Everything about calling NatWest from abroad
Who NatWest is, and why customers call it from abroad
NatWest is a UK high-street bank offering current and savings accounts, credit cards, loans, overdrafts, mortgages and insurance. Its Contact Us page lists most subjects with a UK number, an Overseas number and a Relay UK number. NatWest even has a help article for customers who are abroad and think their card has been stopped: it explains that card use can be stopped as a precaution when activity matches known fraud patterns. For a NatWest credit card, the line for fraud is the freephone 0800 161 5153.
What 0800 161 5153 covers
NatWest lists 0800 161 5153 for personal credit card fraud and gives it as available 24 hours a day. It is the number to ring when a payment you did not make shows on a NatWest credit card, or when you think someone has your card details. Lost or stolen cards, general credit card questions and current account fraud each have their own NatWest line, so check the subject before you call: this one is for fraud on a personal credit card.
Why a UK 0800 number is awkward from a foreign line
0800 161 5153 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. NatWest's Contact Us page says only that the cost of your call will depend on what phone line you are using. When a fraudulent payment is going through, finding out which of those applies is time you do not have.
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 161 5153, 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. The panel at the top of this page shows the price before you call.
- Your customer number and PIN, the same details you use to log in to Online Banking.
- The credit card the call is about.
- For each payment you do not recognise, the date, amount and merchant.
- Expect security questions: NatWest says it will ask some to confirm your identity when you call about fraud.
Freeze the card in the app, and Cora
In the NatWest app you can freeze a card, which NatWest says instantly stops anyone else using it, while you sort out what happened. The assistant in the app, Cora, can pass you to a colleague by message or by phone, and NatWest says that in most cases you will not need further identity checks. NatWest says the app needs a UK mobile number, or an international one in specific countries, which matters if you live abroad.
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.