Nationwide Building Society customers faced difficulties accessing their accounts on Friday as a technical issue disrupted incoming and outgoing payments. The building society confirmed the problem on its website, acknowledging delays and assuring members that transactions were in a queue and would be processed as soon as possible.
Nationwide Responds to Customer Concerns
Many customers took to social media to report issues with payments, account balances not updating, and transactions appearing multiple times. Some expressed frustration over the delays, fearing potential financial consequences.
One user reported being down £433 after multiple failed payment attempts, while another highlighted a delay in transferring money for bills.
Nationwide responded via social media, stating: “We’re sorry, some incoming and outgoing payments are delayed at the moment. They are in a queue and will arrive as soon as possible. Everything else is working normally.”
The building society reassured customers that Direct Debits and standing orders were unaffected. However, the outage left many unable to access funds or make immediate transactions, leading to concerns over missed payments and potential fees.
Financial Experts Warn of Potential Consequences
According to Jenny Ross, editor of Which? Money, banking outages can have serious implications for customers.
She stated: “Technical issues like these could be devastating for people who could miss important bill payments, find themselves unable to pay for essential services or risk going overdrawn – issues which could come with knock-on effects like late payment or overdraft penalties, or affect their ability to get credit or borrow money.”
The recent disruptions affecting Lloyds, Halifax, TSB, and Bank of Scotland highlight growing concerns over the resilience of online banking systems. According to Downdetector, reports of issues with the Lloyds Bank app peaked at over 4,000 on Friday morning, with users unable to access accounts or make transactions.
The timing of the outage—coinciding with payday for many UK workers—exacerbated frustrations, with some customers unable to transfer salaries or pay essential bills. Business account holders also reported difficulties processing staff wages. Affected customers took to social media to share their concerns, with some citing previous disruptions at other banks, including a Barclays outage in January.
A spokesperson for Lloyds Banking Group, which includes Halifax and Bank of Scotland, acknowledged the issue, stating: “We know some customers are having issues with internet banking and our apps. We’re sorry about this and we’re working to have it back to normal soon.” However, no explanation was provided for the cause of the outage or an estimated timeline for resolution.
Nationwide has not provided details on what caused the outage or when a full resolution is expected. The building society has advised customers to check their accounts regularly and wait for pending payments to clear.
