I've banked with Regions since 1998, and I've been generally satisfied. Recently, however, I was assessed $216 in overdraft fees as a result of the bank reordering my transactions from highest to lowest. I was charged six $36 overdraft fees. All but one of the transactions (the highest) would have cleared if they had processed them in the order they were actually transacted. Thus, I should have been charged only one fee.
Now, I'm not arguing that they should order the transactions from least to most; clearly, the most honest and fair practice would be to simply maintain the original order of the transactions. This business of rearranging the order of purchases to intentionally trigger a series of fees should be illegal. It is clearly a predatory practice.
I spoke with customer service and was advised that a fee will be charged when you use your debit card without the funds to cover the purchase. Well, yes, that's obvious enough. The problem is that I did have the funds to cover almost all of the purchases... If the bank had cleared them in the order they posted, rather than in the order they chose. I spoke with someone in management who was equally condescending and unyielding.
Mind you, my account is generally in good standing, and I've been a customer for almost fifteen years. I do not habitually overdraw my account; it's a very rare issue. I would be okay with having been charged one fee, but six is ridiculous. Unless the bank reverses this decision and refunds my money, I will close my account and go to a credit union. Bank of America just settled a $400 million dollar class-action lawsuit over this very issue, and countless other banks are currently under investigation for the same.
It's time to expect more, Regions. I expect more.
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