A frustrated Aussie has lashed out after she was locked out of her account for the second time in less than four months, despite changing banks.
Katie McMaster, 36, had to visit an HSBC branch in Melbourne last week to verify her identity after she was locked out of her personal accounts.
After encountering a similar issue with her previous bank, ING, she decided to switch in June as she had been unable to access her funds for two days due to her account suspension.
Ms McMaster, who works as a personal assistant, said she’d jumped through multiple hoops to have her HSBC account unlocked but was unsuccessful.
‘There is something seriously wrong with the banks in Australia,’ she said.
‘I can’t believe I’m already making another one of these TikToks, but it’s happened to me again.’
Ms McMaster realised she’d been blocked from her HSBC funds when she logged into online banking and couldn’t see any accounts.
Initially thinking it was a technical issue, she called the bank and learned her account had been flagged for fraud.
Ms McMaster (pictured) only learned the account was blocked when she logged into her internet banking
Ms McMaster said she received no notification from the bank and had no suspicious transactions.
“I was instructed to visit a branch to verify my identity with 100 points of ID, but they couldn’t explain the reason behind the account restrictions,” she shared.
‘I thought that this was a little bit strange as normally the banks can at least tell you as to why the restrictions have been placed.
“When I arrived at the branch, I provided the teller with the required 100 points of ID. They updated my account and informed me that I would need to wait two to three business days for a response from HSBC.”
‘Again, they couldn’t tell me as to why the restrictions were taking place, only that I had to wait while they investigated.’
The personal transaction account only received Ms McMaster’s monthly salary and was used for her standard everyday transactions.
‘Guys, I am just a regular girl in Melbourne,’ she said.
“The only substantial deposit into my account is my salary from a job I’ve held for almost three years – same employer, same bank account, with monthly payments,” she explained.
HSBC (pictured) has locked Katie McMaster out of her personal account for eight days with no explanation
“My expenses are mainly my mortgage, bills, living costs, and now and then, dining out or visiting a bar, along with my phone bill.”
‘It’s very stock standard. Uber might be the most random one.’
As of Monday, Ms McMaster has been locked out of her accounts for eight days and still hasn’t been given a reason why her account was flagged.
Having learnt from her experience with ING, she had asked how she was meant to cover her daily expenses the first time she visited the bank branch.
“I asked the teller, ‘What am I supposed to do without access to my funds for two days?’ She simply laughed and replied, ‘Good question,'” Ms. McMaster recounted.
Several commenters under Ms McMaster’s video shared their own horror stories about being locked out of personal accounts.
‘HSBC just did something very similar to me. I am moving all my accounts from them this week,’ one said.
‘Same thing happened to me THREE times in the space of seven months! Westpac!’ another wrote.
‘I had CBA do this to me last month and then ING did the same thing to me 2 weeks ago,’ another said.
Australian banks are permitted to block accounts for several reasons, including suspicious activity, money laundering or if an account is compromised.
Ms McMaster has lodged a complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority and plans to switch banks once her accounts are unlocked.
She called for a large-scale review of Australia’s existing bank laws.
‘How are the banks given so much control that they can stop you accessing your funds and deciding what you want to do with your money?’ Ms McMaster said.
‘I think a review on all Australian banks needs to be done as soon as possible as this can’t be happening to everyday consumers.’
Daily Mail has contacted HSBC for comment.
