Bank Of America
bankof america.com
Mcallen Texas 78504
U.S.A.
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- Phone: 956-661-4250
- Web:
- Category: Banks
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Bank Of America ripoff continuosly charged false overdraft fees given inacurrate info Mcallen Texas
2Author
4Consumer
0Employee/Owner
It all began with a simple phone call to bank of america customer service. they informed me of all recent transactions made and that my account balance was more than enough to withstand charges. It turns out i was overdrafted and received fees in excess of $99.
i was charged $33 for 3 meals and what not, i called to complained but instead of good customer service i was treated terribly with no remorse.
They would not refund amount that was wrongly charged to me. i pretty much just put up with bad service, since i have bills to pay tied to bank of america.
a few weeks later, I checked my account online, as i do everyday for balance info and whatnot, it stated that i had a balance of $13. To my suprise after making more charges for meals and whatnot, charges mostly under $5, little did i know the balance given online was inaccurate and changed the day after. therefore leaving me in the negative continuing to use my check card on little things... strangely like the first time all charges were posted just before my paycheck had been direct deposited.
when i contacted bank of america, once again i recieved lously service, up untill i spoke to the manager who did not fully refund charges but wheeled and dealed to see where we could settle. what could i do but accept some of the refund... better than nothing. i didnt really have a choice.
anyhow i had a remaining balance of $30 some odd dollars and was informed by teller that a pending e-bill would not be processed on account of insufficient funds, pretty much saying it was to be self canceled. and sure enough it didnt.
because of some lousy supervisor's inaccurate info i was back again in the negative... making minor charges, mainly below $5 and little did i know i was being charged overdraft fees all over again.
after going through total embarrasment at a local fast food place denying my card due to insufficient funds, i again contacted bank of america, only to be disconected by an employee and then being told by an automated system their offices were closed.
after a sleepless night, i contacted b of a again and spoke with a wise ass supervisor who informed me, that it was my mistake and there was nothing they could do about it... my mistake... i was told the e-bill would not be processed due to the fact that it was $60 and i only had available funds of $30.
does this sound like my fault? so now my entire paycheck has gone down the drain, thanks to petty thieves like bank of america im in the hole $160 some odd dollar on behalf of their mistake.
there were some things that did strike me odd.
*large payment were processed first, then many small ones probably to charge overdraft as many times possible.
*available funds were manipulated via phone and online. made me think i had money when i didnt supposedly.
*charges were always posted just a day before payday, i guess in order for them to be able to charge me.
ps: their response to everything is i should keep written transaction of every purchase i made... i didnt because every charge i made appeared the same day or 1 to 2 days later online. i used their manipulative online services each and everyday to keep track of purchases. and everything always checked out right.
Jason
MCALLEN, Texas
U.S.A.
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REBUTTALS & REPLIES:
2Author
4Consumer
0Employee/Owner
Updates & Rebuttals
#1 Consumer Comment
AUTHOR: Robert - Wallingford (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
POSTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
There seems to be one common element among those complaining about overdraft fees.
The time people spend logging in online or at the ATM to check their balances could be spent keeping their own account register (on paper or with a software program). Those slips of paper you get aren't just to keep paper recyclers in business. Your own register is far more accurate and you know that when your running balance gets to zero, you stop spending.
Pretty simple and guaranteed to keep you from overdrawing your account and being charged fees. It won't matter what order the bank post transactions. And it will piss off the bank since they are not getting any fee income from your account.
Stop relying on the ATM and your online account information. It's not accurate.
The majority of banks post transactions largest to smallest, of course to generate more fees. It takes alot of research to find a bank that does not. If you do find one, spred the word to others.
There is no excuse for lousy customer service and attitude regardless of whose fault the overdrafts are. Granted everyone has a bad day, however the number of complaints about BOAs customer service alone would make me move my accounts elsewhere.
Good luck.
#2 Consumer Comment
AUTHOR: James - APO (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
POSTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
I agree... Keep your own register, and you will no longer have problems.
But, with that said:
Several years ago, BoA was sued successfully in Federal Court. They were engaged in the act of "Sequencing", that is, not debiting your account in the order received, but debiting from largest to smallest in order to accrue more fees.
The only reason they settled was they had no disclosure statement in their terms and conditions, therefore this could have been construed as fraud. They still to this day will not admit any wrongdoing, and they re-issued new terms and conditions... With sequencing buried in the legalese.
