I had been with First Union Bank in Maryland for three years before they merged with
Wachovia Bank in the end of 2001. I had been a satisfied customer of First Union and had absolutely NO complaints with any bank, that is, not until
Wachovia took over my account. In less than 3 months they squandered away the money in my account with unnecessary fees that were not charged to me when I was a First Union customer. In addition, in June of 2002 I went away to an internship in a state that did not have a
Wachovia Bank at the time, so I stopped using my
checkcard and transferred my money to my
Bank of America account (there was a BOA within walking distance from the university). I also made certain that I had NO pending transactions or recurring bills on the account before I took the money out, and that I had enough to cover any fees for the three months that I would be away on the internship. Therefore, I left $25 in my account. What happens next only shows how incompetent and unscrupulous
Wachovia was and probably still is. In August 15, 2002 right before I was scheduled to return home from my internship, they charged my account $200 for a transaction that was completed in August 15, 2001, exactly a year before (even before they merged with First Union and took over my account). I called to dispute the item and wrote to the financial institution. There was no reply or investigation into this amount and I had the canceled check and all of the documentation to show them they made a mistake. Nothing was done to correct this account. On top of that it took almost $300 to close the account. For heaven's sake, I was a college student with excellent credit and no debts and this took me from being financially savvy to a financial
deadbeat in less time than I had spent building my credit. I gave
Wachovia a chance to retain my business but to no avail. I guess because I didn't have a strong financial stake in their company, they didn't recognize the importance of keeping me. I am no longer a
Wachovia customer and I have decided that I will never go back to this bank. I would rather keep my money in my pillowcase and get money orders to pay my bills rather than deal with a company that does not care about the majority of the people who use their accounts. Although
Wachovia has probably gotten better over the years, and are now serving more Metro areas on the east coast than before, I will adamantly stay away from using a
Wachovia ATM, checking account, mortgage, savings account, or any other entity that has the name
Wachovia attached to it. I am a loyal BOA customer since 2001 and now this is the only bank I do business with.
1. Written by Laz, on 17-09-2008 18:51
Here is the problem, and I can attest....from experience with Wachovia and Bellsouth.
These large companies loose touch with consumers. They are so big one pissed off customer means nothing to them. They will take your money, make you jump thru all kinda of hoops, and they have such a bureaucratic mess there last thing on their mind is the customer.
I am writing this message as the stock market lost NYSE lost 500 points yesterday at the news of these large companies loosing.
Who bails them out, the government with our money, true, if not what would be the ripple of effect. But the truth is they put themselves and our country is the predicament out of pure greed and trying to make the stockholders happy while being irresponsible. Shame our country is the way it is, and it is everyone’s fault....from the government, to these greedy large companies, to those people who don't complain, or do nothing...and by that I mean never speak their mind.
Unfortunately, even though sometimes it does not help, if you can prevent one other soul from making same mistake then it was worth posting and reading.
God Bless Us All.
thanks for reading.
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2. Written by Totally AGREE with ya!, on 03-09-2008 15:27
I totally agree. I had Provident Bank of MD and i recently switched to BOA and I LOVE THEM!!! BANK posts your money same day, especially cash!!! Provident Bank was hitting me with all of these Over draft fees constantly because they would take forever to transfer funds from my savings to my checking account even after i did the transfer online which should be relatively quick. With BOA when i transfer my money from savings to Checking, it shows up in my acount IMMEDIATELY and with NO WAIT time. NO wait time, do you hear me?
Great idea to post this about Wachovia. i almost opened an account with them. And with BOA also....there are NO FEES.
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3. Written by Fit@60, on 03-09-2008 12:49
 I feel for you and agree. If you have been reading the news and researching - BOA, Wells Fargo and another bank - name escapes me - are the only three, worthy bank. The sh** has not yet hit the fan on this financial crisis, we must plan accordingly. BOA is one of the best in MD.
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Consumer Forum is another great place to discuss consumer concerns NOT RELATED to this article. |
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