Can't let you upgrade

Help
#1

Hi, sorry to break this out to a new topic but I have had the following issue when trying to upgrade to Plus/ Premium for a few weeks:

“Sorry, but we can’t let you upgrade your Monzo account right now.”

I checked the forum to see anyone else had this problem but I couldn’t find any previous posts. Apologies if it has been mentioned before.

The in app self help advised I check:

  • I have enough funds to pay the fee (all good).
  • I’m sadly very much over 18.
  • I’m on Android 10, with the latest version of the app (including a reinstall).
  • No gambling.
  • No crypto purchases.

I contacted support to see but they could only give me a broad answer simply stating they could not give me Plus/ Premium and they were sorry for the inconvenience. The agent who responded to me was from the Plus/ Premium team so I imagine they have a solid understanding of any internal requirements.

There are a couple issues that I’m purely guessing could cause it:

  • I have been a user since the beta days moving to the current account in 2017, however I have not used my account for my salary and I have very low card usage.
  • I have potentially a data issue with Transunion. (This is a guess, as I can view my Experian and Equifax files but I am unable to see my Transunion file through any provider)
  • I have a 3 year inconsistency notice on National Hunter for opening too many accounts in a short period (2 x current accounts and 4 savings accounts, with 2 x providers around September 2019, Lloyds and First Direct)

I know the forum can’t provide any specifics on Monzos internal decision making but I was hoping to see if anyone else had the issue and if they found out the route cause.

Do my guesses seem logical or do you think theres potentially another reason Monzo wouldn’t want me to upgrade?

(As a btw, I have no grievance, I understand this is the banks discretion. I’m genuinely just trying to figure it out)

#2

Hi. Welcome.

Seems bizarre that Monzo can’t give you the answer.

You don’t still have old old Plus running do you?

#3

I presume not, as you would likely have mentioned it, but you are not in the Channel Island or Isle of Man are you?

First I have seen of that particular error message on the forum

#4

Blockquote
Hi. Welcome.

Thanks for the welcome. I’m a very long term lurker lol. I never had the old plus at all. No previous fraud issues or disputes.

#5

Northern Ireland here. Interestingly the error is a full UI design, so its not just some odd broken programming script from what I can see.

Screenshot_20201020-201730_Monzo
Screenshot_20201020-201730_Monzo1080×2400 204 KB

#6

I have heard mentions of issues with Northern Ireland before, but that’s not superb UX

Paging @Rat_au_van and @nathanthomson8

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#7

I don’t think it’s location related based on this post

#8

Oh that makes slightly more sense. Some mainland UK based banking products aren’t available in NI. Thats more to do with different gambling laws though. I wonder if this problem is do with the insurance products bundled with Premium thats the underlaying factor.

#9

You rangggg…

Umm well i tried going through the process and i was able to get to this screen. Not sure if this is before or after you get the error?

image
image1242×2208 342 KB

Could this be down to the bug fix that was released yday @arthur-ceccotti i believe you mentioned in the android breakdown thread?

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#10

My help article doesn’t mention the last two in your list.

I find it strange that bad credit or even previous fraud would stop Monzo letting you get plus , no more risk to them really.

Edit; maybe premium as there is a lay out for the metal card, but not plus.

#11

Lol thanks for stepping in Nathan. I never got to this page I’m afraid. My error is right after I hit the upgrade button.

#12

Oh yeah sorry, I work in FasterPayment fraud so I tend to see things from even the silliest risk perspective. I added those last two as possibilities. The error even happened when only Plus was available.

1 Like
#13

Ah ok,

You should be able to send a subject access request directly to transunion to have a look.

#14

Can confirm I didn’t have a problem signing up to Plus

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#15

I think you are correct with regards to Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) and that is why the upgrade is not available to me as I am an Isle of Man resident. IPT charged at 20% by the UK Government on insurance products such as phone, motor and travel insurance. Isle of Man residents are exempted from the tax as it is a UK tax but there is the hassle of re-claiming it and I guess Monzo thinks it is not worth all the hassle because of the small population here. Interestingly Apple don’t let you take out Apple Care insurance here either, so even the the biggest of all Companies don’t want to be bothered.

#16

Sign up to Credit Karma for free - they show your TransUnion data.

#17

Ah thats incredibly informative, thank you. In Northern Ireland we typically can’t get covered for a lot of car insurance that covers Britain only.

#18

Cheers for this. Something isn’t quiet right with Credit Karma and me. They have issues ID’ing me even though I had Noddle in the past.

#19

I reached out to support again and asked if the issue is something specific to myself or a broader policy issue, such as my address. They advised me they couldn’t give a reason and that they may be able to offer Plus/ Premium in the future. This indicates to me that its specific to me and my ‘conduct’ sort of speak.

I still have my overdraft available so it doesn’t seem to be a credit risk issue. I’m going to submit a SIRA SAR. Something is off I can’t shake the feeling I’m out of the loop on something not viewable on my credit file.

So far my best guess is that the Nhunter notice is a problem for the insurance component of the upgrade.

I’ll update the thread if I figure it out. Thank you all for your input so far.

4 Likes
#20

I got to the same page as Nathan so it’s not a Northern Ireland issue

1 Like