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March 9, 2005
Why You Should Never Bank At US Bank
So, there I stood, resigned. A remnant of the man I once was. Quaking before the counter at U.S. Bank; an imperfect, remorseful child before his parents. I was a beaten man.
"Can you tell me what the balance is on my account, please?"?
"Hmmm. It says this account was closed today. They turned it over to a collection agency."?
"They did? Really. Yippee!!! Wooohoo!!!"?
I was so happy I wanted to dance. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell the world that, though they'd ruined my credit rating and irreparably impugned my integrity, I'd fought U.S. Bank to a draw. In my own way, I had won. I closed all three of my accounts with U.S. Bank and all it cost me was several thousand dollars in bank fees, a ruined credit history, and three months of missed work and mental anguish. Free at last! Free at last! Thank the lord I'm free at last!
I've been a victim of US Bank for years. I opened a couple of accounts there back when I was living in Boulder. Just walked in and opened an account for me and one for my corporation. Just a non-event that occurred at a non-moment in time. I had no way of knowing at the time that I'd live to regret those actions more than any single business decision I've made in the last fifteen years.
US Bank has assiduously resisted the technological efficiencies achieved by other industries. From the sidelines, they have contemptuously watched as the private sector embraced the technology revolution. In an economy driven by the information flowing at the speed of light, the banks follow the same canonic, exegetic business practices bequeathed through successive generations of stoic bankers.
Under these archaic, obsolete banking stratagems, any deposits made after Friday afternoon do not post until Monday night at midnight. Checks deposited against a bank in another state are held for two weeks. Cash transactions are rigorously discouraged.
There can be no doubt that the mental dwarfs at US Bank view their patrons more as illegitimate children than clients. US Bank panders to the other banks, and kowtows to the Federal Reserve. That they care nothing of their clients is intuitively obvious to anyone that's ever attempted to transact business with them.
The banks didn't always despise their customers, or if they did, they weren't bold enough to betray their true feelings. The banks collectively changed from flirtatious to indifferent to derisive as they coalesced into national behemoths; a structure expressly forbidden by the banking changes that followed the collapse of the banks in the Great Depression. In their breathless race to become national banks, the customers came to be viewed more as a necessary evil, than as clients.
In addition to growing into garrulous national organs, the banks also came under the increasing control of various tentacles of the insidiously expanding federal government. The IRS wants to know when anyone deposits or withdraws more than $10,000.00 in cash. The FDIC wants to make sure that the bank doesn't actually earn any significant amounts of money on the deposits of their victims through investing. The Department of Homeland Security wants to know why people have money to begin with and what they intend to do with it.
So, partly the problem with the banks is due to excessively intrusive governmental intervention. Partly it's because the banks have grown so large they lost touch with their customers. Partly it's because they're greedy, money hungry servile oafs. But the net result is, you can scarcely conduct business with any banks any more.
Attempting to do conduct business with US Bank is an exercise in futility. They don't want your business, and, if you have any sense, you don't want to do business with them. It doesn't matter how much money you've had in a bank, or for how long you've done business with them. They couldn't care less whether you are happy doing business there or not. It makes no difference to them. They won't let you close your account, so you can't leave if you want to. You're trapped, whether you like it or not.
The banks of today can best be viewed as remote offices of the federal government. Staffed by sycophants and greedy imbeciles, the banks are largely extensions of the variegated divisions of the federal bureaucracies.
This is not a hollow, poorly considered accusation. It is the only logical conclusion one can arrive at when one considers the actions of the banks. I formulated this conclusion over time. It started early enough, shortly after I opened my accounts at US Bank.
I've been frustrated with US Bank for years. When I first opened my corporate account, they flatly refused to give me an ATM card for my corporate accounts saying there was "too much fraud"? with them. I was furious, but I didn't feel like dealing with it. I just put it out of my mind. Years later, I again asked them for an ATM card for my corporate account and they said it wasn't a problem and put one in the mail. I don't know if they changed their policy or what happened. Their operations defy scrutiny. One can only guess what drives their capricious policies.
Shortly before Y2K, I attempted to draw out some cash just in case the banks collapsed. I wanted to withdraw roughly $10,000 in cash. They looked at me like I had ten heads.
"What do you want it for?"? The teller asked.
I couldn't believe the audacity of these people. She had the temerity to sit there and ask me what I was going to do with my money.
"I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you, sweetheart."
"We have to ask." She continued.
"Well, it's none of your business what I'm going to do with it. It's my money, and I want it, and that's all there is to it."
"What do you do for a living?" She asked.
"What difference does that make?" I asked.
"We have to ask." She continued. It was obvious that someone somewhere had put together a policy of tracking people, funds, activities. Possibly the IRS. Possibly the DEA. Who could know. This little girl was nothing to them. They were nothing to her. Possibly she hated the system as much as I. But, there we were. She had her role to play, and I had mine.
"Janitor."
