Debit Card Suckage (Long and ranty)

[lupo pazzesco]

mk, so my debit card for my bank expired in September. No biggie, I went online September 10th and ordered a new one, accepted the fee, blah blah blah, and got the happy little memo window saying that I should receive my new card in 7-10 business days. I check my balance online, two days later (the 12th) and see that the fee has been taken from my account. Yay! The process is in process, I'll get my new card soon. Oh, happy day!

Fast forward to September 21st. I check my account...and see ANOTHER debit card fee charged to my account, dated September 20th. So, I call the 1-800 customer number, and go through the security question process, blah blah blah, and finally get to talk to a real person. I explain the situation, and she tells me that the 10th business day would be September 24th, and that if I haven't received my card by then, then call and find out if they can track it. Meanwhile, I'm getting antsy, because I once you order a new debit card, they wait 14 days and essentially cancel the old card because they assume a new one has been issued, and I only have a small window left in which to use my existing debit card. I am reassured that all will be well, and the second charge for the debit card will be reversed.

September 24th comes, and I receive no card. Which I don't find out until I get home from work at 8 pm, meaning I can't call the customer number that night. I wait until September 26th, when I'm not going to school and working 14 hour days and place another call. The rep I talk to informs me that since the payment wasn't deducted from my account until September 12th, then it's 7-10 business days from THAT date that I should be counting, and thus, I should receive my card no later than september 30th.

Right. Ok, no big deal, at least the second charge was rev--WHY is the second charge back on my statement!?!?!?!

So, once again, this week has been hellacious. Not only am I still going to work and class and pulling 12-14 hour days, but my first exams are also this week, and I manage to spectacularly injure myself at work. Fun stuff. I hadn't gotten around to checking my mailbox until today, and lo and behold, STILL NO CARD!! By now, of course, my old card is null and void, and I have no way of hitting an ATM at all, if necessary. I don't even have checks, really, since I just use my debit card, when necessary.

I'm on the phone again, calling the regular 1-800 number, and get transferred to a different customer care department after the first woman I speak with tells me she can't help me.

I'm on hold for 7-8 minutes, I roughly timed it based on the number of times I was told my call was important, and to wait for the next available CSR. I finally get a real person again, and the woman tells me that since it's October, odds are I'm not going to get the card if I haven't received it by now. I need to order another one, and this time, I need to go in person to my local branch to do so.

I essentially sat on hold to get the proverbial shrug and told tough noogies, do it again since no one knows what happened.

So, I am more than a little irate at this point, and explained to the woman that I can't really get to a branch because of my schedule, and because public transportation ain't the greatest. On top of all that, will I be charged yet again a debit card fee, making it 3 times, (since the second charge STILL isn't reversed and no one can tell me why!!) She said the branch manager should be able to waive the fee, but it's up to the manager's discretion, but she didn't see why they wouldn't. (Translation: Probably, but don't hold your breath!)

So, I get a little sucky myself, and tell her that she wasn't really being helpful to me, despite how long I was on hold, and that she told me nothing useful to my particular situation, but thanks anyways, and hung up.

Proceeded to call my local branch, in the vain hopes that I could re-order a debit card over the phone. Again, tough noogies, you HAVE to do it person because you have to sign a paper verifying identity. I asked if I could do it over the phone, and use the security answers that exist for such verification, going on to explain my situation yet again regarding limited transportation and time issues.

She takes down my information, verifies my identity, and checks my account, seeing the two charges for the debit card fee, and states she's going to look into it and will call me back, no later than 20 minutes.

It has been 6 minutes. I'm timing her.

I am so so so irritated right now!! Seriously, does NO ONE at the 1-800 line know what they're doing?? Yes, I think I'm coming off as a little SC-ish with the following utterance, but this is ridiculous!! I just want my debit card back!!!

