OT: Bank of America has got me in a corner....

[hemi68charger]

Hey gang..
ANYONE know of a good phone number I can call for Bank of America to get my freakin' money back. Freakin' bozos didn't stop my automatic withdraw from my checking account to pay my Bank of America credit cards that were paid in FULL last month. Now, I have a negative amount in the account, two checks out as of Monday and no money till Sat. morning. The customer service help was anything but along with their managers. In this day-and-age, this is unacceptable, especially with the fact that all accounts concerned are Bank of America !!!! If these people can't straighten this out in person when I show my happy face when the doors open up, I'm gone.........

Sorry for the rant..
T

[charge69]

Really sorry to hear that Troy! That is why I never set up an automatic draw with anyone. Just a little "old school" due to being OLD, I guess. I don't even trust the web enough to pay my bills online yet!

Hope it gets settled tomorrow but, I am not holding my breath.

[PA Dodger]

Troy,
This is a perfect example of why auto-pay is a bad idea for almost everything. You have no leverage when there is a problem. I had similar situation with Hughes Net sattelite service.  Unless you know the secret password they will do the same thing next month while you're trying to sort things out. I think you will have better luck talking to your bank about how to stop/resolve this issue.
Sorry, I don't know the BOA number you need, but I found if you call a corporate office number that is high enough up the ladder you'll get their attention. It takes a little digging to find it.
Dan

[TruckDriver]

Yup, i only pay my bills by old fashioned letter mail, or in person. I'll never do it differently either.

[hemi68charger]

WOW... I just found the CEO's Customer Relations Number at Corporate Headquarters... Guess who I'm calling tomorrow?....

[mikepmcs]

BBB

[BrianShaughnessy]

WOW... I just found the CEO's Customer Relations Number at Corporate Headquarters... Guess who I'm calling tomorrow?....

   Your local credit union?   

[hemi68charger]

Well,,
Got the money back. Two things in life one needs; determination/persistence and initiative.. I have the determination/persistence by not taking "We can't to it" or "It'll take 10 days for a refund"... The initiative in finding someone on the other side of the phone call with it. Had an young man you used to work in credit card services and got transferred to checking/savings account services.. So, he knew what could be done and get done. I wish this was an episode of "Undercover Boss" for I would have given him a bonus and promotion, and I said that to him. I will be calling the CEO's Executive Relations representative tomorrow morning and explaining everything that happened along with Mr. Winter's professional performance. One thing I learned as an NCO in the Air Force, you address the flaws and reward the performance.... Maybe it'll go on deaf ears, but it is does, it won't be because I didn't try..

Chapter closed.... At least for tonight.. 

[Richard Cranium]

Now what you have to do is get yourself out of that overly-large bank & start an acount with a small established bank or credit union.

[hemi68charger]

Now what you have to do is get yourself out of that overly-large bank & start an acount with a small established bank or credit union.

No Joke !!!  I work for Schlumberger and they have a good credit union.. This was the last straw. Our company's credit union even has a small annex branch in our building......

[mikepmcs]

Aren't you in the Air Force?  How are you not a member of some real credit unions already like Pentagon Federal, Navy Federal, and USAA even.
Make it happen. Quit dickin around with small time crap and get your money where it's safe.  

Glad you got your money back.

For the record, I auto pay everything and have never had an issue.  

[moparstuart]

Yup, i only pay my bills by old fashioned letter mail, or in person. I'll never do it differently either.

[hemi68charger]

Aren't you in the Air Force?  How are you not a member of some real credit unions already like Pentagon Federal, Navy Federal, and USAA even.
Make it happen. Quit dickin around with small time crap and get your money where it's safe.  

Glad you got your money back.

For the record, I auto pay everything and have never had an issue.  

yeap, the Texas Air National Guard. Problem is convenience. The Credit Union is in extreme south Harris County and I live in the North..  I'll try my company's CU.

[skip68]

I agree with others, NOBODY HAS ACCESS TO MY ACCOUNTS!   

[Troy]

Just to clarify...

if you set up automated payments through your bank account ("bill pay" feature) then they really have no idea what the balance is on the account you're paying. It sends an automated payment indefinitely and you're responsible for shutting it off. If you set up a "recurring payment" on your credit card account using an electronic check from your bank then, yes, it should have been smart enough not to take a payment when your account was paid in full. That doesn't mean it was that smart - but it should have been.

Just because it's the same bank doesn't mean all the different divisions know what is going on elsewhere (sadly). Credit card, business accounts and consumer accounts were well separated in the past and merging them has been a bit of a headache. I once had a debit card purchase show up on a credit card I hadn't activated yet because they were both tied to the same checking account. When I went to increase the limit on the same card later on I ended up with a second card.

