posted on April 7, 2004 11:11:02 PM new
This afternoon I screamed with rage! I have been jerked about 6 ways to Sunday this week by Bank of America.
It started on Monday evening, when I discovered that my ATM card was missing. So I called BoA and had it canceled & ordered another one. As I had an ATM account (& got charged for inside bank transactions), I told the man that I needed the card ASAP. He said he would send it Express & that it would arrive on Wednesday (today). He also said that it could not be sent to my work address & I should call the next day & get a window of delivery to my home. That way I wouldn't have to take the whole day off work to be home to sign for the thing.
Yesterday, Tuesday, I did call to get a window of delivery. And discovered that the guy hadn't sent it Express, but by snail mail instead!! After a bit of fuming I got the woman I was talking to to change it to Express delivery. Now the ATM card was to be delivered on Thursday (tomorrow). I wistfully said I wished it could be delivered to me at work so I wouldn't have to take any time off to be home for delivery--and she told me it could, even though the schmuck I'd spoken to on Monday had said it couldn't. $%^#@! I also had my account changed to a new type they have called "My Way" that means I won't be charged for going inside--I have a lot of deposits to make due to eBay. It's still a pain to have to go inside the bank every day to deposit things, but at least it won't cost me.
Today, Wednesday, I came home for lunch and found an Airborne Express envelope sitting on my front porch--just laying out on the step. It had an ATM card inside. I called BoA and told them what I thought of the delivery method: a) at home, not work as requested, b) left without being signed for (which I'd requested), and c) left laying on my porch where anyone could have taken it. Then I called to activate the card. But it couldn't be activated...
Turned out that the card that was delivered today was in fact not my new ATM card. My old card had evidently been due to expire anyway & this was the replacement. But it had already been cancelled because my original card had beenlost... I discovered this when I called BoA to find out why I couldn't activate it.
Ooookay. So, I said, my replacement card is still going to be delivered tomorrow, at my workplace? Silly question, of course it wasn't. No, the woman says--it was sent out today, so you're going to get it on Friday.I don't work this Friday, it's my day off!
I could feel my face turning scarlet with rage as I asked "You mean I have to go in to work on MY DAY OFF and hang around for my card to be delivered?!?" At which point the woman gives me a confirmation number to check with Airborne Express to get a window of delivery...
I called Airborne Express, but that number wasn't good until after 8pm tonight because the item was sent out just this morning...but they did tell me that if was taking 2 days to deliver, BoA wasn't sending my card by Express delivery, as they'd been telling me, because Express is overnight!
A facial tic had hit my cheek as I called BoA yet again and inquired whether they'd actually sent it Express or not. The man I spoke to this time said he has no way of finding that out. Oh yes you can, I growled--yesterday you guys could tell snail mail from express, so you can tell express from two-day delivery today. He stuck to his guns, so I asked to speak to a supervisor & got put on hold. Then I got cut off. Dial tone.
Foam was flecking my lips as I called BoA again & demanded to speak to a supervisor. And I got one. Who flatly told me that BoA "doesn't use Express, only two day delivery" despite the fact that they'd been saying "Express" all damn week!!!!
I'm afraid I lost it at that point and yelled at her. I told her they'd been screwing me over all week, and that it was a good thing the telephone survey they'd offered me yesterday wasn't in the offing today because I was seriously displeased with their company. I further told her that Wells Fargo was looking a lot more attractive as a banking alternative & BoA was looking a lot less attractive. And that I would be telling all the folks I knew about the kind of "excellent experience" (as their reps offer to give you when they answer the phone--I kid you not) Bank of America actually gives. I ended by saying that BoA needs to give a lot more thought to customer service and that when they've screwed up as badly as they have with me, they should damned well USE Express Overnight delivery--and pay for it out of their pockets--to get my card to me, instead of making me go into work on my day off to wait for delivery of my ATM card.
