Banking Case Study

You are on: The Problem

From the Perspective of the Client

An RBC client encountered some problems when he needed to transfer assets from a member company of RBC® to another financial institution. To make it worse, he felt his concern wasn’t being handled with the same positive treatment he normally got from other members of RBC where he had good, ongoing relationships.

The RBC customer felt he had given RBC plenty of notice about the complex legal circumstances of the transfer, and still the transfer was delayed, which cost him money. He maintained that RBC was responsible for the delay and owed him compensation. When he failed to reach an agreement with RBC, he turned to the Ombudsman.

From the Perspective of RBC

We saw no basis for a claim, feeling that the client had caused much of the delay himself by failing to provide the required documentation on time.

You are on: The Resolution

The Office of the Ombudsman Reports:

"While the legal circumstances of the transfer did require more documentation than usual, the client had been careful to inform RBC about the transfer and its requirements well in advance. RBC could have been more proactive in securing the documents and avoided the delay. We felt the client deserved compensation.

Both parties were provided with our fact-finding report, and were able to reach an agreement. RBC accepted our recommendation to offer compensation which was accepted by the client."

You are on: What Can be Learned

For RBC:

RBC customers rely on us for advice and service. You can make a difference by working to understand the request and getting to the heart of the issue as soon as possible. Let the client know right away if you foresee a problem with fulfilling their requests.

Ensure you preserve long-term good will and our corporate reputation for good service. An action in one RBC company can have a ripple effect on the rest of the organization. Clients might take an account out of one company, but still have a relationship with others. And clients who take their business somewhere else today may return later - if feelings of good will and good service are kept intact.

For Clients:

Make sure your requests are clear and timely, and track your documentation. Being organized works best to resolve issues.

Don’t give up. Try to resolve your issue at the source first - most problems can be solved quickly there. If you can’t resolve it at the source, move on to the senior management of the area, the RBC Client Care Centre, or, finally, the Office of the Ombudsman.