SALLY SORTS IT: I transferred £48,000 to NS&I but my money has vanished

On 30 December last year, I transferred £48,000 from my Revolut account to National Savings & Investments (NS&I) to purchase additional Premium Bonds on top of the £2,000 I already had.

Revolut confirmed that the money was received by NS&I on the same day.

Since I hadn’t been notified of prizes last month, I logged into my account to make sure I hadn’t missed any.

I was shocked to discover that only the original balance of £2,000 was displayed.

NS&I seems to have lost my money. General Practitioner, Chelmsford, Essex.

Sally Hamilton replies: When you discovered your money was missing, you immediately called NS&I, who reassuringly told you it had a record of receiving the £48,000.

But then it added that it no longer had your money.

It turned out that your transfer was not accepted because the home address on your Revolut account did not match the address on your NS&I account.

You explained that your premium bond account is registered with your UK address. But you also have a house in Spain on which the Revolut account is registered, as you use this company for certain banking activities abroad.

NS&I employees told you that the money was automatically transferred back to Revolut, but they had no reference numbers to trace the money to.

Worryingly, your Revolut account didn’t show a statement of your money either. Where was it?

I contacted NS&I on your behalf and the detective work began to locate your savings.

A few days later it turned out that Revolut had reversed the refunded payment because the security systems didn’t like the mismatched addresses on your two accounts either.

In this game of ping pong with your money, the money had ended up with NS&I again.

Because there was no reference number associated with this transfer, the money disappeared into a black hole.

Even when you later managed to get hold of a payment ID for the Revolut funds, it was somehow missed by NS&I when you passed it on and no action was taken by the staff, causing you to panic and lose your money was lost forever.

Hardly any premium service from the Premium Bonds provider.

However, I am pleased to report that NS&I has found your £48,000 after an extensive search of the Treasury. It was on his account ‘pending’.

An NS&I spokesperson said: ‘We are sorry to hear that GP had problems transferring funds from his Revolut account to his NS&I account.

“We have given him a goodwill payment of £150 for the inconvenience caused by our omission.”

Unfortunately, your story is not yet fully completed, because despite the agreement that the money would be transferred directly to your bank account so that you could quickly reapply for your Premium Bonds, NS&I has sent you a check instead.

You fear that the inevitable delays could cause you to miss another monthly Ernie draw.

Let’s hope the money is credited soon and your luck with Premium Bonds changes for the better.

The hospital can’t find my wife’s wedding ring

My wife, who suffers from dementia, was admitted to Trafford General Hospital last May.

While there, her wedding ring and hearing aid went missing. I filled out a claim form, which I posted, along with two estimates.

Since then I have heard nothing, despite numerous calls to the hospital and sent from pillar to post. WH, Manchester.

Lost: This reader’s wife lost her wedding ring during her hospital stay

Sally Hamilton replies: It’s distressing enough to have a sick loved one in hospital, but to have her wedding ring – and her hearing aid – go astray while she’s in the care of the NHS has only added to your distress.

Hospitals are busy and hectic places and patients’ belongings can unfortunately be easy targets for determined thieves, or can simply go missing in the general chaos.

My elderly mother lost a pair of glasses and her lower denture during a hospitalization a few years ago, causing great grief and discomfort.

A denture was found in lost and found, but unfortunately it was not hers. The specs have also never been discovered.

The usual advice to patients is not to bring money or valuables to hospital or, if unavoidable, to deposit (and have them signed for) if possible. available.

Few people would imagine having to take off their wedding ring in these circumstances. And how many people can do without their hearing aids?

You had enough on your mind without these important things disappearing while your wife was sick.

The lack of communication from the hospital following your claim has increased your distress during the ten or so months since the items were lost.

We all know the NHS is under a lot of pressure, but it’s vital that patients and families can trust a hospital to look after all of their interests, not just their health.

Most trusts have systems in place to deal with such incidents.

In certain circumstances it may also be necessary to call the police if there is a suspicion of theft.

Since you are one of your wife’s main caretakers, you certainly have enough to deal with without having to chase this claim over and over again.

You recently threatened the hospital with legal action if you don’t hear about your case, to no avail – and you contacted me for help because you were at your wits end.

I am pleased to say that within a few days of contacting Trafford General Hospital on your behalf, the staff contacted you directly and your claim was dealt with soon after.

You and your wife have received £1,200 in settlement, which you are happy with.

Mission accomplished.

• Write to Sally Hamilton of Sally Sorts It, Money Mail, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT or email sally@dailymail.co.uk — include phone number, address and a note addressed to the offending organization giving them permission to talk to Sally Hamilton. Please do not send any original documents, we cannot take any responsibility for that. The Daily Mail assumes no legal liability for answers provided.