Credit card catastrophe

Ok, so here it is, my first rant.

I would just like to point out, as a little caveat, that I am not one of those people that has nothing better to do with my time than be a serial complainer. It's the end of the financial year at work, and my boss and I are working terribly hard, I have a wonderful fiancé that I love to spend time with, I'm getting fit for myself and the wedding and I like to have a healthy social life too. So "nothing better to do with my time" just doesn't fit my bill. But there are just some things that people and large corporations should not be allowed to get away with.

Also, this is not just a moan about capitalism in general, nor a protest against fat cat chairmen with large bonuses.

Enough said.

Well, I have a couple of credit cards. One I am very pleased with, with is a Lu crew credit card with American Express. I've never had a problem with them, and you can save up British Airways airmiles for them and get tickets Oracle and Daddy Lu's holidays, which they enjoy and love.

Here it comes... And then there's Tesco. Every little thing about their online credit card statement does not help. It is impossibly difficult to understand. And I'm ok at maths, honestly, plus I managed to survive the law school accounts exams unscathed. But when you look at your online statement, you just don't want to. And it's not just the numbers. Balance means unbalanced, spending plus adjustments is not adjusted, and if you ever set up a direct debit... Well just don't.

Their call centre puts you through about eight different sets of options. I was really pleased with myself having keyed in my credit card number, date of birth and pin, and got through another couple of levels, and then, most unfortunately, I pressed the wrong option and was greeted with "This office is now closed. Please try again later." CLOSED??? At 12.34pm. How dare they?

Their saving grace was a lovely guy who gently explained my problem and patiently talked me through. He even took my suggestion of "making the online statement system more user-friendly" with good grace. Unfortunately, I didn't get his name, but I'm sure I made his day with my helpful comments.

Hmmm, I feel much better now. I think the grumble is definitely better out than in. All that negative energy building up inside of me. In fact, you know what? Tesco credit card have saved me from dishing out for a therapist. Maybe I'll write them a thank you letter. Or then again... maybe I won't.