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CA Britline considering charging for English Speaking Service


minnie
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I've just had a phone call from someone representing Credit Agricole and carrying out a satisfaction survey of the service provided by CA to English speakers. At the end of the survey I was told that CA are considering raising an additional charge for the English speaking service and I was asked if I would be happy with this....Obviously I said no. Has anyone else had a similar call? I didn't actually need to reveal any account details for the survey.
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Why shouldn't they charge extra??  Presumably they need to employ extra staff, have a separate phone line etc.... 

Everyone in the UK seems to complain about the cost of providing translation services for 'foreigners' who 'refuse to learn English' but then when they move to France they expect to get the service provided to them (as foreigners) for free? 

I don't get it?

Mrs R51

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It is handy to be able to carry out transactions in English and that is why they get my business. This has been carried out for free up to date. But my French is perfectly adequate and so I wouldn't hesitate to leave CA is they were to charge in the future. The staff in Britline are already there and have been doing the job for at least 10 years as far as I can recall!
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We have been with them for over ten years.  The whole point of having an account with them is the "English speaking" aspect - but ten years down the line I would be quite happy without it - have only spoken to them once and then it was half in French!. Changing bank accounts is never easy but hey - bring it on!   They are purely on-line and on the phone - you can't pop in to see them - so how dare they charge extra for something which is probably the only reason they have any customers at all...

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[quote user="Richard51"]Why shouldn't they charge extra??  Presumably they need to employ extra staff, have a separate phone line etc.... 

Everyone in the UK seems to complain about the cost of providing translation services for 'foreigners' who 'refuse to learn English' but then when they move to France they expect to get the service provided to them (as foreigners) for free? 

I don't get it?

Mrs R51

[/quote]

This seems a very sniffy response.

We aren't with Britline; we certainly didn't want to supply all the copies of paperwork which seemed to be necessary when we were looking to open a French bank account. But as far as I can tell, most people started to bank with them just because they had English speakers available - Briline spotted a gap in the market and were astute enough to jump in and supply the service. I think they would find they have far fewer English-speaking customers if they were tocharge for speaking one particular language.

Many branches of French banks have English-speaking staff if needed; maybe English-speaking customers will gravitate to them in future if Britline thinks they can make more profit by charging for this service.

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[quote user="minnie"]At the end of the survey I was told that CA are considering raising an additional charge for the English speaking service and I was asked if I would be happy with this....[/quote]

If they're seriously considering this, then Britline have really lost the plot.

It's their differentiation - that & only that. Much less important to us now after a number of years, but nonetheless helpful from time to time.

They must be mad - or at least they will be if they go ahead.

 

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We've been with them for 8 years and been quite satisfied, but the accounts are hardly free as it is, so what exactly would the extra charge be for? I wouldn't hesitate to change banks if the charges went up, so long as I paid less with a new bank.

The attraction to us when we opened the account was that we could do it by post, as we were still in UK then, and a visit to a branch wasn't necessary.

Most of our transactions are done online and I think I've only spoken to someone on two or three occasions.

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I don't think it's 'sniffy' - CA have a separate telephone number and staff to handle enquiries and accounts in English.  Presumably this has to come out of the profits of the bank from all it's other customers - regardless of how long the service has been running?

Market forces dictate that if you want a 'special' service then you will have to pay for it.  Banking in France is expensive even if you have a standard French account so CA Britline account holders are not unique in having to pay fees.

http://www.britline.com/pdf/principal_banking_fees_january_2012.pdf

http://www.sud.banquepopulaire.fr/magazine/Tarifs/documents/tarifs-part-actuels.pdf

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Yes, I thought it was a little sniffy too; sounds like sour grapes. Are we Britline people getting something for nothing?

Do you have any idea how many staff are involved? Have you used this service?

Not unique in having to pay fees....? Isn't that exactly the point? The Britline account holders already pay for the services used, who says that the other account holders contribute? It's possible that our fees contribute to the French customers! Presuming something is not the same as stating facts.

Perhaps we Britline cstomers should demand a refund every time one of "our" staff speaks to someone in French? [blink]

I'll wait for more information from CA, more, as currently I have had nothing official at all.

 

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Sid - unless I read the fees incorrectly, CA Britline customer fees are lower than those charged by BP - so presumably the additional costs are being picked up by other Credit Agricole customers?