I thought that online banking existed to promote convenience, and it's been anything BUT convenient for almost a month now, and I'm ready to tear my hair out. Sadly, this is the first time that something like this has happened, I usually have such exceptional customer service from this bank, that's why I chose it, that, and when I do manage to somehow have a few minutes free, there's a branch on my campus I can go to for in person stuff, but I haven't been able to get there in, quite literally, months. There's just no room/time between my class, work, and commuting schedule.

Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!

[fma_fanatic]

Ugh..I hate banks that charge you not only for the priviledge of letting you use their debit card, but charge you for all their fuck ups. When you get free time, go the branch and request a branch manager to take care of this problem. They should reverse the fees; personally, they should reverse all 3 fees. I also don't understand why your bank doesn't send out new cards when the old one is getting close to expiring.

[jedimaster91]

I also don't understand why your bank doesn't send out new cards when the old one is getting close to expiring.

So they can charge you late fees when you realize the card has expired and want to renew it.

[fma_fanatic]

So they can charge you late fees when you realize the card has expired and want to renew it.

I guess I'm too used to my credit unions being on the ball about that. Still, why should OP have to pay for their mistakes. They're the ones that messed up; let them pay the fees.

Then find a new bank that won't charge fees for sending out new cards.

[simpleyme]

what ? i do not get any of this

every bank and credit card I have just sends new cards before the old ones expire sometimes way before for no apparent reason , they charge you for the card ? I would change banks

[smileyeagle1021]

yeah, Lupo, my best advice (and this applies doubly with the economy), pull every penny you have out of your bank, and go to a credit union... not only are they much better at taking care of their members (they don't consider you a customer, they consider you a member, that should say a lot), but not a single credit union has gone under because of the economy and most credit unions have much better mortgages and aren't having a bunch of people default (at least in this area).

[otakuneko]

BoFA's always sent me a new debit card a few weeks before the old one expired, and didn't charge for it either.

Your bank is a sucky bank.

[Heatherina]

Yeah, every bank I have ever been with has sent a new debit card before the old one expired. You should do some bank shopping. Good luck.

[lupo pazzesco]

Update of sorts...

Mk, so, said woman did in fact call me back, but not until earlier today, around noon. Turns out my bank DOES send out a debit card before the old on expires. Only problem is, they sent it to an address I haven't lived at in THREE YEARS. (Almost 4, actually) That was the reason I got the window on my online banking saying I was being charged for a new card, because the other one was bounced back, and rather than worry about it being intercepted, my old DC number was canceled. So, when I ordered the renewed card, it's essentially as though it were lost or stolen.

Problems with all of the above being, every time I've moved (Twice since I first opened the account), I've ALWAYS updated my address, both online, and going into a branch when I could afford the time to, and updating it there. So why in the blue bloody hell were they sending a replacement card to a 4 year old address still?

The lady had no explanation for that one when I brought it up. She did, however re-order a new debit card for me, asked if she could delete the old address off my account (which I had originally done each time I changed addys to avoid this kind of confusion, but why quibble?) She also said she was going to refund the charges for all the times I had the money deducted from my account, however there will be one fee charged because it is an annual fee that everyone pays once a year for use of a debit mastercard. I'm ok with that, since it was outlined when I originally signed up for the account. Allegedly, that's what one of the charges was, but if that were the case, why couldn't the 4 people I spoke with at the 1-800 customer number tell me this?? Why did it take some poor little bank worker at a local branch crammed into the corner of a Wal-mart who actually did look into it and get back to me to finally tell me the truth?

I behaved the entire time, though, folks, and not once did I turn sucky. I didn't even ask that all fees be waived, I just asked if I was going to be charged yet again for a replacement card, and she told me about refunding everything except the yearly fee, so she was a sweetie. And now that my irritation has subsided, I'm much less stressed at this point.

OF course, being irate and stressed means I now have an abundance of food, as I tend to cook when I'm upset, just to stay busy. I now have pasta salad with imitation crab meat and veggies, a sausage pasta dish in tomato basil sauce with mozarella cheese, chicken enchilada casserole, and a pot of turkey chili is currently simmering on the stove. I'm eating well this week...and I may have to give some away, that which doesn't freeze well.

