Many of your have had problems with Wachovia Bank.
I would like to give you some ideas about having your voices heard. It is good to vent, but this approach may be more effective. I personally had to re-work this letter for over an hour to process my upset with Wachovia. This letter offers a good form for arbitrary interest rate increases, gouging and unfair lending practices on mortgages (including lying), and even bank thefts—yes, I've had that also.
There is a website for filing Bank complaints: helpwithmybank. Gov Go to "file a complaint" on the right side and click on the form, which you can file out on line, print when done, and fax in. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency will register your complaint, and forward it to Wachovia for comment/resolution. Wachovia is getting many, many complaints. They are doing a lot of very aggressive things with customers, presumably to make up the losses that have resulted from very stupid investments in mortgage companies. As you may know, their CEO was recently fired. Wachovia bought out some mortgage writing companies at the height of the market and watched the value of these companies decline from significant assets to liabilities. The Wall Street Journal has a Wachovia story nearly every day. Wachovia stock has plummeted from a 52 week high of $54.54 to $18.22 on 6-18-08.
When Wachovia begins to log thousands of complaints via the Comptroller of the Currency, they will have some motivation to resolve these cases favorably. The Comptroller is probably hearing the same story line from thousands of angry Wachovia customers. If that happens, Wachovia backs off. I know of one case personally where they have alreaqdy reversed a 20 % interest rate. Wachovia does not like congressional investigations.
Let me use my Wachovia complaint as a form you can use also if you want.
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Re account #: 4267*
Dear Sir:
I am writing about the above cited account with Wachovia Bank.
This is an account with a $*.. Limit that I have maintained with Wachovia since 19*.. It has been used as an overdraft account, and I paid 6.25% interest on the balance (see copy of statement).
This month I received my statement and was shocked to find that Wachovia had increased my interest rate without notice to 21.24%—an increase of 240% (!)
I called Wachovia to determine what had happened. Wachovia acknowledged that I maintained this account responsibly since 19*..; that I paid my bill on time; that I always paid more than the minimum. Wachovia stated that my account was a credit card account although it had never been used as such.
I spoke first with JM (1-800-477-9131) on June 2, who told me that Wachovia had sent me a letter in September that stated there were thinking of increasing my interest rate. The letter stated, he told me, that I could write to them and tell them that I was willing not to charge anything else and in return they would freeze my interest rate. An easy condition to agree to! I told him that, to my knowledge, I had never charged anything on that account. So I told him to go ahead and so indicate on his computer.
Too late, he said. I had to write back by 5-19-08. But I could talk with Wachovia at that department at 1-866-506-5067. He connected me with MI. M spoke with me for about 30 minutes. She verified all that I told youregular, on time payments for more than the minimum amount on an account that was first opened in 19*. Never any problems. What happened, she said, is that I recently used the account, which I had always used for an overdraft account, for a $3,000 cash advance.
I explained that I did not use the money as a cash advance; rather, my banking rep used credit in that account to zero out a promotional account that had originally been set up as a one year, 0% account. However, Wachovia reduced the term to 6 months with no interest, and Wachovia then set the interest rate at 18.49% beginning on the 7th month. Shocked, I zeroed out the account. The last $3K that was used to pay off the $18.5K account came from the 4267 account.
To my great surprise, Wachovia charged me a 3% cash advance fee on the $3K the next month. I had never before been charged 3% on over drafts, I had not requested a cash advance, and yet I was being charged a 3% fee as if I had made a cash advance.
I asked M if we could cut to the chase and simply indicate on the computer that I would not be charging any more credit card purchases on my credit card, which was easy to do because I had never done so. M said that, no, it wasnt possible to make a no charge agreement retroactively even though I had never received any prior notification that Wachovia planned to raise my interest rate by 240% (!)
M thought it would be easier to simply open a new account, rather than change the new terms on the old one. She said she would check the availability of new accounts. After I was placed on hold on hold for about 15 minutes, M came back on and said there were no accounts being offered with more favorable terms. That I would have to pay off the balance in full (after paying the unexpected 3% cash advance charge) or continue to pay 21.24% interest on my balance.
What do I want from Wachovia?
Either of the following two solutions is acceptable to me:
Roll my rate back to what it was6.25%—and cancel the credit card aspect of the card, as Wachovia said they were willing to do in their supposed letter to me of September (that I did not receive).
Refund my $90 cash advance fee, refund the excess interest I paid (21.24% less 6.25% on $4,466.42), and I will zero out the account balance.
I might also note that I was told by Wachovia employees that Wachovia is being
flooded with thousands of calls similar to mine, so you might prepare yourself for letters from other Wachovia customers whose rates have also been arbitrarily increased by 240%..
Once more, I appreciate your help.
Sincerely,
Arb
Arnold
Chevy Chase, Maryland
U.S.A.
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