"Excuse me?" she queried.
"Just put that I'm a janitor."
"I don't have that much money today. If you come back tomorrow, I'll see what I can do."
It was then that I first realized that the banks don't view deposits the same way as the depositors view them. I've always optimistically believed that the money I earned was. And that, when I deposited my money in the bank, it was still mine, and I could withdraw it, if I felt so inclined. Furthermore, I assumed that, as I had opened the account, I could close it of my own volition. I felt very strongly about all of these issues, but I was to discover that, in all of these assumptions, I was completely and intractably incorrect.
About a year or two after that, I needed to pull some money out for one reason or another. I went into a local bank branch and tried to withdraw some cash. But, when I showed them my photo ID, they pointed out that my driver's license was expired.
"So?"
"You have to have a valid driver's license, sir."
I was on the road, working out of state, commuting on a weekly basis. My driver's license had just recently expired, but I wasn't cognizant of this fact. It isn't like it starts beeping when it expires. I wasn't using it. I was using my passport for identification, and it expired.
"What do you mean? You think that because it expired, I turned into a different person? Is that how it works? Once your driver's license expires, you lose your identity? You think that I go to sleep at night as one person only to awake as someone else because my license expired and the state auctioned off my identity to the highest bidder?
Finally, one of the morons said I could use my passport, which solved that problem, but that's how they were. Intractable and as obstinate as a rented mules.
Any time I deposited a check, they'd put a hold on it for a week or two. I hated them with a passion, and justifiably so, but I never hated them enough to close out my accounts. I just kept letting them push me around and kick sand in my face.
I didn't feel like they were on my side, I just hadn't yet realized that they were operating against me. I realized that when they reversed a check for $50,000.00. I was livid, as one might imagine. The scenario unfolded like this; I performed work for a company, they paid me, I deposited the check. So far, so good, right? I was paid for work I performed. I put the money in my bank. It cleared. Good enough, right? Wrong! The bank reversed it out. My bank. US Bank.
"Why did you steal $50,000.00 out of my account" I demanded of the minions at US Bank.
"Sir, the check was reversed."
"Reversed a month after it was deposited?"
"Sir, when a check is reversed, we have to honor the reversal."
"It's my goddamned money. You stole $50,000.00 from me you filthy stinking bastards. Lord God how do you people sleep at night?"
And that was how it went. So, according to US Bank, they could reverse the check for an "indefinite" period of time. In theory, a company could pay me in January, and then reverse the check in December. So, I began to realize that US Bank was not operating in my best interest. This is a radical departure from how I felt things should be. Probably radically different from how most people assume business should be conducted. But, to US Bank, this is all standard operating procedure.
So, they robbed me of $50,000.00. In the long run, I got it back, but I knew then that I was through with US Bank. There's no reason in letting them hold one red cent of your money, unless you just don't feel an attachment to your funds.
The final straw came in January of this year. I was working in California and needed to get some money to the IRS. So, I deposited a check into my personal checking account for about $20,000.00. I endorsed it and deposited it into my account through the ATM machine. I know that the archaic banking rules say that, even though I put it in on Friday, it doesn't get deposited until Midnight on Monday. This is mind numbingly stupid, but I've been programmed to accept by countless degenerates at the banks.
What I was not prepared for was when they reversed the deposit on Tuesday, causing my checks to start bouncing like Mexican Jumping beans in the midday sun.
"Where's my twenty thousand dollars?"
"Sir, if you'll just calm down, I'll try to explain what happened."
"You bastards stole twenty thousand dollars from me!"
"Sir, it's because you can't deposit a check to your corporation into your personal account."
"Why not? Who says I can't? It's my goddamned money. I'll put it where I damned well please. It's none of your concern. Where is my check for twenty thousand dollars?"
"Sir, we mailed it back to you."
"Mailed it back to me. You stupid freaking morons. I'm in California. And you mailed it to me in Colorado where I'm not going to be for two more weeks and I owe the IRS TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS RIGHT FREAKING NOW!
So, I had to go back to the company that had written me the check, and, like an idiot, explain that my bank wasn't able to do simple things like deposit checks, and would they please cut me another check for twenty thousand dollars immediately so that I could attempt to get my funds to the IRS promptly. So, I got a new check for twenty thousand dollars. And I walked into the US Bank office in South San Francisco loaded for bear.
I need to deposit this check into my account please.
We'll have to put a two week hold on it.
Why?
Because it's written against an out of state bank.
No, it isn't. It's written against a California bank, and we are, I believe, in California, are we not?
Well, sir, we still have to place a hold on it for two weeks.
"Why. Why is that? Rule 21 says that paper checks have to clear overnight. So, you and I both know that this check will, in fact, clear over night. So, there is no reason why we could not release the funds tomorrow, isn't that right?"
Sir, there's nothing I can do.
