamar Bank
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