Wachovia Bank Ridiculous fees all of a sudden Lake Mary Florida

That's simple, it's because Walmart's main business is not to cash checks. That is a very small part of what they do, so they are allowed to keep the costs low, since it's not their main profit center.

It doesn't matter who the other check is written on, the policy is and should be the same, regardless. That is Wachovia and all other banks charge fees to ALL NONcustomers, PERIOD!

I did not pay the fee to cash the Wachovia check written to me from my employer who does have a business account with this bank. My point is how can Walmart charge even less to cash the very same check than the very bank it's written from? Even the Wachovia Bank teller chuckled as she stated, "I know, I think they only charge two dollars." Also Wachovia cashed prior checks from my employer the previous weeks no questions asked then suddenly needed to charge extra fees to complete the same task, surrender my money from one of their account holders. The five dollar check cashing fee they attempted to charge me to honor their own account holders check does nothing to safeguard or add an level of security to this simple transaction.

It is a corporate scam to pocket money and drum up business, open an account with us, free checking here etc. They know their account holders balance, transactions and would only profit more if the account was overdrawn or had insufficient funds with further fees and chargings.

I feel the burden of proof here should be on the Bank to prove their checks are good by honoring it and exchanging it for my cash promised me by their account holder and my employer. If his/their check is not good then they have a multitude of legal actions they can take. I have already proven I am who I say I am with proper i.d, thumb print, and video surveilance and to then spring a five or whatever dollar penalty on me is just a suckers game. Yeah I know many banks do it so that makes it right?

I don't mind fees.. you know why? Because I'm not stupid enough to pay them.
Also, in case you were not aware, we are currently living in corporate America, and banks are for-profit corporations; therefore, they have an obligation to their shareholders to MAKE A PROFIT. Do you think these corporations care about those who are crying about their fees? No, they sure don't.
And, no, I did not vote for Bush, thanks. =o)

I guess the majority of you weren't around when banks actually did what they were originally intended to do. It is understandable, there are not many people alive that can actually think for themselves anymore. Keep knuckling under to people like Bush and Cheney and continue watching mindless TV and enjoy all of those extra fees and charges Corporate America trains you to defend so enthusiastically.

You continue on that road, I choose not to. I will pray for your lost, wretched, enslaved souls.

I guess the majority of you weren't around when banks actually did what they were originally intended to do. It is understandable, there are not many people alive that can actually think for themselves anymore. Keep knuckling under to people like Bush and Cheney and continue watching mindless TV and enjoy all of those extra fees and charges Corporate America trains you to defend so enthusiastically.

You continue on that road, I choose not to. I will pray for your lost, wretched, enslaved souls.

I guess the majority of you weren't around when banks actually did what they were originally intended to do. It is understandable, there are not many people alive that can actually think for themselves anymore. Keep knuckling under to people like Bush and Cheney and continue watching mindless TV and enjoy all of those extra fees and charges Corporate America trains you to defend so enthusiastically.

You continue on that road, I choose not to. I will pray for your lost, wretched, enslaved souls.

I guess the majority of you weren't around when banks actually did what they were originally intended to do. It is understandable, there are not many people alive that can actually think for themselves anymore. Keep knuckling under to people like Bush and Cheney and continue watching mindless TV and enjoy all of those extra fees and charges Corporate America trains you to defend so enthusiastically.

You continue on that road, I choose not to. I will pray for your lost, wretched, enslaved souls.

"She had cashed the check previously without paying any fees. Why should they charge them now?"

BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BANK.

"The bank knew the check was good because it had been cashed on previous times and was a walmart check."

No, it was her employer's check. She stated that, "Walmart doesn't charge that much."

"If you are a customer of the bank they will charge you even more hidden fees and the rip offs don't stop because of."

I've never been charged hidden fees. Then again, I can balance my checkbook, thanks.

"I think people should rethink the atm card. It is actually cheaper for me to mail my bills paying for stamps and checks. When you pay by phone the banks are usually charge huge fees like $12.00 and such. Of course the company asking you to do this will state there is no charge on their end."

Um, hello.. have you heard of online banking? Most banks offer FREE online bill-pay. I've never been charged a fee to pay my bills online. Never.

She had cashed the check previously without paying any fees. Why should they charge them now? The bank knew the check was good because it had been cashed on previous times and was a walmart check. If you are a customer of the bank they will charge you even more hidden fees and the rip offs don't stop because of. I think people should rethink the atm card. It is actually cheaper for me to mail my bills paying for stamps and checks. When you pay by phone the banks are usually charge huge fees like $12.00 and such. Of course the company asking you to do this will state there is no charge on their end.

He wants the banks to honor all of his checks written on his account. It doesn't work like that, Brent. You are NOT paying for your bank account to cover EVERY person who is issued a check by you. Your fees only cover YOUR accout, PERIOD! ALL noncustomers of the bank in question should be charged bank fees with NO exceptions. If the fee was beyond reasonable, I would have an issue, but five dollars is NOT an unreasonable fee and fairly compensates the bank for dealing with the NONcustomer.