Oh. Um. Ah, the supervisor offered. Yeah, that about sums it up. Because I sincerely doubt that they'll do anything of the kind. Looks like I get to go to work on my day off--when I called them again this evening the recording only told me that my ATM card is on its way. Maybe tomorrow I'll be ableto get a window of delivery from them. I don't want to spend my entire day off at work, damn it. But I have to be there to sign for it when it comes. Unless they decide to do what they did today, and just leave it outside the door of the library...
posted on April 8, 2004 05:30:31 AM new
first,how did you lose your ATM card??
banks merge /acquire banks and get bigger and bigger.bigger banks do not offer better service to their customers,they offer their CEO a bigger ego and a bigger $$ package.
wells fargo better than bank of america??
sit down and take a deep breath,all these big banks are really not that much different.
my local bank is now part of wells fargo,the personal banker told everyone she can no longer hold hands with them,(or take a walk with them on the beach under the moonlight).
these banks have different depts performing different tasks,express mail is expensive (they offer these to corporate clients).
you talked to different clerks and they just sit and handle section of a case as the phone rings,soon it will be coffee break,soon it will be lunch and soon it is time to go home.
you want deluxe service,find a different bank.
it is not their fault you lost your ATM card,no where do i see you blame yourself for your carelessness.
how do they know you are off on friday,or monday or tuesday or wednesday or thursday??
so go back to work on friday and wait for your ATM card to arrive.
your second cup of coffee is on me!!
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 05:59:31 AM new "you talked to different clerks and they just sit and handle section of a case as the phone rings,soon it will be coffee break,soon it will be lunch and soon it is time to go home."
Unfortunately, your irate call only served to add some interest to their otherwise boring day. The bank employees that you spoke to, including the supervisor are just clerks and don't give a dam whether you're happy or not. Changing banks may not be the answer because as stopwhining also suggested, they are all the same essentially.
posted on April 8, 2004 06:23:43 AM new
it is not just the bank,it is every service offered to the 'people' at the proletariat rate!!
Internet service provider,telephone company,cable company,dollar stores.
They strive on volume.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 06:48:37 AM newfirst,how did you lose your ATM card?? ....no where do i see you blame yourself for your carelessness
It was stolen. I went to Vegas for the weekend and, not wanting to be tempted, I left my ATM card at home. A friend's daughter was housesitting for me & it seems she had a small party & someone got sticky-fingered. I came home Monday afternoon, wanted to deposit my meager winnings in the bank, and then discovered that the card was gone from the desk drawer I'd tucked it in.
you want deluxe service,find a different bank
Gee, when did telling the truth and providing good customer service become "deluxe"?
******
Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on April 8, 2004 06:56:40 AM new Sounds like time to get a new bank... maybe even a credit union.
Oh, I do have a credit union and have a couple of savings accounts with them.
I am now seriously looking around for a new bank. I need one that has a good ATM system--one thing nice about BoA is that no matter where you go, one of their ATMs is sure to be close by. And one with good online bill-paying. I left another bank several years ago because their idea of automatic bill paying was to get your money to its destination 9 to 11 days after you designated the payment...
******
Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on April 8, 2004 07:48:10 AM new
i am not trying to be a smart ass,but all these services offered to us at affordable rates,are based on no detour,no special situation,and not much exceptional handling.
whether it is manual or automated,they figure majority of calls made to customer service fall into certain categories and they preconfigurate all these into their system-yes,they will send you a replacement card,but at affordable shipping rate so it is all preprogrammed to go out from certain location with set shipping method.see they first said they will send it to your home,then they bent and said to your office,but how do they know you are off on friday?? or monday or tuesday?/they assume most people work from monday to friday and will be in the office.
a clerk sitting at his pc answering the phone just have limited resources to bend the system,nor are they really motivated to do so??what do they get??
sorry to hear someone stole your ATM card.
i have someone told me he was showing his apt for rent and two guys come in,while he was showing the rooms,one stole a roll of stamps from him,think of it,usps stamps!!
what next??toilet paper??
