TSB banking glitch day 12: what you need to know

TSB customers are still reporting issues viewing balances and making payments through standing orders while some that have tried to switch from the bank have reported being blocked.

The bank suffered an online banking meltdown following a planned migration of 1.3 billion customer records to a new platform last weekend.

Which? has the latest from TSB on the situation, what to do if you still can't access your money, how to switch if you're fed up and your rights to compensation.

What happened?

TSB's problems occurred following a planned migration of accounts from a legacy Lloyds platform to a new system.

Even though TSB broke away from Lloyds Banking Group in 2013 it's been renting the banking system from its former owner, while it developed a new platform called Proteo4UK with new owner Banco Sabadell, which acquired the bank in 2015.

In advance of the migration, customers had been informed that some services including online banking, making payments or transferring money would be unavailable between Friday 20th April at 4pm and Sunday 22nd April at 6pm.

However, the move had some pretty serious technical problems and customers reported still not being able to access their accounts well after the work was meant to be complete.

Worryingly some TSB customers that could log in found they were able to see other people's account information and in some cases were credited thousands of pounds that did not belong to them.

In response at 10.30am on Tuesday 24th April TSB took its online and mobile banking offline to resolve the issues.

By Wednesday morning the bank claimed systems were back online but customers were reporting a very different story with plenty still experiencing issues logging into their accounts or finding issues with payments and transactions.

On day 7 of the crisis TSB pledged 'to put things right' promising nobody would lose out and called in systems integration specialists IBM to find a solution to its IT nightmare.

Is TSB online banking working now?

TSB says that mobile and internet banking are now back online.

If you're still having problems logging in TSB recommends closing the mobile app and restarting it or closing your bowser and trying again.

Some customers are reporting not being able to view their balance once logged in. TSB says you will be able to view your balance at an ATM if you can't access it online.

At the moment customers are also not able to view their mortgage account using the mobile app and internet banking. TSB recommends visiting a branch if you have an urgent mortgage problem.

What to do if your standing orders have bounced

TSB says that for the vast majority of their customers everything should be running smoothly.

Customers should be able to do their day-to-day banking such as using cards to withdraw cash or paying for goods in shops and online.

However, while Direct Debits are all working normally, TSB it admits it has had issues with a 'small number' of standing orders where money has bounced back.

The bank says payments through the mobile app and internet banking are available but some are experiencing problems when trying to send money.

TSB advises these customers to go into a branch or to give them a ring to move money between accounts. Alternatively you can also make payments at your local Post Office.

However, this will be of little help to those that rely on internet banking as bank branch closures start to bite.

Is it possible to switch from TSB?

In an effort to get current account customers to stick with it through the crisis TSB said on Thursday 26^th April that it would waive all overdraft fees and interest charges for customers.

It also increased the rate on its Classic Plus account from 3% to 5% AER on balances up to £1,500 as a thank you to customers for sticking with the bank during the crisis.

But understandably, a huge number have decided to ditch TSB despite the financial incentives and switch to another bank.

Frustratingly, some customers that tried to switch from Friday 27^th April have found they've been unable to do so because of issues with TSB's systems.

MoneySavingExpert reports that a TSB customers was told today (Tuesday 1st May) that she was unable to move to Halifax because TSB 'couldn't process' the switch.

TSB says this issues has now been resolved and switchers should not experience any more problems if they chose to leave the bank.

A TSB spokesperson said: 'On Friday we experienced a temporary issue with customers being able to switch their bank account from TSB to another provider.

'Whilst we implemented a fix, we asked CASS to advise other banks to temporarily hold switching requests from TSB customers for a short period of time.

'The CASS service is now running as normal and customers can continue to switch from TSB. We have informed all CASS participants.'

What happens if I miss a bill?

If TSB's banking glitch will cause you to miss a bill for a credit card or mortgage payment it could impact your credit rating.

James Jones, Head of Consumer Affairs at Experian said: 'If you're worried that a banking issue - such as a regular payment being delayed - could damage your credit history, it's certainly worth speaking to any lenders that may be impacted to make sure they are aware of the situation.

'It would also be wise to keep a close eye on your credit report and credit score for a few months. That way, if any negative information is subsequently added to your report you'll be able to find out quickly, and then be in a position to deal with it before it becomes a problem.'

Will I get compensation from TSB?

If you've been hit by TSB's IT glitch, you can complain to TSB and get compensation.

You should keep a record of the dates you haven't been able to access your account services and how much this has cost you to use as evidence.

TSB CEO Paul Pester has promised that no one will be left out of pocket as a result of this service issue.

For more information read: What are my rights after a bank computer glitch?

How many people are affected?

TSB has five million customers but 1.9 million are active mobile and internet banking users who will be impacted by the disruption to online services.

In regards to the issue of exposing customer accounts, TSB told Which? Money that on Sunday 22 April there was a period of 20 minutes when 402 customers were able to view data they would not normally be able to see online.

These customers had 'connected accounts' which are typically created between family members. Access to 'connected accounts' is normally provided in branch and via telephone banking.

Is my money or data at risk?

TSB says it has tracked every payment made by these customer's accounts and spoken to every customer to confirm each payment's validity.

Peter Pester has written to those impacted to reassure them about the safety of their data.

However, if your data has been exposed you should make sure you change your passwords and keep an eye on your accounts and credit report for signs of suspicious activity.

• Read more:My data has been lost, what are my rights?

Will TSB be fined?

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) which investigates data breaches will look into this latest IT meltdown that has exposed customer data.

A spokesperson for the ICO told Which? Money: 'We are aware of a potential data breach in relation to the TSB and we are making enquiries.'

The ICO has the power to issue fines of up to £500,000 for serious breaches of the Data Protection Act.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) which regulates financial firms and also has the ability to issue fines will also be investigating the issue.

An FCA spokesperson told Which? Money: 'We are aware of the issue and liaising with the firm.'

In 2014. the FCA fined the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), NatWest and Ulster Bank £56m for IT failures in June 2012 which meant 6.5 million customers could not access banking services for several weeks.

This story has been updated from an earlier version