Since this blog is about sending money or remittance, I feel like I’m obliged to share one of our kababayans’ experience with LBC Express.
Rom Sarmiento Son (his profile name on Facebook) posted his remittance experience with LBC on his Facebook timeline on August 11, 2016.
According to his post, he went to LBC Express Robinsons Novaliches branch on August 1, 2016 to send money to his sister in Las Pinas. The amount was Php 24,720, and that money was intended for his sister and cousin’s tuition fees.
Since it was already late, he waited until the following day before he gave the Tracking No. to his sister.
Money was claimed by another person in a different city
August 2, 2016
Around 9:33am, Rom received a text message from LBCExpress informing him that the remittance has already been received under his sister’s name.
He was alarmed because he hadn’t given the Tracking No. to his sister yet. So he immediately called LBC Contact Center to ask about the text message that he received and he was told that the remittance has already been claimed in Cebu.
He knew that his sister lives in Las Pinas, but he called her just to make sure where she was at the moment and she confirmed that she is indeed in Las Pinas.
He then personally went back to LBC Robinsons Novaliches to clarify the issue and he was told the same thing – that his remittance was already claimed in Cebu under his sister’s name.
They also showed him the picture and the Postal ID used by the person who claimed the remittance in Cebu, who used her sister’s name.
He was disappointed that LBC allowed that person to claim/receive the remittance in Cebu when the pick-up address in the form that he filled out was Las Pinas.
Filing a Complaint
He wrote a Demand Letter and submitted a formal complaint addressed to LBC Customer Care, dated August 2, 2016.
For several days, he’s always been told that the case was under investigation and it’s taking longer than what he expected. Worse, his sister and cousin were not able to take their exams because they were not able to pay their tuition fees.
So he turned to social media using his Facebook account to share his experience and hoping that he could get someone from LBC to take action on this issue.
True enough, as of this writing (August 13, 2016, 3:00PM), his post has recorded 60,194 shares, 34,000+ likes/reactions, and 13,759 comments.
His money to be returned
August 12, 2016
Rom posted an update on his Facebook account, dated August 12, 2016.
According to him, he received a call from Ms. Hermy Ignacio, supervisor of the representative who’s handling his case from the LBC Customer Care/Complaints department.
He was told that he can now claim the money that he sent last August 1, 2016 at LBC Robinsons Novaliches, same branch where his remittance was processed.
But in one condition…
He needs to HIDE or DELETE his posts on Facebook about this remittance issue.
He felt something wasn’t right, but he wanted to get his money back so he went to LBC Robinsons Novaliches.
He was given an Affidavit/Quit Claim, which he needed to sign on to claim his money (Php 24,720).
He read the document, however, he didn’t fully understand some of the legal terms so he opted not to sign on it just yet.
He asked if he could get a copy of the document so he could ask someone who knows better about the legal terms, but he was told that he will only be given a copy once he signs on it.
Therefore, as of this writing, his case is still “under investigation” and he was not able to claim his money yet.
Who is behind this issue?
According to Rom, only 3 people know about his transaction aside from him.
- The Customer Associate of LBC Robinsons Novaliches, who processed his remittance
- LBC Call Center Agent 1, who asked for his tracking number when he first called to verify his remittance and who told him that it’s ready for pick-up
- LBC Call Center Agent 2, who handled his second follow up call regarding his remittance
The investigation of this case is still ongoing and we don’t want to make any judgement as to who really is behind this, but we will continue to follow Rom’s updates on this matter.
About LBC and Remittance Services
LBC is one of the market leaders in payments & remittance here in the Philippines. It also claims to be the most trusted remittance service provider of the Global Filipino.
It’s saddening to hear issues like this especially because the money sent was intended for a student’s tuition fee and the company involved is one of the most popular remittance service providers in the country.
We entrust our hard-earned money to remittance service providers like LBC because we believe that they will deliver it to our recipients or beneficiaries.
This may be a very rare case, but we hope this issue will be solved as soon as possible. Not only for the benefit of the person involved (Rom), but also to protect LBC’s name and track record.
And we hope this issue won’t happen again.
Tips to avoid remittance issues:
- Never give your transaction or control number to anyone except for your recipient
- If possible, let your recipient/beneficiary claim the money as soon as it’s processed
- If the transaction didn’t push through, make sure to get the form that you filled out with the transaction number and your valid ID
Let me know what you think about this issue in the comment section below.
they did the same issue on me too. how can i get my money back? please help me