Some policyholders of Prudential Singapore have experienced bank deductions in excess of their insurance premiums or failed deductions. The company has released a statement confirming the matter.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said in a media release, “This was not a cyber attack but an operational lapse.” It has directed Prudential and Standard Chartered Bank Singapore, its payment bank, to return the customer funds without delay, to keep customers updated, and to investigate the root cause of the incident. It will also take follow-up supervisory measures where appropriate.
As customers took to social media to leave comments and sought clarifications, it appears that the technical error is due to the misplacement of decimal points or the addition of two more zeroes keyed in by accident for the premium deductions. Affected policyholders were charged 100 times more than the correct amount.
Images: Sceenshots from Prudential Singapore Facebook page
Prudential Singapore said, “We are very sorry for the inconvenience caused. Please be assured that we are working actively to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, and together with our bank partner, intend to credit the relevant amount deducted back into your accounts within the next 24 hours. Any interest lost will be refunded and any erroneous charges will be reversed as soon as possible.”
For affected policyholders who need assistance, please call Prudential Singapore’s customer hotline at: 1800-333-0-333. It will also be posting updates on its FB page and website.
Update:
Refunds to all affected accounts have been successfully completed as of 25 May afternoon.
Message from Prudential Singapore CEO Wilf Blackburn:
Dear Customers,
Thank you for your understanding as we worked to ensure that all affected accounts were fully refunded within 24 hours.
While we cannot undo the anxiety and inconvenience that you must have gone through, we are doing everything possible to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
Additionally, as a sign of our appreciation for your patience and support we would like to extend S$100 to each customer whose GIRO deduction date fell on 24 May 2018. You will receive the amount by 3 June 2018.
We hope this will in some small way express our heartfelt apologies.
We promise to learn from this and to bring you a better experience in the future. Our commitment, as always, is to put you first.
Sincerely,
Wilf
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