A mum-of-two was forced to borrow cash to buy food after her bank accounts were locked and her balances showed she was £1million in the red.
Kameka Smith-Barrett, 30, said she “almost had a heart attack” when she saw her current account and savings were both £500,000 in debt.
The mental health support worker, from Oldbury, West Mids, said Barclays locked her out for 10 days and offered her “no explanation”.
Barclays said “activity on the account” had triggered a review, and the negative balances were imposed to stop further transactions.
She claims both bank accounts were also locked for 10 days while an investigation took place meaning she had to borrow money from friends and family to buy food and pay bills.
“When I logged on I realised that a large amount of money had disappeared. All I could see was £500,000 overdrawn on both accounts.
“I almost had a heart attack. I thought ‘this is really bad’. It’s horrible, I was shaking.
“I don’t even have an overdraft on my account.
“I’m not the Prime Minster or a footballer. I don’t get a huge amount of money now I’m on maternity leave.”
Barclays said that “activity on the account” led to a review - but the negative balance “was not actual debt, just a precaution.”
It has now apologised to Kameka for the inconvenience caused.
“Having reviewed the case, I can confirm the activity on the account prompted a routine review.
“While this review was undertaken the accounts stated a negative balance,” a Barclays spokesman said.
“This was done to safeguard the funds whilst the internal investigation took place. The negative balance on the account was not actual debt, just a precaution.
“The customer credit file and financial history have not been affected.
“All safeguards have since been removed and the funds have been returned. We’re sorry for any inconvenience that may have been caused.”