And that was when I decided that I was through with US Bank. It was clear then that they had no interest in my business whatsoever. And, I made up my mind right then and there that I would close out all of my accounts with US Bank immediately, if not sooner. I could no longer walk the face of the earth knowing, in good conscience, that they possessed one cent of my money.
I called work and told them that I would not be back in until I got my banking situation straightened out.
"I would like to close out all of my accounts here."
"You mean your corporate account?"
No. I mean every single one. My personal account. My corporate account. And my daughter's savings account.
Sir, we can't close out your accounts.
Why not?
Only the branch you opened your account with can close out your accounts. This says you opened them in Boulder, Colorado.
So, you're telling me I have to drive from San Francisco to Boulder, Colorado to close out my account? Does that make sense to you? Listen to what you're saying. Maybe you should go lie down.
"I could ask them to fax us your signature."
Why don't you do that.
An hour later, they still didn't have my signature.
"Sir, they don't have your signature on file, so I'm afraid we can't close your accounts."
"This is insane. Give me my money. You people are thieves. I'm going to call the police if you don't give me my money."
"Let me ask my manager what I should do."Then, when she returned she said "My manager says we can write you a check."
Check? Your check is no good with me. I want cash. I wouldn't trust a piece of paper from US Bank any more than I'd trust a piece of paper I found on the streets in the tenderloin.
We don't have that much cash hand, sir.
Now that's a bald faced lie and you and I both know it. There's a whole vault behind you that's chock full of cash, and you and I both know good and well that you could give me my $7,000.00 right now if you saw fit. You just don't want to give me my money, and that doesn't surprise me in the least.
If you gave us advance notice, sir, we could have the cash ready for you when you came in.
How much "advance notice" do you need?
Two weeks.
Two weeks?!!! Are you crazy"!! How much money can I have right now. What's the most you'll give me?
The most we can give out is $2,000.00 a day.
Fine, give me $2,000.00, and I'll come back in every day until I get every last red cent out of this miserable bank of yours.
And so it came to be that, every day on my lunch break, I'd go back to the US Bank in South San Francisco and stand patiently in the lobby, present two forms of photo identification, and they'd phone the Boulder Colorado branch, where they, remarkably, would report that they couldn't find my signature on file. Eventually, they'd agree to give me some piddling amount of cash, and then I'd go away and return the next day. In this manner, I was able, eventually, to siphon my remaining funds from that horrible little institution known as US Bank. In this manner, I successfully closed my corporate account and my daughter's savings account over the next week or so.
As for my personal account, they flatly refused to close it because they could never find my signature on file. All I know what that, in the end, I just walked away and began to throw my statements from US Bank into the trash. It was sort of an absurd stalemate where my account had a zero balance, and they refused to close it due to the fact that they couldn't find my signature. What I didn't realize was that somehow, they had allowed a draft to go through, and starting charging me $30 a day in penalties. So, by the time I realized there was a problem, they'd charged me six hundred dollars in penalties and the branch manager in Boulder refused to return my calls.
Today, I went down today to U.S Bank a beaten man. I finally had actually given up hope of closing out my account. I had a check in my hand for $25,000.00 that I was going to deposit. I figured, the account couldn't be closed, so I may as well start using it again. It just was one of those things that couldn't be undone. Opening an account at US Bank is just a Pandora's Box. You can initiate the process, but once it begins, it is out of your control. Like charging a coworker with sexual harassment. You can go to Human Resources and complain about harassment from a coworker, but once you do so, you can't get up and walk away. You are going to have a little summary of the event follow you around forever in your permanent file. You can't get up and say, "I've changed my mind...forget I ever said anything." You can't walk away from a charge like that. It's a very serious accusation.
And so it is with opening an account with US Bank. Once you open the account, it is opened in perpetuity. An act of God wouldn't suffice to close the account once it is opened.
So, there I stood, resigned. A remnant of the man I once was. Quaking before the counter at US Bank; an imperfect, remorseful child before his parents. I was a beaten man.
"Can you tell me what the balance is on my account, please?"
"Hmmm. It says this account was closed today. They turned it over to a collection agency."
"They did? Really. Yippee!!! Wooohoo!!!"
I was so happy I wanted to dance. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell the world that, though they'd ruined my credit rating and irreparably impugned my integrity, I'd fought US Bank to a draw. In my own way, I had won. I closed all three of my accounts with US Bank and all it cost me was several thousand dollars in bank fees, a ruined credit history, and three months of missed work and mental anguish. Free at last! Free at last! Thank the lord I'm free at last!
Posted by Peenie Wallie on March 9, 2005 at 11:20 PM
Comments
Preach it brother. US Bank is the worst gang of hoodlums posing as a bank I have ever seen. I too am trying to figure out how to extract all my money and close my accounts at their crappy institution. Banks these days derive 75% of their revenues from fees. With US Bank it's got to be close to 100%. Bastards
Posted by: Allen on March 10, 2005 at 8:53 AM
You are not alone in your battles with US Bank.