The reason I stopped using my credit union accounts was convenience - I can't bank online and I can't manage to get to the office during business hours. I work 24 miles from home and one CU is near where I live while the other is near where I used to live (25 miles the other way). I like the service but I hate payment books, printed statements, etc.

Troy

[twodko]

Yup, i only pay my bills by old fashioned letter mail, or in person. I'll never do it differently either.

X2

[hemi68charger]

Just to clarify...

if you set up automated payments through your bank account ("bill pay" feature) then they really have no idea what the balance is on the account you're paying. It sends an automated payment indefinitely and you're responsible for shutting it off. If you set up a "recurring payment" on your credit card account using an electronic check from your bank then, yes, it should have been smart enough not to take a payment when your account was paid in full. That doesn't mean it was that smart - but it should have been.

Just because it's the same bank doesn't mean all the different divisions know what is going on elsewhere (sadly). Credit card, business accounts and consumer accounts were well separated in the past and merging them has been a bit of a headache. I once had a debit card purchase show up on a credit card I hadn't activated yet because they were both tied to the same checking account. When I went to increase the limit on the same card later on I ended up with a second card.

The reason I stopped using my credit union accounts was convenience - I can't bank online and I can't manage to get to the office during business hours. I work 24 miles from home and one CU is near where I live while the other is near where I used to live (25 miles the other way). I like the service but I hate payment books, printed statements, etc.

Troy

I totally agree with you Troy on all accounts. In this day and age, with a technology, my biggest beef was the total lack of ability or know-how on getting my funds back to me. I knew it could be done, I was just luck to eventually get an associate who really cared and had the knowledge to help me. Just got off the phone with the CEO's rep. and she assured me this would never happen again and she would personally monitor the refund process.....

Case closed..... Now, we'll see where I go from here............

[Ponch ®]

Ive had the same issue with BofA in the past, and solved it the same way, except I was googling it online and I found the number for the CEO's office or whatever it is. Funny thing is, after the lady was done taking care of the problem, she told me not to post about it online. I guess they don't want the "secret" to get out.

Anyway...I'm with BofA out of convenience more than anything. I opened my first checking account with them back in 96-97 (when I was still in high school), and just kinda stuck around, mostly because theres either a branch or an ATM in every corner.

I joined a credit union when I bought my Charger a few years back. The dealer got the financing done through them and in order for that to happen I had to join and open a savings account. It's great for that sort of thing, or if you need a loan , but there's only one branch in my area and it's about 10 miles away. Doesn't seem like much, but if I need to take out a $20, I'm not gonna drive that far, and if I use another banks ATM, that $20 quickly turns into $25 or so.

[Richard Cranium]

I've never used an ATM in my life. 

[hemi68charger]

I've never used an ATM in my life. 

Don't get out of the house much? I don't have one in my house either.... 

[moparstuart]

I've never used an ATM in my life. 

that explains alot

[1969chargerrtse]

I've never used an ATM in my life. 

that explains alot

[Charger RT]

Now what you have to do is get yourself out of that overly-large bank & start an account with a small established bank or credit union.

This is what I have always did. But for some reason Bank of America keeps buying my accounts. They bought one of my credit card company. I closed that account and since then they have bought 2 more credit cards and my mortgage. I give up.
Tim

[Cooter]

Think that's bad, I bought my house back in May of 2001. By the time I had my first payment in the mail, my loan had been sold FOUR TIMES IN ONE MONTH...Thanks to an a$$hole named Osama...

I then recieve this payment back at the bank, they want to know what to do with it, meanwhile my account is behind and I haven't made the first payment!?!?
I then find out that BOA owns my loan, I call 'em up...they seem to not even care if my credit gets ruined by some idiot selling my loan and NOT letting me in on it and where to send my payment...I told BOA that if They had $90K of MY money, I'd damn sure want it back..

I then mail out the next payment thinking everything is good to go....Loan gets sold another 5 times. All this inside the first 7 months of ownership...if I had it to do all over again, I'd be renting for the rest of my life. NEVER will I EVER buy another house...

Then, I recieve NUMEROUS phone calls asking me to refinance my house...I refuse as I just know they are goona screw that up as well..Plus, they don't tell you it's gonna cost you another $4000 in "Closing costs" on the backend of your loan. So, I answer one of the pesty phone calls AT WORK, and proceed to tell the guy that If it's gonna cost me any money forget it...he tells me "Oh no sir, this would be a no cost refinance"..I tell him to go for it....

he punches a few keys on the keyboard, and comes back with the bomb.....

