Everything about calling Lloyds Bank from abroad
Who Lloyds Bank is, and why customers call it from abroad
Lloyds Bank is a UK high-street bank offering current accounts, savings, credit cards, loans, car finance, mortgages and insurance. Its Call us page sorts its numbers by subject, and the subject that cannot wait is a lost or stolen card. Lloyds gives that one its own freephone line, 0800 096 9779, and keeps it open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For a customer outside the UK, a card that disappears on a trip is the most common reason to need Lloyds at an awkward hour.
Why a UK 0800 number is awkward from a foreign line
0800 096 9779 is UK freephone, which is a domestic rule. From a foreign SIM or a hotel phone, a UK 0800 number may not connect at all, or your operator may bill it as an international call at its own rate. Lloyds' own note on its Call us page says calls from abroad are charged according to the telephone service provider's published tariff. So the cost and the connection depend on the phone in your hand, not on Lloyds.
What Losali does with this number
Losali is an independent dialler that runs in a web browser. Your call travels over the internet and Losali's telecom carrier connects it to 0800 096 9779, so your foreign network only carries data. There is no app to install and no UK SIM to buy, and it works from a laptop or a borrowed phone if your own phone was taken with the card. The panel at the top of this page shows the price before you call.
Lost card: online first, then the phone
Lloyds says you can report a lost or stolen card online, which blocks it straight away and saves a phone call. In the app, search for 'lost or stolen' and fill out a short form; in online banking, go to help and support and choose lost or stolen card. A new card arrives in five working days, depending on the card, and the debit card details show in the app the next day. A cancelled card cannot be reinstated, so if you have only misplaced it, Lloyds suggests freezing it instead. If you cannot get online, 0800 096 9779 takes the report at any hour.
- Decide whether the card is gone or only misplaced: a cancelled card cannot be reinstated.
- Have your account details and your telephone banking security information ready.
- Note where and when the card went missing, and any payment you do not recognise.
- Think about where the new card should go: Lloyds says it arrives in five working days, depending on the card.
After the call
Once the old card is reported, Lloyds says you can view your new debit card details in the app the next day and credit card details within five days. If you are registered for Apple Pay or Google Pay, Lloyds says you can keep paying that way while you wait for the new card. For anything that is not a lost or stolen card, Lloyds points customers who use online banking to its secure messaging, where a virtual assistant answers 24 hours a day and passes you to a person if it cannot help.
What kind of number is this?
Freephone 0800 / 0808. Free to call from inside the UK. With Losali the call is billed at €0.99/min, per whole minute, prepaid, and the price is shown before the call starts.