"Let's charge both parties for the same transaction. We've addressed this a number of times before. The banks charge the maker of the check to manage his funds. Let's charge the person who comes in to cash a check drawn on our bank for that transaction, that way we can double out 'profit' ffor one transaction."

I'd like to know of a bank that does NOT offer free checking; in fact, some banks even offer free checks.. so where's this "double dipping" or whatever?

As an ex-teller, I was more than happy with the non-account holder check cashing fee. Why should I offer my services to cash a check for free with someone who does not have a relationship with the bank? Ordering money is costly for banks, and it would be stupid not to charge. Plus, the lines were much shorter on paydays, so actual account holders did not have to wait longer while we finger printed, double verified IDs, checked signature cards, processed checks through our machines, and counted money to non-account holders.

If you don't want to pay the fee, fine; go to your own bank. Or, you can open a FREE account. Many people leave $1 in their account to avoid the fee, and that's fine. At least there's a relationship established and we don't have to triple verify everything.

done by all banks that I know of. The person cashing the check is not a customer of that bank unless they have an account ther. Best way is to just put it through your account at your bank and then the only fee would be if the person gave you a check that didn't clear.

Let's charge both parties for the same transaction. We've addressed this a number of times before. The banks charge the maker of the check to manage his funds. Let's charge the person who comes in to cash a check drawn on our bank for that transaction, that way we can double out "profit" ffor one transaction. Some bank weenie thinks it up and all the banks jump on the bandwagon. You have to go back in time and remember what the actual meaning/value of a check is/was. Not a discounted amount. That's right bankers, just keep telling people the same thing often enough and they just might start beleiving your BS.

Response to Bankworker:

>>When you accept a fee, you choose to accept a fee. You can always go to your own bank and deposit it or go to a check cashing place and pay more. Just because you go to the bank that a check is drawn off of, doesn't mean the teller can pull up that account and verify the funds are there to cash your check. The fee is assessed because it is a service provided to non-customers which is a trusting one, being that they have no way to verify the check. Once the check is processed, it is sent to their deposit services to verify that. The check can then be found to be fraudulent, pymt stopped, or nsf which your $5 won't even hit the tip of the iceberg for the money they just lost by advancing it to you. Its not a ripoff, its the way of business. If you don't like it, then you have the choice to decline cashing it.
That is a pretty lame excuse you use to justify plain and simple thievery. If your bank cannot instantly verify funds, then it is because your bank chooses not to. The process is (and always has been) quite simple, especially in this day and age of high technology. All banks HAVE to do is verify the validity of the check, verify the validity of the recipient, verify the funds are present, AND give MY recipient MY money that they are storing. That is all.

As customers of a bank (account holders), we should all be outraged that our bank charges the recipients of our check a fee for them to process the check. I pay plenty of fees to have my checks printed, for overdraft insurance, or for balances under $1000. Why do my customers (check recipients) need to pay an additional fee to cash my checks?

I'll tell you why, it's to drum up more business. I have gone to issuing banks to cash a check and I have been told there would be a fee for cashing it. Surprisingly enough, in every instance, the bank offers to sign me up with my own checking account AT THEIR BANK. Invariably, this will be a free account with a debit card. The bank is betting, since I didn't use the accepted channels of cashing a check (already have an established account), that I will be a high risk, which means more money for them in service fees (overdraft fees from misuse of debit card).

So, Bankworker, quit filling our heads with doublespeak, the purpose of a bank is to MAKE MONEY (evidently ANY WAY THEY CAN), storing money is only a process to achieve that goal.

When you accept a fee, you choose to accept a fee. You can always go to your own bank and deposit it or go to a check cashing place and pay more. Just because you go to the bank that a check is drawn off of, doesn't mean the teller can pull up that account and verify the funds are there to cash your check. The fee is assessed because it is a service provided to non-customers which is a trusting one, being that they have no way to verify the check. Once the check is processed, it is sent to their deposit services to verify that. The check can then be found to be fraudulent, pymt stopped, or nsf which your $5 won't even hit the tip of the iceberg for the money they just lost by advancing it to you. Its not a ripoff, its the way of business. If you don't like it, then you have the choice to decline cashing it.

At my old bank, we've been charging non-account holders check cashing fees, taking thumbprints, and requiring 2 forms of ID for over 5 years now.
This is nothing new, nor is it a rip off.

This policy of banks charging money to cash their own checks just burns me up. If more people would bother complaining instead of cowtowing to the establishment and justifying the slave owner's actions, we might be able to get rid of such petty thievery.

But it's the world we live in. Make your complaint and then sign up for a free account there or elsewhere.

YES! It is a ripoff!!!

There's normally a big sign soon as you walk in the bank and also @ each teller station for the amount that is charged to cash a check for non-customers. Again, a case where a customer has a choice to either accept or decline the service and avoid a fee and they chose the latter and complained about it. As far as finger prints and drivers license, they don't know how decent of a person you are while they're cashing your check. For all they know, you could've forged a check; at least they have proof of who attempted to cash the check, which is what most banks are required to have for security purposes. No ripoff here.

You don't have an account with Wachovia. Why should they give you special privileges of cashing a check (no matter who it's written on) if you're not a Wachovla Bank customer? Banks are in the business of making money, in case you haven't heard.