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 07:52:53 AM new
do you want a good ATM network to retrieve cash or what??
i just carry some cash and some credit cards with me when i go shopping,i seldom use the ATM.
what about a bank which has branches in supermarkets??
here,wells fargo is with kroeger.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 08:32:50 AM new
There is a good chance that anyone you talked to on the phone was in India as Bank of America outsourced all of their customer service calls a long time ago.
There is nothing "American" about this bank just like so many others.
posted on April 8, 2004 08:52:28 AM new
Bank of America does suck, but then, most all the other big ones do also.
You'd be better off using your credit union for everything
We each had to keep one bank account at Washington Mutual (we have automatic billpay for a couple things there) everything else is in the credit union. I absolutely hate WM, but all the banks here are about the same. The credit union has ATM cards. I never even checked if they can be used anywhere though, I always assumed they did..... guess I better check
__________________________________
"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."- Carl Sagan
posted on April 8, 2004 09:05:19 AM new
Bunni - I am a BofA customer who has gone off on them numerous times but to be honest, have looked at diffeent banks and not found anything better. The saddest part of your story is that despite the fact that they tell you it could take up to two weeks for you to two recieve the replacement card, it has never taken me more than two days to get an ATM card thru regular mail from them (I have 7 accounts and 3 ATM cards - I drive them crazy!) If you had them just use their regular service - you would have the card by now.
Good Luck with them and I hope you get your card without hassles. BTW - If you ask, because the branch visit was unavoidable due to the loss of the card, you can request that they waive the charges and they will.1
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on April 8, 2004 09:28:13 AM new
nearthesea,
if you can use your credit union atm card elsewhere,check to see how much is the fee.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 09:35:11 AM new
once upon a time,life was much simpler.we go to the bank only when we need cash or make deposit.
we withdraw enough cash to last us one week or more and go about our business.
why do we need the ATM for when most places take credit cards,debit cards,personal check and cash??
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 10:11:01 AM new
You know. I am not sure, because we've used the Credit union card in a grocery store, like as a debit. hmmmm, yeah I'll have to see if there are fees, using it other places besides the credit unions ATM
Is there a difference between a debit card and an ATM card? (I know most 'bank' cards put the Visa or MC logo on them) but is there a card, thats ATM only? In other words, do banks issue a card without the logo, and to be used at the ATM only and say , not at checkout at the grocery store?
__________________________________
"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."- Carl Sagan
posted on April 8, 2004 11:00:26 AM new
Near - yes they do. People who just have a savings account and not a checking account have a straight logoless ATM card. Also some "high risk" checking accounts have an ATM card only with no debit capabilities.
In general though Stop, in answer to your question about ATM cards, many people refer to their debit card as an ATM card out of habit from the pre-debit days.
I don't even use checks anymore. Of my three checking accounts I have had checks printed on only one and I could not tell you right now where those checks are.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on April 8, 2004 11:06:12 AM new
bunni - Well....at least you won in Vegas
I've had BofA for most of my life. Had a couple of problems over the years but nothing that made me think of changing. And I think a good point was made about how many and how convenient their ATMs are. If you do decide to change....be sure and ask about the additional fees for withdrawing out of an ATM that's not tied to that bank.
Like some others have stated I think what you experienced is very common now-a-days. Many customer service clerks could care less. They have a 'quota' of daily calls they must take each day. It's been that way for a number of years. Even happens in the health care industry.
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NTS - As I said, I bank with BofA and have what's called a Platinum Check Card. When I want to buy anything I just run it through the stores scanner and the scanner asks me if I want to use it as a debit or credit card. Credit is charging...debit takes the money directly from my checking account, just as if I'd written a check.
posted on April 8, 2004 11:38:53 AM new
Linda and fenix, thanks...
I think I have the same sort of card that you do, but through Washington Mutual. Mine is both credit and debit, on one card. It does actually go through a credit process when used as a Visa, not out of my checking account, but also can use my checking account as the debit part. I think this is fairly new to WM, not sure. BUT WM charges if I do not use a WM ATM machine. And even though there are quite a few WM banks round Seattle, they are not everywhere, and every month, I got dinged, they charge $1.50 a machine thats not theirs, and it does add up!