"Oh sir, I didn't know we were talking bout a manufactured home here....We can't refinance your home sir"....

I replied: "You mean to tell me, NONE of you calling and bothering me until I FINALLY answered, even Know what type of home your trying to refinance???"
And you want ME to let YOU handle my house payment??? You gotta be kidding right?

This is the day and age we live in today..Too much tech. and NOT ENOUGH Smart people to handle all of it...Cars are no different. Back in the day, I'm sure you heard from your Pappa, Grand pappy, whatever, about how they used to work on cars in the driveway...Today gentlemen, you even TOUCH that new fangled piece of rocket science engineered crap in your driveway, you WILL BE PAYING out the A$$ come time to figure out what you and your buddies did while throwing back a few cold ones, trying to impress the neighbors...Why just the other day, I had one of the "Engineer" types come in the shop talking bout how much better his Jeep Grand Cherokee was getting on fuel mileage after he installed these "Hood Louvers" on his hood. i took one look at what he had done and couldn't believe it. He actually cut holes in his hood and POP RIVETED these stainless steel "louvers" to his hood that looked like old IROC Z hood inserts...And was proud of what he had "accompished"...I reminded him that what did he think was gonna happen when all that rain water dripping down on his Coil packs, connectors, cam sensor, injector harness plugs, ECM, etc. was gonna do?....

He looked at me like I was from Mars and reminded me that those "Louvers" were designed by "Jeep Engineers" on the Jeep forum and I didn't know what I was talking bout.....Today, I had to replace the entire coil pack as a unit cause you can't get just ONE coil for a dead miss....Yep, you guessed it...Water intrusion...

He then asks me about REMOVING TWO OF HIS cat. converters (Pre cats) as he read online that he would be getting so much better fuel mileage without 'em..
I told him, "You do that, and your Jeep will NOT pass state inspection for one thing and the fuel mileage will go DOWN as the engine's PCM uses the Cats. as a way of controlling the Fuel Injection Via the O2 Sensors. Pre and Aft. Now for a man as "Smart" as he thinks he is, For the Life of me, I cannot figure out why he didn't reallize what he was trying to do would actually Hurt his MPG....Too much "tech" and not enough smart people to handle it....

[Charger_Fan]

I wouldn't bank with BOA if they gave me a free Charger. I won't bore you with my multiple reasons, other than to simply say that they've become too big for their own (or any member's) good. I agree that a Credit Union is the best way to go, and I very rarely accept any automated payment deals...in fact, only I'm doing one so far, my mortgage. Anyone else gets paid the old fashioned way...involving envelopes & stamps. Verizon hates it.
The day some debtor won't accept my checks as payment, I'm mailing cash. After all...these days, cash isn't worth the paper it's printed on any more than my checks are...

[Richard Cranium]

I've never used an ATM in my life.  

that explains alot

It explains that I'm smart enough to know how mouch money I need to have on me at any given time rather than running to an ATM every other day.

[hemi68charger]

I've never used an ATM in my life.  

that explains alot

It explains that I'm smart enough to know how mouch money I need to have on me at any given time rather than running to an ATM every other day.

Who goes every other day?  Wow, that is a lot.........

For me,
I limit my use of ATM's as well (only to deposit checks and grab some money on the weekends if I'm going to a carshow or cruise night)............ I don't carry cash with me or if I do, limit it to the bare minimum for normal activities throughout the work week. I use my check card. In the event that something happens to it via lost or stolen, no worries... So,, saying I'm not smart enough? I really don't want to be going into the bank to get cash all the time either (lines always long) and being that I have direct deposit, I have no need to head over to the nearest check cashing establishment.

Je suis desole pour le "the explains alot", I thought you were always up for a good tagging...  By the way, great "Hello!!" picture there with Belushi....

[Old Moparz]

Troy, you need to switch banks to the one this little old lady uses.......

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110603/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_determined_depositor

She's 100 years old & has had her account since 1913. She never switched because she loves the customer service they have. 

---------------------------------------------

Ohio woman, 100, has bank account dating to 1913

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio – An Ohio woman who just turned 100 years old has taken customer loyalty to the extreme: She's still using a bank savings account that's been around almost as long as she has, since the year before World War I.

June Gregg recently mentioned to a friend that her account is the same one her father opened for her in January 1913, when she wasn't even a year-and-a-half old. The friend told the people at Gregg's small-town bank in southern Ohio.

"That perked my ears up, because I was like, `1913?!'" said Doug Shoemaker, general manager of what's now a Huntington National Bank branch in this community, 45 miles south of Columbus. The bank's investigation found out that not only was it the same account, but also that the account number changed only once, when Columbus-based Huntington acquired the plainly-named Savings Bank in the early 1980s, Shoemaker said.

