I never even banked at Charter One and they are still trying to extort money from me! Yes you read it right, extort! This all started in 1995 when I briefly opened an account at Rochester Community Savings (Rochester, NY) so that I could cash 'local' checks at the grocery store. Back then the bank required a $500 minimum balance on a 'basic' checking account to avoid a small banking fee. (Who does that anymore?) I was new in town. I kept the checking account afloat until the grociery stores would cash my old (out of town) bank checks. I was finishing my degree at a local college. I let the account go below the $500 minimum. I only let get it below the minimum the same month I CLOSED the account. I went to the teller to withdraw the few bucks I knew I had left and she told me I had ZERO in the account. She went on to tell me that the small amount I had in the account when to the minimum banking fee. She asked me if i wanted to make a deposite and I told her to terminate the account. I no longer needed it. I thought that was that. Well, Charter One took over RCS and after MAYBE a couple of years I get a bill from Charter One saying I owe THEM $300 dollars!!! As I looked into this I soon find out I 'supposedly' left RCS with a whopping negitve balance of approximately. 70 cents.in a very short time Charter One in all it's infamous book cooking grew that negative. 70 cents to over $300!! I even had to chuckle when I saw this outradge text book example of usury. With the laugh of all laughs this was usury with absolutely NO lending involved! I figured I would go to Charter One and work it out with their people. No one from RCS whom I had the account orginally with worked at the same building for Charter One. Well, I got Charter One's top dog. (at that branch) I explained I had the account closed and being a student for the last couple years I was moving place to place semester to semester and the mail finailly caught with me, so i was here at the bank tring to work this out. This 'in-charge' guy would not look into the situation. He was being surprisingly difficult. He told me I had no choice but to PAY the 300 I DO have a choice, I told him. We can go to court. Before I hand over 300 bucks I want you to tell the court 1.) why was my account NOT closed when RCB now Charter One assured me it was? 2.) Why did Charter One stop fees and interest at 300 and not at $5.00 or $1,000, 000? 3.) why would Charter One refuse to even look in to this and work out a compromise? 4.) As it turned out my attorney has questions concerning the unreasonably high rates of interest on a basic checking account fee. Oh, and there are other questions. I really thought I could have worked something out, I came to Charter One (in good faith) as soon as I realized what was going on. This Charter One rep refused to help in any way. I gave this banker my address and told him take me to court. They would never go to to court. They sent one debt collection agency to harass me and I gave them my info and told them 'let's go to court'. Never heard a peep from them since. Charter One knew where I was living but they refuse to go to court. It's been 10 years and there is a statute of limitations on such things. I have moved now and Charter One has sent another collection agency to harass me in a new state. If this continues I am going to take legal action. If they want to try and work this out REASONABLY I'm still willing to.
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