Barclays is pretty good, but all the in branch staff are good.
All call centers suck, and all telephone support sucks IMHO.
I certainly wouldn't pay extra just to get telephone support. How often do you need it? If you need it a lot, then that's a really really niche use case.
It may be due to the Barclays online banking being pretty solid. HSBC is also fairly good.
Well, it's not really when I call them (I don't call them, I either try to sort out stuff online or if I can't, I just walk into a branch) - it's when they call me. Like when someone is fraudulently trying to use my card details (happens every now and then). It is really annoying when you need to discuss urgent and important matters and you simply don't understand what they're saying.
My bank, one of the 3 biggest in the country, has offered me nothing but excellent phone support. Quick to pick up the phone, knowledgeable staff, and quick and correct answers to my problems. So obviously quality phone support is far from impossible.
All call centers suck, and all telephone support sucks IMHO.
I certainly wouldn't pay extra just to get telephone support. How often do you need it? If you need it a lot, then that's a really really niche use case.
It may be due to the Barclays online banking being pretty solid. HSBC is also fairly good.