A grieving pensioner has been left cashless and feeling suicidal after all her bank accounts were closed mysteriously.
In the days after Christmas, Jacqueline Sievewright discovered that all her debit and credit cards were no longer working and that she didn't have a functioning bank account.
The baffled 71-year-old borrowed money from her 94-year-old mum before getting hold of someone at Halifax, which she'd banked with for years.
An operator told her her both her individual and joint accounts had been closed due to a computer glitch following the death of her husband Francis, who died of pancreatic cancer in October.
Despite spending days frantically trying to sort out the issue, cash transfers and direct debits are still bouncing off of Jacqueline's frozen accounts.
"They blocked everything. My credit card, direct debits, standing orders, state pension and private pension was rejected, and money coming in," the Immingham, Lincolnshire woman told the Mirror.
"I am still grieving. Last Thursday everything just got on top of me. For two days I just cried and cried.
"I was so low I felt like ending it all."
Jacqueline first knew something was amiss the week after Christmas, when her mum's attempts to transfer money into her bank account failed.
When the former Norfolk County Council worker tried to log in to her online account, it told her she wasn't registered.
She called Halifax where an operator explained that the issue was not due to a human error, but a computer glitch.
Jacqueline then embarked on several days of calling the bank and sending in her husband's death certificate in a fruitless bid to get the accounts brought back online.
She later received a call from Halifax telling her requesting a money from a branch would be pointless and that her complaint, despite being unresolved, had been closed internally.
"I can't just rely on my 94-year-old mum for money," Jacqueline said.
"I spent two days from 9am to 4pm ringing round 20 different companies resetting direct debits and informing them of the change of circumstances. I then reinstated two dormant accounts with Natwest and HSBC so I could do some shopping."
Two weeks on, Jacqueline's accounts have suddenly been reinstated by Halifax, which sent her flowers as an apology.
The confusing situation has been particularly difficult for Jacqueline as she recently lost her husband Francis.
The retired banker fell ill in February last year and was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
In the eight months before he died in October, he spent five and a half in hospital.
Jacqueline was able to bring him home from hospital to be with her in his final days.
A Lloyds Bank spokesperson said: “We were so sorry to hear of Mrs Sievewright’s loss and the experience she had when she got in touch.
"Mrs Sievewright’s accounts are up and running again, we’ve provided training and feedback to our team, and we’ll be getting in touch with her to put things right.”
