Mildly Annoying Experience with HSBC

Today I got my HSBC Master Card Statement. In the "Important Information" section it says:

This is a notification that a change of address has been processed on your account. Please be advised that a confirmation letter has been sent to your previous address. If you have not authorized a recent change of address, please contact us immediately at the phone number indicated on your statement."

Of course I hadn't changed my address, and, strangely enough, the statement still came to my current address. So I called them and spent several minutes on hold.

The CSR I spoke to verified my address, and said it was correct in the system. Then he attempted to sell me on a credit line increase and lower interest rate. I'm currently paying 0% so I declined.

I asked for more information about the change of address. He said there was nothing to worry about because my address is correct. He then tried to sell me on a credit monitoring service, which I declined. Several times.

I pressed him again about the change of address. He said there was no problem and they were just verifying that my address was correct. I explained how that didn't seem right, since there was nothing about verifying my current address -- the notice said there was a change.

He explained that they need to verify the address because several people can have the same name. I asked for more information about the address change. His suggestion that it was simply because multiple people can have the same name made me even less comfortable.

He then suggested that I clicked something online. I assured him that wasn't the case. He said there was nothing else he could do, but there was no problem.

I was still not comfortable with that so I asked to be transferred to someone in the security department. He put me on hold for a few minutes and said he couldn't do that.

Then I think he tried to get me off the phone -- judging by the conversation he couldn't initiate the end of the call.

He explained that there was noting he could do.

I said, "I see."

He asked if there was anything else he could do for me.

I said, "Apparently not."

He said he was sorry he couldn't help more.

I said, "I see."

He said everything was ok.

I said, "I see."

Then he offered to transfer me to a supervisor.

I accepted that.

I spoke to the supervisor for about 45 seconds. He looked up my account, and he told me that the last time I called HSBC about a month earlier, they updated my employment information. It's in the same system as the address information, and that generated the change of address notice. He apologized for the inconvenience.

I suggested that might be good information to have on the notice or for the CSR to have available.

I thanked him for his help and we ended the call.

27 minutes total.