I was injured to the point I could not work for over two months. The weekend after my accident, I called all of my creditors to inform them of my situation. Since I was no longer getting paid from work, it was difficult to pay my bills.
After a few weeks of no money coming in and my Wells Fargo checking account going further and further into the hole (close to $900 negative), I called their customer service number. The lady I spoke with, in Colorado, was absolutely wonderful and understanding. Since the majority of my negative balance was due to the outrageous overdraft and NSF fees charged, she suggested I visit a branch and request help. She stated that the bank manager could possibly have my account frozen so no other bills will go through (the one's I sent out before the accident). She also said the bank manager might be able to refund some of the several hundered dollars in fees to help me out.
While on our conversation, she pointed out that my savings account still had $76 in it. I thought the account was empty. She told me I should try to withdraw the money so I could at least have cash on me for food.
The next day, on her advice, I went to the branch on Hulen street in Fort Worth. I first went through the drive-thru to the ATM to withdraw the $76 from my savings account. The card no longer worked since I hadn't used it in a long time.
I physically went inside the bank and asked to speak with a banker, not teller. The first lady I spoke with was pleasant and got the manager for me. This is where everything starts to fall apart.
The manager pulls me into her office and I explain the whole situation. The look on her face, alone, was intimidating. I brought a huge stack of evidence supporting my reasons for the negative account. She looked over my account on her computer and started asking why certain checks were written on the account. I explained to her that those were written when I was still getting paid from work. She started lecturing me on how my money was spent (i.E. Directv, Charter etc.). I let her know those creditors were already called. After a few minutes, she said she can't do anything until my account goes positive.
Before we left, my 7-year old daughter and I, I went to the teller to remove the $76 from my savings. The girl kept saying that it was a checking account, not savings. I showed her my savings card and pointed out the lack of a Visa symbol.
She asked if I had been writing checks on my savings account. I once again reiterated that it was just a plain savings account with no checks for it. She asked to see my checkbook. I opened the checkbook to a blank check and handed it to her. At first, she just glanced at it. All of the sudden, she starts thumbing through my carbons. I saw how she looked for particular check numbers and compared the carbon to her computer monitor.
"Why are you looking through my carbons?" I asked her.
She fumbled for wording. "i.I. Was looking at something."
"What are you looking at that requires my carbons?" No answer.
She hands my checkbook back to me and starts typing on the computer. While standing there, I started to get more and more confused and distrustful of her.
"Can I ask you a question?" I asked after a few moments. "Why again were you looking at my carbons? You see, I can't think of a single reason you would need to look at my personal business like that."
She stopped typing. I could tell she was embarassed that I caught her doing something she wasn't supposed to be. "i... I... Thought it was something else."
As I thought more and more about it, it made me angrier and angrier.
"You know what?" I replied. "I think I want that savings account closed instead."
She looked confused. "Closed?"
"Yeah, closed."
We exchanged our "good days" to each other. As I drove down the road, I kept trying to think of a single reason she needed to look through my carbons when I was asking about my savings account balance. To give her the benefit of the doubt, I called the 1-800 number.
A young lady answered.
"I have an odd question for you." I said.
"Yes ma'am. How can I help you?"
I explained the whole situation to her and asked, "Is there any reason she would need to thumb through my carbons and see my personal business? I mean, that's kind of private since I have a lot of doctors appointments."
The girl on the other end seemed to change from a courteous person to a teenager with an attitude.
"How would I know why she would do that? I don't work there. Why don't you call her or her manager and ask?"
"Uhhh. I think first of all, you need to calm down. I'm not asking you why she did it, per se. I'm asking you if you can think of any reason she would need to look at my carbons."
She calmed down and reverted back to the courteous woman from before.
"No ma'am. I honestly can't think of any reason she would look at your carbons."
I'm still confused by the whole thing. My carbons include something quite personal. What if I had written a check to Planned Parenthood or an AIDS clinic? These may be extreme examples, but show my reason for discontent. I don't appreciate someone, (1) looking through my personal business or, (2) lying to me about it when I just caught them red handed.
If anyone can think of a single reason this girl would need to view my carbons, I would love to know.
Thank you.
Vanessa
Fort Worth, Texas
U.S.A.
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