Regardless of fee structure, I do find it a little surprising that several people here have been in France for ten years plus but still feel they need an English speaking bank service.  If they didn't need the service - they'd just switch bank.  That's being blunt not sniffy [;-)]

Mrs R51

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Their fees are probably cheaper because they are on-line/ on the phone only.   As for changing banks - it's easier said than done when you have a number of direct debits set up on an account.  If we become unsatisfied with Britline we would certainly change - but we presently have no reason to (hopefully I'm not tempting fate!).  We have been with our bank in the UK since 1970 so obviously are not the kind of people who switch banks regularly!

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Usually French banks charge extra for internet / phone banking - not less.  Maybe we just don't understand what all big fuss is about because we change our bank regularly.  It isn't as difficult as it used to be as all direct debits etc are transferred automatically at the expense of the new bank.  We have switched current account three times in the last four years - the last time we changed was just a month ago.

Mrs R51

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As mentioned in my original post this was put to me after completing a telephone customer survey on behalf of CA. Throughout the call I indicated my satisfaction with CA but when it was suggested that there was a possibility of extra charges for the english speaking line I indicated that if this was the case then I would change my account to another Bank
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Surely the whole point of CA Britline is the Brit part of it. They sell and promote the english speaking factor of their service so why should anyone have to pay extra for it.

Ten years ago, when we bought our first property in France, settting up a french bank account was out of my comfort zone and I was grateful for the opportunity to deal with unfamiliar procedures in english. I speak french quite well but was still glad that if I wanted to double check anything I was able to do so. Fortunately, I have never had to use the facility but it is still nice to know that it is there especially as we live in the UK.

However, if they impose any extra charges I would seriously consider opening an account in a bank near our residence secondaire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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There's no need for raised eyebrows and gasps of shock-horror that I've somehow committed a cardinal sin by staying with an English-speaking service. Odd then that all the postings on here are in English too!

I've used Britline for 8 years and simply haven't had need to go into a branch or meet a manager; thus it is pointless changing banks if I don't need to. I can manage the French speaking bit very well, thank you, my French was passable even before arrival, that wasn't the original reason for choosing the bank; it was about being very convenient to open the Britline account before we moved here, as it could all be done by post.

As for the fees, I feel, like the other posters, that we pay for the service we get, which is not a face-to-face service, but more akin to one of the UK online banks. Very easy and comparitively cheap for them to administer, no posh front counters etc. From the circulars received I would say that the total staff numbers less than 10 and this is for the whole of France! You can have that many in a single branch in any large town. 

Basically I do most of my transactions online or by debit card. I have only spoken to them on 4 occasions that I can remember, so it fulfills completely my banking requirements. The one drawback is paying-in to the account, which has to be done by post, hopeless for cash (not that I've ever had large wads of notes to deposit), and it takes a couple of days for a cheque. But as with most (all?) banks now you can make transfers online directly from a UK bank directly into the Britline account.

From some of the tales I've read on here I'd rather not meet Mr Grumpy, or worse Mr Extremely Rude bank manager, or Mrs Ignorant manageress.

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We opened our account with BP before we got to France.  In fact before we bought our house as we arranged our mortgage through them.  We find it very convenient to call into our local branch and speak face to face and the staff are all very pleasant and helpful. 

We have our buildings insurance with BP and the staff were very courteous and efficient on the two occasions when we had to claim - providing us with the claim forms, detailed explanations and then checking our completed forms to ensure we hadn't missed anything.

Mrs R51

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Like gardengirl we looked at Britline initially but the onerous A/C opening procedure put us of. We subsequently opened an A/C with CA locally and TBH despite the fact that neither us could string more than about 3 words of French together at the time it was no real handicap then and even less of one now 5 years on.

Apart from the obvious current A/C and debit card etc. we have no need of any other bank services so ask very little of CA but it they did fall short of our reasonable expectations we would change in a heartbeat.

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Using a local branch regularly even without hardly any french language is something that will integrate a foreigner into local society,plus if you are regular customer and get to know the staff, when you wish to take out a loan or need something doing or have a problem that is urgent,you will be there face to face and be KNOWN to them for help, rather than just some voice on the end of the phone. I really don't understand why people use an english speaking line when they really should be using the local branch and practising their french language which is extremely important to exist in this country!
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Why? Well, in my case it's because I don't think that going into a bank every couple of years will help me integrate in the slightest. The local shop has far more to offer and I pick up the gossip too! The nearest bank is 15 km away, they wouldn't know me from Adam, and I haven't needed any financial help in 8 years. On the other hand I know the maire and many of the locals very well, so I'm quite content. As I said before, possibly twice already, I have only needed to speak to the Britline staff on 4 occasions and then only for some minor details. I can't understand why people try to ram this "you must try and be French" down my throat, because at my age it just isn't going to happen. I speak the language, A-level 50 years ago, still passable now and still improving, and the best I can hope for realistically is to be accepted in my community.