Alot of consumers claim that US Bank Sucks.
Check out this link for information on US Bank complaints:
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/usbank_complaints/links/
Posted by: US Bank Complaints on March 21, 2005 at 10:36 PM
Could not agree more with your comments when you write, "[US Bank] couldn’t care less whether you are happy doing business there or not. It makes no difference to them." This is so true, and especially true with Trusts. There is no accountability within the US Bank Trust department whatsoever. And in our case, they utterly ignored the Trust Code, while exploiting the Trust for their own benefit through undisclosed fees and commissions.
Posted by: trustmatter on May 3, 2005 at 9:38 PM
I've paid almost 700 dollars in assorted overdraft fees including their fucking 7 dollars A DAY(that's not a typo--you read that right) for EACH DAY THAT THE ACCOUNT IS OVERDRAWN! I am a fulltime student and have little time to work. FOr what I paid in fees..is almost the ammount that I live on per month! I told this to several customer reps of: Chase Manhattan, Bank of America, and Washington Mutual. In particular a rep for one of the other banks said that US Bank is "Draconian". I myself would be most interested in joining a class action suit against US Bank for abuse of power,malfeasance of authority..or any other claim that can be proven in a court of law. Does anyone know of any current lawsuits pending that I could possibly join?
Posted by: Micah on August 5, 2005 at 10:50 AM
From: rbake@kc.rr.com
Subject: US Bank has killed me.
Date: October 21, 2005 12:33:23 PM CDT
To: CHRISTI.L.HANSEN@usbank.com
Ms. Hanson, Director of Benefits
I tried to contact MerckMedco regarding filling some of my meds last week. I used the contact window on the website. I could not get my password to work. I did not receive a response. A nurse called me a couple months ago and I expressed my concerns to her. She said would check and see what options I might have. I did not hear back from her.
I filled my three HIV meds. That is all I could manage. All the cash that was left after utilities. I have decided not to take them. I will not be able to purchase these meds next month. Off and on again will render them useless.
My home is on the market. I figure that I might be able to pay for my meds with the little equity I have for a couple years before the financial vices imposed by USBank upon disabled employees and the governments cut in assistance for AIDS drugs. If I have to reduce my price to find a buyer or to avoid foreclosure, there will not be that option either.
I may not last that long. Because even with these meds my measures are less than 20% of yours. I am immediately at risk for opportunistic infections such as PCP Pnuemonia, thrush, lymphoma, Karposi's Carcinoma, callapsed lungs, other respiratory and auto immune infections, etc. I have witnessed patients that endure these painful and distressingly horrible illnesses.
5 years ago USBank noted in their employee manual that they would place the burden of health care costs upon those that were using these services. This policy violates the principles of insurance which is to spread the burden of catastrophic health care costs among many. You as Director of Benefits was a party to these decisions. I am not only suggesting but claim that these policies have now killed me. I have given up.
Many have probably given up and were not empowered to address others about the life and death consequences of corporate and government policy. I want you to know so that every time you open up the employee manual that remember Rodney and his heroic efforts to maintain his health and that you are a part to his death.
I once participated in clinical trials partly to reduce the costs of my care to the company. One of those drugs was Norvir produced by Abbott. Abbott increase the cost of Norvir $400 percent last year. We complain about price gauging of gasoline for a dollar or two. I regret participating.
Thank you.
Rodney Bake
4330 McGee St.
Kansas City, MO 64111-1726
816-561-3799
PS I can no longer afford to operate my vehicle. I will park my vehicle, at the most visible legal parking place with USBank Killed Me! sprayed on the sides of it.
I am angry and bitter about the company I once took pride in. I think justifiably so.
cc U.S. Bank Benefit Appeals Committee
U.S. Bank - EP-MN-R2BN
4000 West Broadway
Robbinsdale, MN 55422-2299
Fax (763) 971-1285
Posted by: Rodney Bake on October 21, 2005 at 12:31 PM
This time last year I was a US Bank customer. I experienced the robbing of my accounts with them as when I compared my balance book with theirs, I would notice I was a few hundred dollars short.
In the end, I went to a credit union because I no longer can trust a bank to handle my money.
Well, I knew I needed to go through a recovery period to rebuild my funds. I needed the time to get it back together as I had to start all over.
Over the months after, I had trouble paying all my bills. The bills included credit cards. I sent them letters explaining my situation. I even had to include proof about US Bank and their complaints that I was not lying.
Of course being cold-hearted and insensitive to a consumers' hardship, they had to call me at work to setup these payment programs to get caught up with the billing.
Before I continue on, my creditors are Discover, Chase and MBNA.
I had to deal with Discover and Chase once with a program which I didn't feel comfortable about because that would defeat my goal of recouping my lossess. Well Chase was insensitive, as they are to all their customers as they're known to have poor customer service. They are now in full mode deceptors on the media.