Your history lesson for today.
#3 Consumer Comment
AUTHOR: James - Baltimore (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
POSTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
Ok.. it seems like all these banks are double dipping....
I've seen this problem with overdrafts listed for Wachovia, Bank of America and one I just posted for Provident Bank of Maryland...
I will agree, they all say, Don't make a purchase if your funds are not available...
But that piece of plastic says Debit/CREDIT card.. What does credit mean? You Authorize purchases when the funds are not available ($70 purchase when only $68 is in the account) and blame us for it? I could see paying the NSF fee if you DENIED the purchase.. but then what happens a few days later is really criminal!... See most of us will not notice that $32 charge but we might have known that hey, we are $2 short so thinking that we have a 2 day window on that credit purchase.. we deposit $10 in the account to cover it... but wo!.. We are now out $34.. and will be billed NSF twice for the same purchase.. once when the computer Authorizes it and the second time when the monies are actually withdrawn (POSTED) from the account...
Its a scam on the the millions people who are not accountants....
#4 Consumer Suggestion
AUTHOR: Stile - Phoenix (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
POSTED: Thursday, June 29, 2006
"Ok.. it seems like all these banks are double dipping....
I've seen this problem with overdrafts listed for Wachovia, Bank of America and one I just posted for Provident Bank of Maryland..."
Yup, banks mostly have similar policies, since the industry is so highly regulated.
"I will agree, they all say, Don't make a purchase if your funds are not available...
But that piece of plastic says Debit/CREDIT card.. What does credit mean? You Authorize purchases when the funds are not available ($70 purchase when only $68 is in the account) and blame us for it?"
Yes and no. Many banks allow some overdraft allowance on the authorizations because of the fact that authorizations aren't always exact. For example, you go to a restaurant and you spend $70 on your dinner. You have $70 in your account, so no problem, since you're leaving a cash tip on the table. However, the server doesn't know you're leaving a cash tip and so when she runs the card through, she actually puts the authorization through for $75. This isn't a big deal since when the transaction does post it will only post for the $70 you actually sign for. Essentially the bank doesn't have a way of knowing that the authorizations coming through on the account are to the penny, so they allow some wiggle room. Also, since credit transactions tend to have some float room, it is entirely possible to get that cash deposit into the bank in time if you do make a mistake, though I don't recommend doing this on a regular basis.
"I could see paying the NSF fee if you DENIED the purchase.."
Oh, of course you couldn't. When I speak to a customer who had an ATM transaction declined, and they get charged a $2.00 fee by the bank, I hear "But I didn't even get the money, why should I pay a fee." It would be even worse if it was a full NSF fee. But it's irrelevant, since banks don't charge fees on credit authorizations, or denied credit authorizations.
"but then what happens a few days later is really criminal!... See most of us will not notice that $32 charge but we might have known that hey, we are $2 short so thinking that we have a 2 day window on that credit purchase.. we deposit $10 in the account to cover it... but wo!.. We are now out $34.. and will be billed NSF twice for the same purchase.. once when the computer Authorizes it and the second time when the monies are actually withdrawn (POSTED) from the account..."
I've never seen a bank charge a fee on an authorization. They can't, really, because no money has actually come out of your account, and you aren't actually overdrawn. The bank keeps two running totals at all times: A current balance, and an available balance. Your current balance consists of the balance after all posted transactions are taken into account. Your available balance is the current balance minus pending authorizations. You are only charged fees if your current balance goes negative, not your available balance, so there's no double dip occurring.
"Its a scam on the the millions people who are not accountants...."
No, I think you're just misunderstanding how posting and fee presentment occurs.
#5 Update By Author
AUTHOR: Jason - MCALLEN (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Friday, June 30, 2006
POSTED: Friday, June 30, 2006
I'm the original person who made the complaint.
(dont know how to update)
Just letting everyone know it happened again.
But this time with a debit charge that was to take place 2.5 weeks ago.
They always told me debit charges are instantly deducted from acct, and credit charges are not.
Now how shocking am I to find that once again just before pay day they decide to let me have the last knock out punch of another overdraft charge.
All these charges are false and a result from their incompetence.
A multimillion dollar screwing the little man.
Now I gotta figure out how I'm gonna eat and get gas for the week.
If anyone knows of a class action suit against bofa please include me.
