Bank Horror Stories

I was a guest on Allan Handelman’s radio show for 2.5 hours this week taking listener questions. I love doing Allan’s show. He’s a pro, and his listeners always have lots of great questions and stories.

Early in the show, the topic migrated to “Bank Horror Stories.” While I thought I had heard them all, there were a few that really threw me:

• Allan reported that a few years back he deposited cash — with the teller, not at an ATM — and received a notice from the bank a few days later that they “adjusted” his deposit because he gave them $100 less than what he wrote on his deposit slip. When he complained, he was told it was not the teller’s job to count the money in the deposit! After this happened three times, he asked the teller to count the cash he was depositing and they refused. He no longer deposits cash. (I suggested he also find another bank.)
• One caller has a mortgage with a Florida institution, Taylor Bean & Whitaker. His wife normally pays the bill online but recently sent a check instead. Two weeks later the check was returned with a note that the mortgage company no longer takes personal checks! She was blocked from paying online at that point, so she had to send a bank certified check, which arrived one day late, resulting in a serious negative mark on an otherwise clean credit report.

There were also numerous reports of interest rate hikes, credit line decreases, payments not being applied when received, and floating due dates that resulted in late payments. The theme seemed to be, “They just don’t care.”

What’s your bank horror story? Share it here.

Gerri Detweiler – Personal finance author and Credit Advisor for Credit.com, Gerri contributes budgeting, debt recovery and savings information online. She is also the co-author of Reduce Debt, Reduce Stress: Real Life Solutions for Solving Your Credit Crisis.

Tagged as: Allan Handelman's radio show, bank deposit errors, bank horror stories, bank teller errors, credit line cuts, floating due dates, interest rate hikes, late payments

Gerri Detweiler Credit.com's Personal Finance Expert, Gerri focuses on financial legislation, budgeting, debt recovery and consumer savings information. She is also the co-author of Debt Collection Answers: How to Use Debt Collection Laws to Protect Your Rights, and Reduce Stress: Real-Life Solutions for Solving Your Credit Crisis as well as host of TalkCreditRadio.comTalk Credit Radio. Reach Gerri at creditexperts@credit.com.