Discover claimed they were working with me but insisted the payment around the time rent was due. I had to stop payment once so my rent doesn't have to be screwed again. Well, they had to reset it up to November. Without knowing, the stop payment feature was good for six months. WOW my present credit union charges $25 dollars for six months while I thought it was 1 per transaction. Now they had to sent a judgement threat on me and said I have to come up with $458! I said to myself what a lack of understanding.
For MBNA, they just went ahead and sent my account to a collection agency. Tells you how much they care about their customers, especially since they were the minds behind the Bankruptcy Act that kicked in mid-October. This bill was the result of them paying of Washington's finest (senators and congressmen). This should explain why the cooperate America has been so corrupt.
So there you have it, the aftermath of US Bank. They screwed the customer to the fullest and suffers for a long time.
Posted by: Robbie on January 31, 2006 at 10:10 AM
and I thought WE had it bad: charged a 35$ overdraft fee when there was 40$ in the account. a day later they allowed a fraudulent charge to go through, which resulted in 400$ overdraft fees that they would not refund -even though we proved the initial charge was fraud. Finally we were beaten and decided not to bother with a lawyer -we just gave up. But I have never dealt with such corrupt and stubbornly stupid in my life. Not a single person was sympathetic or willing to help.
Posted by: cicily on March 15, 2006 at 2:56 PM
I used my savings account 1 month to make transactions – not knowing about regulation “D� and my bank notified me via a letter in the mail “after� the fact at the end of the statement billing cycle that my transactions went over the allotted amount and I would be charged a fee. They let me use my savings account all month and the letter they sent to me is dated the last day of my statement cycle. In the letter there was no mention of how much the fee was going to be – and they waited till the end of the month (statement) cycle to even mention this.
When I got my statement I was charged $390.00 for excess fees as I was using my savings to make purchases for a trip I was going on. They charged me $15.00 per transaction – I immediately called the bank (main branch) and was told that it is a “Federal law� and that in certain instances they will waive the fee depending how long a customer has been with bank etc. But they said they could not waive the fee as my local branch was the one who charged the fees and it would be up to them to waive or reverse the fees.
I called my local branch and after a few days they got back to me (rather I had to call them again they never did call me back) and said we will reimburse $100.00 of the fee’s but that is all we can do because we actually did not charge the fee – the fee’s went to the government and so the bank took a loss by refunding you back the $100.00. Regulation D does not charge a fee regulation D states: Banks have certain obligations shold a customer make more than siz transfers per month. Individual bank must either "prevent withdrawals or transfers of fund from this account that are in excess of the limits or they must adopt procedures tomonitor those transfers and contact customer who exceed the established limits. Regulation D does not address fees charged by banks for excess transfers from savings accounts. Bank are not required by law to hcarge fees for excessive withdrawals:
I asked them if it is federal law and the government takes these fees how come some banks will charge only a $1.00 fee or $3.00 or even limit your account and not allow one to go over the allotted amounts. They of course did not have an answer for me!
I still feel the $290.00 they kept from my savings account (charged fees) is totally excessive. And I have 2 other checking accounts with the same bank I told them if I would of immediately been notified of the fee – then I would most certainly used my checking account. I mean credit card companies at least will give you the courtesy of notifying you if they see unusual activity on your card. They stated normally they watch to excessive activity and mine must have slipped by them and there is nothing they can do once it has been charged. I then said well why didn’t you notify me of the charges – they said the fees were listed when you opened your account. I said that was years ago when I opened this account and the print is so small on the sheets you give people that how can one even read it. They said nothing we can do you did received the fees when you opened your account.
I feel they have used “Regulation D� to steel money from me. I feel raped and violated after being with the bank for 13 years and have never once even bounced a check and have never even used my savings account except this one month!
Is there any recourse on can do on this?
Posted by: Laurie on June 5, 2006 at 3:24 PM
US BANK is a bunch of theifs and they take advantage of disabled americans by charging so much on over draft charges 35.00 each over draft and 7.00 a day if anyone reading thishas a account at us bank i would go get your money out of us bank and open another account at a differnt bank . if anyone knows of a class action law suit on this bank or if anyone knows how to start a class action law suit on this bank please email me at welschmeyer@sbcglobal.net i will be glad to join the law suit and i am sure there would be thousands of other unhappy ex us bank customers to join in to . kevin
Posted by: kevin welschmeyer on July 19, 2006 at 10:56 AM
You people just don't get it. I currently work for a U.S. Bank branch and see many people each day come in who are overdrawn thinking that we are the worst bank in the world. I'm not saying that some of our policies are the greatest, however, if you use a checkbook register to balance your account and check your account balances once in a while via the internet and phone, there is absolutely no reason why you should be overdrawn. It's a simple concept, "don't spend what you don't have." And as a response to the initial post on expecting to cash a $20,000 check without notice, you've got to think realistically here. A branch can only have so much money on hand. If, hypothetically, a couple people come in one day all expecting to cash $20,000 checks, the branch would obviously run out of money. Additionally, when you open your account, you are given specific disclosures and guidelines about the funds availability of your accounts. Come on people, banking is really not that hard. Try to think realistically by remembering that rules are put in place for a reason---both to protect the customer as well as the company. We are trained to obtain proper identification to avoid giving your money to someone else as well as to protect your privacy in compliance with the U.S. Patriot Act.