Gregg still has the little blue passbook from when the account was opened with an initial deposit of $6.11. Her father, Gilbert, a farmer who grew corn, wheat and hay, was a Savings Bank customer and wanted his only daughter to learn thrift.

"That's what he always taught us: to stay out of debt and save our money and not buy anything until we had the money to pay for it," Gregg said in an interview.

With the help of the account, Gregg is comfortable in retirement even after so many years, Shoemaker said.

"I get along good because I don't have many wants," said Gregg, who never married and has no children.

The compact, white-haired woman who tends to speak with a chuckle in her voice retired in 1976 after working for the post office for more than a quarter century. Earlier, she operated a general store, using the savings account for the business. Gregg opened the store in 1932, three years after she graduated from high school and received as gifts a $2.50 gold piece and a $5 gold piece, which went into the account.

"I wish I hadn't put those in," she said, aware of gold's value. "It was during the Depression, and my dad told me to put them in the bank."

Gregg said she never considered taking her savings elsewhere because she liked the bank, across the street from the Ross County Courthouse. Greg McBride, senior financial analyst for Bankrate.com, said it used to be far more common for customers and families to develop long-term attachments to banks, but that was before all of today's shopping around and bank name changes.

"It seems less prevalent today because we're seeing such consolidation and so many changes in banking, and incentives for consumers to move," he said.

Though she has a checking account to pay bills, Gregg said she uses the savings account for "personal dealings" and still goes to the bank regularly, though she lives in Bainbridge, 17 miles away.

"I had to give up driving two years ago, so now I just have to go when I get a chance. I try to go once a month if I can," she said. Gregg now relies on friends to get around and walks with a cane.

The bank toasted Gregg on her 100th birthday Thursday with a party complete with balloons and a cake with large candles of the numerals "1-0-0." Bank employees sang "Happy Birthday."

"Certainly I think June takes the cake" for loyalty, Shoemaker said, while noting that there are other customers who've stayed with the bank for 30 or 40 years, sometimes more.

As a gift, the bank will bump up Gregg's interest rate for the next 100 days to around 5 percent, about 5 times the average going rate, Shoemaker said.

[learical1]

With the help of the account, Gregg is comfortable in retirement even after so many years, Shoemaker said.

"I get along good because I don't have many wants," said Gregg, who never married and has no children.

If I never married and had no children, I could probably retire comfortably, too.  Instead, I'm on the "work until I die" retirement plan.

[Richard Cranium]

I've never used an ATM in my life.  

that explains alot

It explains that I'm smart enough to know how mouch money I need to have on me at any given time rather than running to an ATM every other day.

Who goes every other day?   Wow, that is a lot.........

For me,
I limit my use of ATM's as well (only to deposit checks and grab some money on the weekends if I'm going to a carshow or cruise night)............ I don't carry cash with me or if I do, limit it to the bare minimum for normal activities throughout the work week. I use my check card. In the event that something happens to it via lost or stolen, no worries... So,, saying I'm not smart enough? I really don't want to be going into the bank to get cash all the time either (lines always long) and being that I have direct deposit, I have no need to head over to the nearest check cashing establishment.

Je suis desole pour le "the explains alot", I thought you were always up for a good tagging...  By the way, great "Hello!!" picture there with Belushi....

Massachusetts is a lot faster paced than, let's say, a state like Texas & people up here blow through money faster.  Seriously though, I know people who go to the ATM as much as they go to Dunkin Donuts.

[Tilar]

I pay everything through my banks web site bill pay, even my water bill that goes to city hall which is less than half a mile from my house in town. When I payed off my credit cards, the first thing I did was stop automatic bill payments and then pay them off.

[hemi68charger]

Troy, you need to switch banks to the one this little old lady uses.......

When I opened my first account here in Texas, Georgetown, it was in a very small bank, Commerce Bank. They knew me and my Mopars..

Then, they eventually got bought out by Bank of America..................... Never quite the same. The only difference were the "convenient services" they offered over time...

[hemi68charger]

Massachusetts is a lot faster paced than, let's say, a state like Texas & people up here blow through money faster.  Seriously though, I know people who go to the ATM as much as they go to Dunkin Donuts.

Small town Texas, where I live Houston, definitely not.......  I think I could go for a dose of New England.....

[Richard Cranium]

Massachusetts is a lot faster paced than, let's say, a state like Texas & people up here blow through money faster.  Seriously though, I know people who go to the ATM as much as they go to Dunkin Donuts.