All in all, things are turning out all right, and I'll have a new DC, hopefully before October 20th.

[Racket_Man]

you have to remember that sometimes the bank part and the card part are TOTALLY seperate entities with totaly seperate databases at are NOT always sync'ed up.

for example

my ex and I divorced 2 years ago. 1 1/2 years before that we got seperate bank accounts. I took over sole posession of our joint account and she opened a totally new one seperate from me at the same bank. the joint account was now mine with only my name addy signature SSN etc AND we canceled her ATM/debt card and access for said account.

after Ex and I split I moved to a new address and changed everything including address PINs and security features

fast forward to last Jan. I know my debt card is expiring. I get new card in the mail. cool beans as my mag strip on the current one is dying. I open the envelope and low and behold there are two (2) cards. one in my name and one in my Ex's name.

I think WHAT THE FREEKING HELLLLLLL is going on??????? I start to sweat bullets. Crap did my EX STILL have access to MY account??????

I get on the phone to the bank's 800 number (actually it is local. how do I know it IS local because I deliver to the call center ocassionally). the CSR verifies my info and security. they also verify that I am the sole possessor of the account and that my Ex is NOT on the account (stops sweating at that point) in any way shape for form. the CSR does not understand why I was sent 2 Debt cards so she puts me on hold to talk to her supervisor. even they are not sure why I got 2 cards. they tell me they will research and call back.

I get a call back about an hour later and here is what happened. they must "farm" out the debt card recording/printing/embossing to either an outside company (my best gues is this is the case) or another division of the bank. for some reason the databases of bank and the debt card division/issuer are not sync'ed up and the card company/division STILL had my Ex on the account. when it came time to send out new cards they used the "current" info they had to issue new cards.

so even though they got my address correct they did not have the proper account holder info correct

[PepperElf]

usually that'd be enough for me to say "thank you. I'll be changing banks now"

if I even tell them ... sometimes I've been known to just change banks without telling them too... they'll figure it out sooner or later

[Difdi]

Ugh..I hate banks that charge you not only for the priviledge of letting you use their debit card, but charge you for all their fuck ups.

Haven't you heard? Banks have procedures and policies in place to prevent mistakes, and all their employees always follow them to the letter. Therefore mistakes cannot be made by the bank and must have been on the customer's end. Therefore charging a customer a fee for any mistakes is fully justified. Because, you know, nobody ever violates policy on the bank's end. Nope, never.

[SG15Z]

OF course, being irate and stressed means I now have an abundance of food, as I tend to cook when I'm upset, just to stay busy. I now have pasta salad with imitation crab meat and veggies, a sausage pasta dish in tomato basil sauce with mozarella cheese, chicken enchilada casserole, and a pot of turkey chili is currently simmering on the stove. I'm eating well this week...and I may have to give some away, that which doesn't freeze well.

All in all, things are turning out all right, and I'll have a new DC, hopefully before October 20th.

Mmmm! Can I come over for supper! lol

Glad to hear everything worked out! That's why I handle everything with my bank in person if I have the time. The people at the actual branch tend to be more helpful than 1-800ers

[TheComputerError]

Thankfully, with my bank, new check cards are printed on premises, so I just walk in and ask for a new card. No charge, no wait. Just a verification of identification and I'm back out spending my hard-earned cash.

[fma_fanatic]

Thankfully, with my bank, new check cards are printed on premises, so I just walk in and ask for a new card. No charge, no wait. Just a verification of identification and I'm back out spending my hard-earned cash.

I recently switched credit unions and the new one I'm at also has this service. SO kept asking me when they'd send me a real card, and I told him this was my real card. Sure, I could ask for a new one, but then this one would be deactivated and I pretty much use my debit card for everything. I don't mind going into my nearest branch as it is now much closer to my work - one of the main reasons I moved CUs.

The other reason is that I get some pretty neat perks. Like 5.01% on my checking account. My other CU couldn't even touch that unless I had a lot of money in the account, and I'm lucky if I still have 5 dollars left before the next payday after bills, gas and groceries are bought.