Posted by: k on July 21, 2006 at 7:23 PM
k,
Your comments, although alarmingly naive, don't surprise me coming from some drone that works behind a counter at US Bank. Obviously, something went wrong early in your development. US Bank is not a bank. It is a criminal enterprise. Their goal is to increase revenue by fleecing their own customers. This is a problem. I know you don't understand this, but it is. It's part-and-parcel what's wrong with the over-regulated US Banking system.
Obviously, you of all people must know that people are not "overdrawn". That's not possible. You dolts don't let people go into the red last time I checked. If people do write checks for more than they have in their accounts, what makes you think that is a reason to charge them money? Just refuse to pay the check. This all happens electronically. It cost the bank nothing to refuse to honor the check. Why turn around and charge them $40? The reason is to generate revenue.
Plus, US Bank routinely places holds on checks AFTER THEY HAVE CLEARED. This should be illegal. My new bank NEVER holds checks. Period.
Posted by: Peenie Wallie on July 22, 2006 at 5:09 AM
I have had a positive balance on the web page and woke up the next morning to overdrafts charges. These charges are posted for the following day but my account was positive yesterday and the day before. Went to the bank - teller tells me it was due to pending transactions - my pending transactions didn't exceed my balance the day before. If I forget to write down an expense or spent more than I had then I would suck it up and pay the fees but I was not over drawn. The treated me like an idiot. I wished I had printed out the report so I could shove it in the banks face. Also, they will not post a cash deposit right away to cover any overdraft charges which could be charged tomorrow since your account is overdrawn from the overdrafts and at times have put a cash deposit on hold. Hello - this is cash - Feel like such a loser -
Posted by: Tracy on October 26, 2006 at 4:38 PM
I deposited a lot of money into my account, and saw on the US Bank website that it was in there before I spent any of it. I would not have spent that money had I not been %100 sure it was there. US Bank retroactively 'held' the check. If the US Bank employee would return to this site and explain that maneuver to me, I would greatly appreciate it! Especially since the check was from MY company (ie I OWN it, and it's funds).
They did not inform me of this hold for five days. Wherein I was docked nearly $700 for overdraft fees. I then was charged $7 a day until they released the check... TWO WEEKS LATER!!!
Is this really a 'personal responsibility' issue? I was being responsible. I did know how much money I had, and I can still look online at my statement that shows overdraft fees on an account with lots of money in it. And the negative balance fees are there too, right next to my POSITIVE balance! Where is the US Bank employee's comment on that kind of tactic?
Why did US Bank not inform me of the hold? Why did they process transactions when they knew my account was negative? Why didn't they call me? Why did they hold a check (to me, from me) for two weeks, and rack up negative balance fees on it, while my account still read positive online? And why, after telling me that they'll put the money into my account, is the money STILL not there?
Please, K! Just admit that US Bank is built to destroy the financial well being of it's customers! Just admit that that's how they get their money! The less money you've got, the more they take! And interestingly enough, those "many people each day come in who are overdrawn thinking that we are the worst bank in the world" you mentioned may have a point! You ARE the worst bank in the world, because banks are supposed to PROTECT your money, and not STEAL it. As far as I'm concerned, if you TAKE money from your customers, you are not a bank at all!
US Bank has screwed me, and stolen money from me for the last time!
Posted by: Will on November 14, 2006 at 4:25 PM
US BANK SUCKS AND IS NOT A BANK AT ALL GET A NEW ACCOUNT AT A DIFFERNT BANK THEY WILL STEAL YOUR MONEY IF THEY HAVE NOT YET THE WILL ANY ONE HAVE A CLASS ACTION LAW SUITE ON THE YET ?
Posted by: kevin on February 12, 2007 at 12:53 AM
Here is a good one. I paid the balance of a credit card via check over the phone. I was 77 cents short and US returned the check and then charged me $35.00. In the last eight months I have paid over $5000 in fees. They always make me feel like a dead beat.
Unfotunately, I let the problem go on too long and my credit rating is so far in the gutter that I am no longer considered bankable. I make $50,000 a year and where I live that is a lot but yet I am unbankable. So I am stuck with US Bank until I can get my credit report cleaned up.
I really think there are enought people out ther who have been screwed by US Bank that if we get organized, something might happen.
Oh, US Bank Man, I do keep a check register. But a check register only works if your money is not held. I don't recall anywhere in my accounting courses in colleger there was a place on register where you listed deposits but said not available so don't spend the money for an arbritrary length of time.
