Bank Of America
NSF fees Charged after Deposit made with Cashiers Check

After being a loyal customer with Bank of America for DECADES, I have finally decided that I no longer will tolerate being treated like a criminal.

I brought in a $5500 commission check from my employer (a long respected local major Real Estate firm) to the local BofA branch I always use and attempted to deposit it into my account. I requested that it be posted immediately as I had a business trip scheduled for the next day. I was told no, they had to hold the check. I very politely requested access to $1000 as needed about that much for my trip. I was told that a two day hold was required and was referred to "supervisors" who turned out to the be the greeters at the front of the bank. After telling my story, one of the greeters took my check and said he would ask the manager.

After a few moments, the greeter came back, looking rather abashed, and said the manager said it was not possible, the check had to have a 2 day hold. I took the check back and went to the bank it was drawn on, a local bank a few miles away. That bank took it and cashed it with no problem. The cashier patiently listened to my story. I was so pleased that I immediately opened a savings account. The teller hesitated when she opened the drawer and suggested that I carry a cashier's check back to BofA instead of all that cash, since they "wouldn't put a hold on that".

I agreed, but then asked for $1000 cash, and the rest made into a cashier's check, just to make sure.

I went back to BofA and deposited the check (there was a whole new crew - all very young). After the deposit was made and AS I WAS TURNING AROUND TO WALK OUT, the teller said there would be a two day hold on the check.

I turned around and very loudly said, "You're putting a two day hold on a CASHIER'S CHECK???" Everyone in the bank heard me, and one older woman in line made a comment how our money isn't ours anymore. I ranted (no swearing, I promise!) about how my husband and I had been a BofA customer for decades and I just couldn't see the logic in holding a CASHIER'S CHECK drawn on a local bank when in real estate we regularly transfer hundreds of thousands of dollars instantaneously, why ON EARTH would it take 2 full days to verify the validity of a cashiers check drawn on a local bank that's just a phone call away?

The cashier then rather sheepishly said I had immediate access to $100. I stared at him unbelievingly for a second, stormed out and swore I would close my account and never do business with them again.

After coming back from my business trip today, I found 3 NSF charges on my account. I called customer service (what a joke of a name) to request that they be removed due to the circumstances. I was told no. I asked to speak with a supervisor, who also said no, I had been informed of the hold, therefore they were not liable and I had to pay. I was very upset and told her I couldn't understand their logic, especially with a long time customer. She was very snooty with me and told me she did not have to listen to such language - I had to think about what I had said, it was "damn". I was absolutely speechless. Not only was I being treated like a criminal by my own bank, but I was being lectured on using an extremely mild expletive by some kid??? Then I told her that after over 25 years with BofA with service getting worse every year, I was closing my account and hung up. I think I used the word "hell" in that rant. Bad me.

(On a side note, my husband called them about 1/2 hour later and demanded that the charges be removed and THEY REMOVED THE CHARGES. Does this smack of sex discrimination - they refused to do it for me but did it for him - or just that my hubby is more forceful and browbeat them into it? Who knows.)

I have already been burned by the "biggest first" NSF scam a few years ago. Due to a bookkeeping error that I readily admit, five items came through at the same time, but instead of paying them in the order they were received, the largest one was paid first, which left me with FOUR NSF charges, instead of the one I should have had.

I have found with very little research that NationsBank (one of BofA's predecessor organizations) was involved in a class action lawsuit in 1999 that was settled for $9 million dollars, for this very practice. So they paid a chunk of cash to make the suit "go away", but continue to "help" their customers by deciding FOR us which checks/payments should be posted and which should be NSF'd... Wait a minute... Since they were all paid against the account with their "overdraft protection", why would it matter which order the checks were posted EXCEPT to garner all those unnecessary NSF fees and therefore boost their revenue???

But I digress...

After waiting a few days to make sure everything has cleared, I am closing my account with BofA forever. My husband and I will be banking with a local company that actually cares about people and the value of loyal customers.

I am DONE with Bank of America.

Susan
Lancaster, California
U.S.A.

Company: Bank Of America
Country: USA
State: California
City: Lancaster
Address: 44411 20th Street East

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