Unhappy with SBI service? Know the way to redressal

There is a lot of disappointment among common people regarding the services provided by various public sector banking institutions in our country. The banking regulator Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the government have taken up this issue seriously. Grievance redressal is one of the parameters that the RBI uses to measure financial inclusion. State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s biggest commercial bank with 49 crore customers — a number that is more than the combined population of the US, England and Germany — has taken various steps so that customers can lodge their complaints or grievances and formulate a mechanism to resolve them.

Redressal process

If you are SBI customer and not happy with service, you can lodge a formal complaint. The process is simple. Only a phone call or SMS is enough to register it. In case the grievance is not resolved, or you are not satisfied with the bank’s response within 30 days from the date of registration, you can approach the RBI. All windows are open for you.

According to information on SBI’s official website, there are some steps you have to follow.

STEP 1: In case of any grievance with the services you can contact the branch manager or call at toll free numbers 1-800-425-3800 / 1-800-11-22-11. You can also send an SMS “UNHAPPY’ to 8008202020.

STEP 2: In case the grievance is not resolved within 10 days, or you are not satisfied with the bank’s response, then you may please contact the network nodal officer (NNO). You can find NNO details at the branch office and SBI official website. You may also write to the chairman of SBI.

STEP 3: In case the grievance is not resolved or you are not satisfied with the bank’s response within 30 days from the date of registration, don’t worry. There is a mechanism where you can approach the banking ombudsman. You can lodge grievances online to BO.

Financial inclusion

India is trying to become a $5 trillion economy by 2024-25. To achieve this target, financial inclusion of every person is the most important task. But the ground reality is not very encouraging. Even today there are many areas in the country where formal banking service is not available to the citizens. Redressal of grievances, especially in public sector banks, is also a major concern. If grievances are ignored or stonewalled, the $5 trillion target will not be fulfilled.