Posted by: Sandra on April 3, 2007 at 4:00 PM
I deposited $160,ooo into my business account and U.S.BANK seized my funds and is currently holding them they say for 15 days! No reason was given for two days and then I got a letter that said my account would be closed an a check mailed to me. Mailed? That will take another 3 days. Can't I just get it at the baranch?
Oh yeah, and the reason for all of this...SUSPECTED IRREGULAR ACTIVITY! SUSPECTED! Not even verified! No bad checks, all deposits have cleared. Now I can't pay my employes or pay my bills and will likely lose my business because of the actions of U.S.BANK.
I can't believe this is legal!
Posted by: Brian Wick on June 26, 2007 at 3:51 AM
My account was closed with no reason given and it took me almost a month to get my money. These jerkoffs had almost $4,000 of my cash and there was nothing I could do about it.
NEVER,NEVER,NEVER,EVER USE US BANK OR YOU WILL BE SORRY!
Posted by: Orlando Figureoa on June 26, 2007 at 3:55 AM
My turn. I got screwed by US Bank over a year ago, eventually got them to back down and un-do the damage they did to my credit history after several months of letter-writing and a complaint to the OCC (their federal regulator)...and I'm STILL pissed at those lousy, rotten, self-righteous bastards.
They have a nice gig going with their Corporate VISA program. Say your employer engages them to issue corporate VISA cards to employees who travel on business. The employer REQUIRES you to use this Corporate VISA for company travel, which in addition to your own name embossed on the card, also is emblazoned with your employer's name and corporate logo. But, the cardholder agreement says NOTHING about your employer also being responsible for business-related travel expenses charged to the card...they are YOUR personal responsibility. Period. So essentially, we the employees get to carry $xx amount of the credit risk which rightfully belongs to our employers for company credit card expenses.
To make a long story short, my employer for whom I Travel (...hint) related to my employer's insurance business, apparently gave not a rat's ass that US Bank had charged off (as in, a bad debt) a measly $600-some balance on my Corporate Visa for a trip that I had cancelled and long forgotten about...but didn't know I still needed to expense. Without even asking my employer to pay it, they charged it off and reported the charge-off against me personally to the credit bureaus, all for a company debt for a business trip which never happened.
My employer's corporate guy who manages the relationship with US Bank was as useless as tits on a bull, pure and simple.
The schmuck at US Bank, "Daniel R" was his name, with whom I spoke over several weeks' time, told me a variety of things, including:
1. They consider me primarily liable, and my employer secondarily liable (so, at what point do you seek payment from my employer...no answer).
2. They are obligated by law (heh...) to report my charge-off to the credit bureaus.
3. After saying I could send a letter to him demanding the rescission of their charge-off, he told me it was not his responsibility to collect all kinds of information from other departments at US Bank to respond to my demand.
I only found out about the charge-off because it affected a subsequent loan application I had made. I never heard back from Daniel R. or his supervisor, and I never heard back from US Bank to the letter I wrote them. So I wrote to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) which is US Bank's federal regulator. They acknowledged the complaint and forwarded it to US Bank. About two weeks later, while maintaining the correctness of their position and without admitting that they are the scum-sucking bottom-feeders that they are, they agreed to rescind the adverse charge-off from my credit reports.
Posted by: frank on September 18, 2007 at 1:48 PM
I had an account with US Bank, and during a time, my husband and I hit a rough spot financially. We opted to take US Bank up on their "Cash Advance" option. We were fine, we were not in the red. One day, my husband realized that according to our bank statement online and our check register, we had an extra $400, so he went ahead and paid the "cash advance" off early. What he didn't know is that I had paid the car payment via check and hadn't updated our register, and of course it hadn't shown up online. Immediately, I called US Bank's 24 hour banking and explained myself. I asked if they could reverse that payment, of course they said no. I told them I didn't have the money at the time and it was going to cause me to overdraft, they said there was nothing they could do. So of course, we started to overdraft, checks were not clearing, so they were reversed. In the end, I had over $1200 in the red, and most of this was the $35 overdraft fee and $7.00 per day fee.
One day, I got a letter from US Bank stating that I needed to call them so they could help me resolve this situation, WHY WOULDN"T THEY HELP ME BEFORE IT GOT THIS BAD????????
Needless to say, they closed my account and sent me to their corporate collections department. I have yet to contact them about payment, I don't really want to. Any suggestions? Will they take me to court if I don't pay??
Posted by: Stephanie on November 26, 2007 at 9:46 PM
I would LOVE to say that I have worked in multiple banks including Bank of America and US BANK.
EVERY SINGLE BANK charges fees how else do you think they make a profit?
NO BANK has that much money on hand in cash, why would they keep that in the vault? Its a liability if they get robbed they lose it. No branch needs that much at one time so they dont keep it. They order money once a week and if you want it in cash they need to know a week in advance. So call them first!