Small town Texas, where I live Houston, definitely not.......  I think I could go for a dose of New England.....

If you want to get away, drive straight through Taxachusetts & go directly to VT or NH. 

[NHCharger]

Massachusetts is a lot faster paced than, let's say, a state like Texas & people up here blow through money faster.  Seriously though, I know people who go to the ATM as much as they go to Dunkin Donuts.

Small town Texas, where I live Houston, definitely not.......  I think I could go for a dose of New England.....

If you want to get away, drive straight through Taxachusetts & go directly to VT or NH. 

Just cruised the Kangamangus Highway today. Add me to the list of never using an ATM.

[bakerhillpins]

I used the ATM for the first time in close to a year this morning to grab enough $$ so that I would have something for a deposit on a Charger if it worked out. Which it didn't....    But otherwise, almost never.  I basically live by CCs, but it gets paid off every month. We use the points to clothe the kids. 

[green69rt]

Only time I ever used an ATM was when traveling overseas.  It's the best way to get cash, only small time robbery instead of the out-and-out robbers at cash windows.

I have also used a credit union for over 35 years and really like it.  Lots of credit unions now "share" sites.  I use Peoples Trust, they only have about 4 sites, none convienient for me.  But they share with another credit union five minutes away.  Works great.  Also I do not pay using my Credit union "bill payer" system, I go to each company (usually on their web site) and set it up from their end to have them draft my account automatically for what ever I want.  They send me an email notice (usually about three weeks before the draft) so I can change it if I want or stop it altogether.  Use this method on all my utilities, newspaper, credit cards, netflicks etc, etc, etc.  Never a late payment, they usually take it out on the due date.  It's worked for me for years, never a hitch.

[Ponch ®]

speaking of BofA....here's one for you "score one of the little guy" types

Bank of America Gets Pad Locked After Homeowner Forecloses On It
8:07 AM, Jun 5, 2011  |   comments


Written by
Kelly Heffernan-Tabor


Collier County, Florida -- Have you heard the one about a homeowner foreclosing on a bank?

Well, it has happened in Florida and involves a North Carolina based bank.

Instead of Bank of America foreclosing on some Florida homeowner, the homeowners had sheriff's deputies foreclose on the bank.

It started five months ago when Bank of America filed foreclosure papers on the home of a couple, who didn't owe a dime on their home.

The couple said they paid cash for the house.

The case went to court and the homeowners were able to prove they didn't owe Bank of America anything on the house. In fact, it was proven that the couple never even had a mortgage bill to pay.

A Collier County Judge agreed and after the hearing, Bank of America was ordered, by the court to pay the legal fees of the homeowners', Maurenn Nyergers and her husband.

The Judge said the bank wrongfully tried to foreclose on the Nyergers' house.

So, how did it end with bank being foreclosed on?  After more than 5 months of the judge's ruling, the bank still hadn't paid the legal fees, and the homeowner's attorney did exactly what the bank tried to do to the homeowners. He seized the bank's assets.

"They've ignored our calls, ignored our letters, legally this is the next step to get my clients compensated, " attorney Todd Allen told CBS.

Sheriff's deputies, movers, and the Nyergers' attorney went to the bank and foreclosed on it. The attorney gave instructions to to remove desks, computers, copiers, filing cabinets and any cash in the teller's drawers.

After about an hour of being locked out of the bank, the bank manager handed the attorney a check for the legal fees.

"As a foreclosure defense attorney this is sweet justice" says Allen.

Allen says this is something that he sees often in court, banks making errors because they didn't investigate the foreclosure and it becomes a lengthy and expensive battle for the homeowner.

CBS News

http://www.digtriad.com/news/watercooler/article/178031/176/Florida-Homeowner-Forecloses-On-Bank-Of-America

[John_Kunkel]

If I never married and had no children, I could probably retire comfortably, too. 

That's me, retired at the tender young age of 47 and never looked back. 

[Tilar]

speaking of BofA....here's one for you "score one of the little guy" types

Bank of America Gets Pad Locked After Homeowner Forecloses On It
8:07 AM, Jun 5, 2011  |   comments

http://www.digtriad.com/news/watercooler/article/178031/176/Florida-Homeowner-Forecloses-On-Bank-Of-America

Thats awesome! Score one for the good guys.

If I never married and had no children, I could probably retire comfortably, too. 

That's me, retired at the tender young age of 47 and never looked back. 

I did it in 2002 at 45 years old but let me tell you, after about 5 or 6 years boredom will take over and you'll find something to do. Now I have a part time job working 4 hours a day. 5:30 am to 9:30 am Monday through Friday. I love it.