DENVER - On the heels of the collapse of Norlarco Credit Union and the negative publicity that surrounded the failed institution, the last thing Public Service Employees CU needed was bad press regarding the service it's providing former Norlarco members-but that's just what it got after a recent computer glitch at the $938-million credit union.
Public Service acquired Norlarco in February and converted the troubled CU's 40,000 members to its Symitar system Aug. 30. That move went "smoothly" despite a few "minor problems," Public Service told Credit Union Journal. But the local Coloradoan newspaper saw things differently.
On Sept. 2, the paper ran a story that said "computers crashed and phone lines were jammed" that morning and that 748 debit cards were not working.
"None of that information is correct," reported Steve Ferrero, vice president of marketing and public relations for the 121,000-member Public Service. "There were no computer crashes and phone lines were not jammed. It was a Tuesday following a holiday weekend, so the phones and lobbies were busier than normal, but not like what was described in the paper."
Brief Problem With Expired Cards
Ferrero acknowledged there was a "brief" problem with Norlarco members who had credit cards that expired Aug. 31. Those members had been issued new cards, but the new card data was not entered into Norlarco's existing computer system before the conversion. "We became aware of the problem very quickly and manually re-entered the data in our system on Sunday," explained Ferrero. "So that issue was corrected before we opened for business on Tuesday."
A problem with an unknown number of Norlarco business debit cards remained as of Sept. 3, Ferrero said.
"There was certain information about these accounts that was not entered into the previous system, such as phone and Social Security Numbers, that prevented us from authorizing transactions on some cards," said Ferrero.
Public Service CEO Dave Maus contacted the Coloradoan to share the credit union's side of the story. The following day the newspaper adjusted its story "slightly, but not what we would have liked," admitted Ferrero.
The Norlarco acquisition was the largest in Public Service's history, making the data transfer the biggest the credit union had undertaken, explained Ferrero.
[The newspaper story is] kind of frustrating because we went to great lengths to ensure that this conversion would go as smoothly as possible," Ferrero said. "It was a big conversion, and for the most part I think it was a smooth transition."
Norlarco members were also issued new account numbers, which Ferrero said can lead to a little confusion. "It takes time to get used to something new. In a couple days we'll work through this and be fine."
For More Information
* www.pscu.org
* www.symitar.com(c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.http://www.cujournal.com/ http://www.sourcemedia.com/