They hold your checks only if they need to be held if its a $20,000.00 check and we give it to you right away and you withdrawal the money. Then the check is bad or the account is closed and the bank cant collect their money then we lose $20,000.00. CHECK 21 not Rule 21 is not always overnight no banks are connected so its not going to work that fast I'm sorry.
If you put "a check" into the atm they are not going to give it to you right away. Heres a concept; some people lie, some people say they are making a deposit and they put in an empty envelope or say the check is for way more than it really is and then withdrawal the money. Then the bank loses money when theres nothing for them to collect.
If you think that the bank is trying to STEAL from you, you need to step back and think again because every bank does these things. If you put
a check in the bank and its not a good check then the bank is not going to just give you money they are going to take back what you deposited cause it wasnt good.
You and your tiny little brain obviously didnt keep track of your account the correct way and it overdrafted, so you got fees, then you didnt fix the account so you got more fees. Its obvious that you are not smart enough to have a simple checking account.
One more thing dont act like every USBANK employee is a mindless idiot that is stealing your money. We dont sit at work and go through accounts all day and say "hmmm who do I feel like taking money from today?" no we have way bigger fish to fry than your worthless overdrawn negative account. You probably wouldnt be smart enough to do our job for 5 minutes. You probably were a giant ASSHOLE everytime you went to the bank thats why the employees didnt want to help you at all. Remember we have the power to do WHATEVER we want to your money, so maybe you shouldnt be such a dick when you come to the bank and the "bank" will help you out a little more.
Posted by: USBANK LOVER on February 27, 2008 at 8:50 PM
US Bank Lover - You've posted a lot of garbage here. Don't have time to address it all, but I'll answer your first stupid question. You said "EVERY SINGLE BANK charges fees how else do you think they make a profit?" Actually, the way banks used to make profits was to invest the deposits wisely, generate a return on the investments greater than what they pay in interest, and that was their profit. US Bank decided that they wanted to start gouging their clients by increasing fees they charged their own customers. So, hopefully, that answers your first idiotic, naive, stupid question.
Posted by: Rob Kiser on February 28, 2008 at 4:09 PM
This is a comment to the US Bank Lover.
I find it very odd that every time my account is running low as in about 40 to 50 dollars left in it, and I have totalled all of what ever is suppose to come out of my account down to the last cent, US bank goes out of its way to try and dig up some old payment that has been paid and try to re-run it through your account hoping you won't notice this bullshit and sending me into overdraft hell. I got so pissed off one time cuz this had happend to me two prior times that I sent a very pissed of email to customer service telling them that I thought they were scam artists and greedy bastards that just sat back and watched the funds roll in that they were collecting off of overdraft fees and what have you. Shortly after sending that email, I notice frudulent activity going on in my account that you have to wait 10 or more days for them to credit your account of whatever funds you were ripped off because they want to make sure you are telling the truth before they credit you back they money. WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT ALL ABOUT? WHY NOT BE NICE TO THE CUSTOMER CREDIT THERE ACCOUNT IMMEDIATELY AND THEN INVESTIGATE THE BULLSHIT AND IF THEY FIND OUT THE CUSTOMER IS LYING TAKE BACK THE FUNDS. NOT US BANK THEY WOULD RATHER SEND YOU TO HELL AND BACK BEFORE THEY PAY YOU BACK ANYTHING. THIS IS BULLSHIT WHY ARE CUSTOMERS PENALIZED FOR FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY THAT HAPPENS IN THERE ACCOUNTS. US BANK DOES SUCK THEY SUCK ROTTEN OLD FESTERING SHIT OFF OF A BEAT UP OLD LOG. AND I HOPE THEY SEE HELL VERY SOON.
Posted by: US Bank Hater on July 31, 2008 at 5:34 AM
US bank has devistated the lives of me and my fiance.Someone stole our bank card number somehow and used it in Chicago,we live in Missouri.The thief ran my card 3 times at a 711 unsucessfully before finally spending 150$.00 and later going to crispy creme spending under five dollars.We got a total of 222$.00 in overdraft charges that they claim cannot be rebursed for up to 3 weeks.I cant afford my books for collrege now.What i say is the Gov should invest less in bailouts for these crappy banks that screw us over and invest the money in the education of the youth of this nation that actually does want to better themselves.
Posted by: Devestated on May 18, 2009 at 3:51 PM
I have never seen a bank that screws over their customers as bad as US Bank- they should be shut down. I opened my account in good faith and took my payroll check in there on Friday when I got paid and I was told the balance would be available the very next day - whoa was I supurised when on Saturday I looked at my bank account and there was no money. I immediately called the bank and they said they had a 12 day hold on my check. But what's amazing is that if you do a direct deposit its in there but the fact that I wrote a check three days before payday and because it hit the bank before my check I was charged overdraft fee of $37.50 and 8.00 each day after. Needless to say I now am at a credit union where they treat you like family not a criminal. SCREW YOU US BANK
Posted by: Joanie O'Callan on November 23, 2009 at 3:27 PM