You know I can remember way back, you know when dinosaurs roamed when they didn't even take credit cards at grocery stores, and the atm/debit was brand new idea, at the stores I mean, woaw that was a long time ago!
__________________________________
"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."- Carl Sagan
posted on April 8, 2004 12:31:24 PM new
the fee can go as high as 3.95 for using other people's atm machine.
i hate to ask,but where are you all going with all that cash?most places take credit cards.
i shop at some ethnic places and they take cash,but i never buy that much .
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 12:46:03 PM new
I don't carry much cash on me at any given time, due to almost having been robbed a few years ago. My ATM card is of the debit type, with a Visa logo on it.
I am weaning myself off of credit cards--cut them all up except for one that I use only in emergencies. So the ATM card is crucial as some places don't take checks at all anymore.
It is also, I discovered this week, crucial for my online banking with BoA. With the old card stopped, and no new card activated, I can't get into my online banking at all--when I put in my ID code name & password, it tells me "there is no such account active at this time." Oh,joy.
Edited to say that I don't think I was talking to anyone in India. You can always tell because of the accents. The people I spoke to this week had nary an accent--which means, , they spoke just like I do.
******
Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
[ edited by bunnicula on Apr 8, 2004 12:51 PM ]
posted on April 8, 2004 01:15:28 PM new
some US workers have an accent too.but you can always ask-how is the weather in bombay today?or what did you have for lunch??
if your bank card has mc/visa logo,costco wont take it,as it will be charged a discount fee even tho the money is taken from your bank.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 02:03:57 PM new
I use a small local bank (only has seven branches in my area) rates are competitive and the service is more personal than you get at the large institutions. I avoid the larger banks whenever possible.
posted on April 8, 2004 02:34:52 PM new
As 12 said- try a credit union. I use one and there are no service fees. I even deposit foreign currency checks and MOs and there is no fees. No deposit fees for checks either. No fees for Paypal transactions in or out; no fee for electronic transfers in or out.
posted on April 8, 2004 03:18:30 PM new
That is so true, about credit unions. Ours take any checks, in all amounts, whereas the bank puts a hold on a $5000 check for 5-10 days, all depending who the teller is that day, even if you've been with them 15 years. The credit union has no problem taking checks for that amount
(no I don't get checks for $5K from ebay its from a trust)
__________________________________
"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."- Carl Sagan
posted on April 8, 2004 04:12:35 PM new
if you talk long enough,you will spot an accent,also the way they speak,indian speaks english,we speak american.
if all else fails,throw some american slang or latest fad at her and see how she reacts.
how about DIPPING FOOD!!
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 8, 2004 04:53:49 PM new
GRATIFICATION.
Well, it seems I was wrong. I didn't think what I said to the Bank of America supervisor yesterday would do a lick of good and resigned myself to not getting my ATM card until tomorrow.
Lo and behold, it arrived today. But even that couldn't go smoothly. They tried to deliver it at work this morning before we were open, but not expecting delivery today I wasn't on the lookout for them. When I checked with Airborne express at noon, I learned about the failed delivery attempt. I called them up to get it re-delivered, and the guy told me that it would have to be brought tomorrow morning. Joy. But then I guess he thought the matter through again, because when I got back to work, the envelope was waiting in my inbox for me.
Hallelujah!!!!! Of course, there is still the matter that they left it without me signing for it, but to hell with that.
I activated the card, but now they tell me that it will be 24 hours before my online banking will be available again. Well, spit.
BTW, when I called to ask about when my online banking wouldcome back up, I was transferred around a bit & the last place I was transferred to was in India.
Yes, they give them Western names & teach them colloquialisms, etc. But you can always tell by their inflection, no matter how well they speak English.
******
Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
Many customer service clerks could care less. They have a 'quota' of daily calls they must take each day. It's been that way for a number of years. Even happens in the health care industry.
