Complaint / Review
BB&T - Branch Banking & Trust
Phone24 charges $2.00 after speaking to a live person twice

Somebody at BB&T is a real genius. Let me tell you what just happened to me.

I was having some trouble figuring out when a check was going to post to my account. So I called the bank and listened to the message, and I did not get enough info, so I wanted to speak to a live person. So far, this is easy and it sounds normal. Just wait, it gets better.

I got the information I thought I would get: "It hasn't posted to your account yet. Give us a call tomorrow and we'll see what we can do." Okay, so I called the next day (this was yesterday, mind you) and got the exact same quote from another person. I was a little miffed but not boiling.

I woke up this morning and found a funky $2.00 charge on my account for Phone24. I did not know what it was, so I called the 800 number (800-226-5228, for anyone who wants to know). I got a live person on the phone and she said this: "That's a charge from us because you spoke to a live person more than twice in one banking cycle." And I said, "What!?!? You have to be kidding me. You mean to tell me that if I call this 800 number and talk to a live person more than twice in a banking cycle, you are going to charge me 2 bucks." Without flinching, she said, "Yes sir. It's in the Pricing Guide."

To make matters worse, when I asked her if I was being charged for talking to her right then, she said, "Yes sir. You are."

So now I am boiling. I am upset because this is the smartest way for a bank to make money, but as always it is at our expense. I cannot believe that I cannot just talk to someone. Now I have to pay to talk to them. They think that since they have email and automated systems, we should not have to call. I want to talk to a live person, not a machine.

So now the woman is going to send me a pricing guide by mail because I want to see this in print. But she read it right off the paper, so I assume it is correct. I wish someone at the bank had told me about this.

Anyway, be forewarned that if you call BB&T Phone24 more than twice in a banking cycle and speak to a live person, you will be charged $2.00 every time you do.