I paid $50.00 to Suntrust to transfer $1574.00 to a dive company in Bali, Indonesia. The funds transfer authorization confirmed this amount in USD. There was no mention of intermediate banks or other fees. Only $1554.00 made it to the dive company. The dive company and I expected the exact amount to be transferred. After I contacted the accounting office in Bali, they tracked down that a US bank had only transferred $1554.00. The Suntrust branch was notified and later found out that they had used an intermediate bank, "American Express Centurion Bank" in Salt Lake, Utah, to make the transfer. The American Express bank deducted $20.00 from the transfer amount without my knowledge or approval. Several visits and calls to the Cabin John branch resulted in "American Express bank took the money as a fee and there is nothing we can do about it."
Multiple emails to Suntrust headquarters resulted in "talk with the transferring branch manager" or "talk with the central wire facility." The Suntrust branch also passed me on to the central wire facility. The wire facility recorded my complaint and told me a manager would investigate and call me back. No one called after many days. I called the central wire facility again, and they were surprised no one had called. They passed me back to the Suntrust branch that made the initial transfer contract. They also told me that interbank fees have been going on "since the dawn of time." They told me that most people transfer more than needed just in case an extra fee is deducted. They told me there is "no way to guarantee an exact transfer amount overseas."
In summary, I tried to transfer an exact amount of money to a company in Bali, Indonesia, by a funds transfer authorization form at the Cabin John Suntrust Bank. There was never any mention of transfer fees or other transfer banks. Suntrust charged $50.00 for the transfer, which came out of my bank account, and American Express Centurion Bank took $20.00 off the top of the transfer amount. The result is that the company in Indonesia never got the amount of money needed. Seventy dollars later, the company in Indonesia still has not received the intended amount.
Suntrust Bank, which I have banked with for over 20 years, has done nothing but give excuses, pass me from one place to another, and has not offered a resolution to my problem with the company in Indonesia.
Recommendations for international transfer of money using SunTrust Bank:
1. Always ask if any other banks will be involved and if they take fees off the top of the money to be transferred. Then get it in writing.
2. Try to find a bank that can transfer directly to the receiving foreign bank.
3. Find a bank that only charges $10.00-30.00 for international transfers.
4. Remember, a funds transfer authorization does not guarantee that the exact amount intended will make it to its intended party.
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