HSBC ORCHARD BANK THEY ARE THIEVES-DEBITED MY BANK ACCOUNT 3 TIMES, NO ACCOUNTABILITY!! Salinas California

My wife had 2 HSBC Orchard Bank credit cards designed with building our credit in mind. However, they have completely lost our business!

My wife called the customer service number (which is an offshore outsourced call center) toward the end of January to switch our bank accounts. She also mentioned something about how she was going to make a payment online when she was able to. However, the agent took her comment and decided it would be a good idea to just debit our card instead of waiting for my wife to do it. Well, my wife made our online payment on 2/9/2009 and the call center also debited our card the next day. So there were two amounts of $414.37 taken out of our bank.

My wife and I have a one year old baby and are both going to school. I am the only one who works and she stays at the apartment with our baby. We have very little money as it is and the double dip from Orchard bank made us overdraft severly in our bank.

So the 2nd payment bounced from our bank and of course we were charged a $35 fee. Well, since that payment bounced, they went ahead and tried to debit it a 3rd time on 2/17/2009. This time we had 6 purchases that weren't paid and generated $210 worth of overdraft fees because of their incompetence.

Our bank was great and said that as long as HSBC Orchard Bank will send them a document stating that they withdrew an unauthorized payment they would refund the fees. We spent 2 hours on the phone with Orchard Bank and they would not send the letter and would not admit fault. They stated that my wife on 1/31/2009 authorized the payment and that all calls are recorded but they are not able to listen to the calls because they are only for training purposes and not for their accountability. I told him that I was there on 1/31/2009 and heard my wife state that she was going to make an online payment instead and if he could provide a call proving otherwise I will leave them alone and not speak of it again. He again repeated that the calls are only used for training purposes and they could not pull a call.

Orchard Bank has effectively stolen close to $700 directly from our bank account now and still does not show her full balance on my wife's credit card statement. Where did that money go?

Also, as an aside, if my wife authorized a phone payment why would she go and make an online payment? Also, if the calls are recorded, why can't their own supervisors and managers listen to them? I've worked in call centers for 10 years and have been a supervisor in two of them. I pulled calls when there were descrepancies like this. I know they can do it. Why won't they? Also, how much competence is that on the side of the accountants for the company not to recognize that we had already made a payment?

Do not! Do not! Do not be suckered by HSBC or Orchard Bank. They are crooks and their customer service is the worst!!!

Steve
Garland, Texas
U.S.A.