A second member of the public has come forward claiming that money is also missing from a personal savings account that she opened less than three weeks ago at Scotiabank, East Bay Street.
A summer student, who wants to remain anonymous, claimed she lost $150, which was $50 less than the amount with which she opened the account.
“I reported the missing money to the authorities at the bank and they tell me there is nothing they can do about it,” the student said.
After being told that there was no way for her to get her money back, the summer student said she closed her account and started a new one at the Royal Bank of Canada.
It was only a few days ago that Lester Perigord, a bellman and physical trainer, told The Tribune that he had lost more than $1,000 from his personal savings and got an “insufficient” response on the issue. Mr Perigord said he was told that there was no guarantee that he would get his money back, but there was a “possibility.”
On Friday, Deborah Woods, senior manager of marketing and public relations, confirmed that Mr Perigord had made a complaint. She told The Tribune that he did not use his bank card at a Scotia machine, thus it will take them some time to investigate the claim.
According to Mr Perigord he has been banking at Scotiabank for a number of years. He said this was the first time that anything of this nature had ever happened. After learning that he might not get his money back, Mr Perigord said he closed his account.
When Ms Woods was contacted about the summer student’s case, she refused to comment on the issue. She said when customers experience problems of this nature they should check with their branch, “and the branch has to do an investigation.”
When the Tribune reporter reminded her that the branch had told the student that there was nothing it could do to indemnify her for her loss, she replied: “That consumer needs to contact the branch or the head office like they typically do.”
When Ms Woods was asked how often such incidents happen and the procedure that the customer should follow in a “missing money case,” she declined to comment.
By KAHMILE REID, The Tribune