I was able to open the Britline account while I was still working in UK, so that was a big plus. No visit to a branch necessary. I didn't find it difficult or tedious.

Integration, ah yes, there's that word again. I have enough social contacts French and British to be going on with. For a person who wasn't particularly outgoing or a mixer in UK there's absolutely no reason why I should be any different here.

This has all got very much off track as far as Britline charges are concerned, don't you think? Why not just let the Britline clients get on with their life while you get on with yours? I've already made my choice and I have other things to do without trailing around looking for another bank.

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What you said earlier Sid sums it up for me,  if people are happy to knock a service that offers an English language option, then why do these fully integrated ex-pats bother to spout in English on an English speaking forum. Says it all really; a case of don't do what I do, do as I say.
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 My feeling is that Val2 was in a different position when she moved, for a start she and late husband were not retirees but ran a succesful building company, and would have needed the services of a local bank I suspect. Secondly I doubt whether Britline even existed in its current form when they moved over or if they did it was a less well known option.

Horses for courses.

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[quote user="NickP"]What you said earlier Sid sums it up for me,  if people are happy to knock a service that offers an English language option, then why do these fully integrated ex-pats bother to spout in English on an English speaking forum. Says it all really; a case of don't do what I do, do as I say.[/quote]

Am I bothered what a holiday home owner thinks? NO!

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There's nothing at all wrong with anyone banking where they feel comfortable. Just because somebody stays with Britline, whether or not they have fluent French, doesn't really matter to anybody but them. Why would it?

We happen to bank with the local branch of CA, where we've been quite happy with the service. But since the change from being able to withdraw cash over the counter we very rarely speak to staff, who wouldn't recognise us now. So as for being recognised if a loan were to be needed - we just wouldn't be known (not that we ever intend to take out a loan!).

The turn this thread has taken makes me wonder who will be next for the sniffy treatment. Those who drive a car registered in UK? We do; there's not much point in driving any other as it's illegal for us to drive a foreign-registered car when driving to and around our home in UK. Those with 2 homes? Those whose French accent isn't all it might be? Chatting almost anywhere else in France seems very easy to me after hitting the Nimes area accent, so anyone starting on that ought to spend a few days here!

This forum is for help and support, plus the odd moan when things get on top of us. Recently there seems to be more carping at other posters - for no reason that I can fathom. Very disappointing.

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Ah, this takes me back to my professional life.  I've had this argument more times than I can count:

Marketing Director: I've got a great idea.  Why don't we offer an English speaking  service now that there are so many Brits buying properties in France?  All we need to do is set up an office somewhere staffed by bi-lingual people.  We won't have to pay them much more, they won't need posh premises, so we can put them anywhere we like and minimise office costs.  We'll  attract a whole lot of new customers our rivals don't serve.

 

Finance Director : Great idea.  I've done the sums and as long as you attract x thousand new customers, the figures stack up and it'll be cost negative.

 

The plan works fine and new bi-lingual branch of the company ticks along nicely for a few years until....

 

During a recession, the Finance Director is looking at the figures and trying to work out where he can squeeze a few  more Euros onto the plus side of the balance sheet.  He spots the bi-lingual branch and thinks to himself: These ne'er do wells who all have second homes and don't contribute anything in taxes are getting an extra service for nothing aren't they?  I bet we could charge them a few more euros for the service and as they're rich and stupid, they'll just pay up and be grateful they've had this for nothing all this time.

 

He puts this idea to the board.

 

Marketing Director:  But we set up this service to gain extra customers, not to charge them more.  If we do what you propose, some of them will leave and spend their money with our rivals.

 

Finance Director : Oh, don't worry about that.  They won't go anywhere, they can't speak French so they can't use anybody else.  They'll find it far too complicated to change anyway - let's face it the system is set up to make it virtually impossible to move anyway, especially for a stupid Anglais.

 

Marketing Director : Well, I bet you're wrong.  I tell you what, let's ask them during our next lot of market research....

 

Hey ho, halcyon days.

 

Which of the two arguments wins the day will depend on the mood of the board and their relationship with the two protagonists at the time and will probably have little to do with what the customer wants.  The bottom line won't matter because nobody will ever join up the two sides of the argument and find the real cost/profits involved.  All they'll see are the extra Euros in fees they expect to bring from existing customers, not how many leave them as a result.  .

 

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