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Bank of America to charge customers monthly fee for using debit cards, could spark trend among banks

 

BY Robert Dominguez

DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER

 

Thursday, September 29th 2011

 

 

"Count Bank of America as the latest lender to slap customers with a fee for using their debit cards.

 

Starting early next year, the nation's largest bank will charge many of its account holders $5 a month for making purchases with a debit card.

 

The move will only affect those with lower-tiered accounts, said the bank. BofA customers with Premium and Platinum Privileges accounts - which require balances of $20,000 and $50,000, respectively - will be exempt from fees, as will college students with CampusEdge accounts.

 

Customers making cash withdrawals at the bank's ATM machines will also be spared the fee. The charge would only apply in months a customer buys something using a debit card."

 

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2011/09/29/2011-09-29_bank_of_america_to_charge_customers_monthly_fee_for_using_debit_cards_could_spar.html

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Bank of America is disgusting. After I dumped Citibank (another set of crooks always talking about identity theft when they're the ones looking to rob you) and closed my accounts, I went to Bank of America and they told me I needed all of this stuff just to open an account (passport, another form of ID and so on), so I went down the block to Chase instead with the ID that I had and opened my accounts there and haven't had a problem since. I mean who in the hell is going to walk around with a passport? :mad: My friend uses Bank of America and he has been screwed over with them a few times. Once we went out drinking in the city after going to the final Mets' game at Shea stadium against the Marlins, and he offered to pay for the drinks there. It was me who was drinking since he was driving, so I had several imported beers and a little grub which came to about $80.00 or so once you throw in his drink and grub, so he goes to pay and his Bank of America card had been frozen simply because they claimed that they detected fraud on the account, so he had to use another card to pay for everything. It was probably because he doesn't go to that bar that often. :P

 

I had that happen to me with HSBC when I was a college student, and I called them and told them that they had better not f*ck me over because I needed to use my card in Europe. :mad: I eventually dropped them too because they are also ridiculous. Chase isn't the best, but they're reasonable and try to help when they can and they even pre-approved me for a mortgage with a good interest rate. :cool:

 

If it were me, I would close down my accounts w/Bank of America and move on to a credit union or something where I could use my cards with ease.

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If anyone is surprised by this then you obviously werent paying attention in 2008 and 2009.

 

Credit unions are the new in. They don't screw over their customers, which is more than what I can say for Skank of America or Shitty Bank.

 

Yeah but you know something, they make a sh*t load in overcharge fees, although I haven't had one of those in years since I have an Amex card without a set limit, so I just put everything on that and pay it off in full each month, but yeah, I would just go to a credit union if Chase tried that with me, or better yet it wouldn't matter anyway since I don't use the bank card for charges anyway. :cool:

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Credit Union.

 

@via That fruad shyt happened to my gf and they froze her account also and there was no evidence of fruad anywhere, when she went into the bank and talked to someone they said she swiped her card too much, so I but in and say "and? its her money she can swipe as many times as she wants; who are you to say she cant use her OWN money". The fees from BOA is just insane. Anybody who use BOA has no brain what so ever.

 

My ex gf had problems with BOA also, she was raped in everyway you can think of.

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Credit Union.

 

@via That fruad shyt happened to my gf and they froze her account also and there was no evidence of fruad anywhere, when she went into the bank and talked to someone they said she swiped her card too much, so I but in and say "and? its her money she can swipe as many times as she wants; who are you to say she cant use her OWN money". The fees from BOA is just insane. Anybody who use BOA has no brain what so ever.

 

My ex gf had problems with BOA also, she was raped in everyway you can think of.

 

LOL... Yeah, they are totally full of sh*t and Citibank's main thing is to constantly harp on "Identity Fraud". Tons of commercials on that sh*t, meanwhile they treat the customers like criminals. I opened some accounts up at their 64th st. and 3rd Ave branch and the guy was really nice, but shortly after that, I started having problems. At the 16th st branch there on 5th Avenue, they treated customers like absolute sh*t. You'd see affluent folks walk in and then they couldn't withdraw money from their accounts because they didn't have two forms of ID. I mean I used to walk in there actually nervous to withdraw my own money because they were so ridiculous with the requirements.

 

Anyway, the straw that broke the camels' back was when I made a purchase at a boutique in Midtown using my Citibank card. The purchase was only about $200.00 for a shirt or a tie, but when I checked my checking account, I see that the charge was posted twice, so I called them and was told that I would need to go a branch to sort it out. I go to the branch there on 16th & 5th and am basically told that I have to take it up with the merchant, even though it was clearly a duplicate charge. The merchant couldn't help me of course since it was no wrong doing on their end, so I was basically out of $200.00 for almost a few weeks going from branch to branch to resolve the problem with no success.

 

Finally after making a big stink and going back to the branch where I opened my accounts (which was completely out of the way for me since I was working in Chelsea at that time) and speaking to the guy that had helped me with opening them, only then did they refund me my monies, and the real kicker was that the refunded me the funds twice. Of course I didn't say a damn word because quite frankly it was overdue interest as far as I was concerned. LOL Suffice it to say that when I went to close down my accounts there on Forest Avenue, they were quite sad, but after that fiasco, I wanted nothing to do with them. :mad:

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Credit Union.

 

@via That fruad shyt happened to my gf and they froze her account also and there was no evidence of fruad anywhere, when she went into the bank and talked to someone they said she swiped her card too much, so I but in and say "and? its her money she can swipe as many times as she wants; who are you to say she cant use her OWN money". The fees from BOA is just insane. Anybody who use BOA has no brain what so ever.

 

My ex gf had problems with BOA also, she was raped in everyway you can think of.

 

Same here, fraud-related issues, account frozen a few times, SMH I said, kiss my ass, I'm outta here

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@via thats why I left TD for a credit union. I had never had problems with TD til one day I walked into withdraw some money and I was asked to show my social security id and dls. Now keep in mind everytime I went in there I used to give them my dls and had my money and was out of there. The second the lady said that I went to see a rep and closed my account. The rep asked me why I was taking out my money and I was like its none of your business.

 

So after that I went to a credit union njt recommended and never had a problem since.

 

Some of these banks treat these people like they are terrorist. They actually have you feeling like your stealijg your own money, like damn is this even my money or is it the banks...smh.

 

Ive heard some horror stories of people having to show a BIRTH CERTIFICATE @ boa. And to open a student account had to have written proof that they was still in school.

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@via thats why I left TD for a credit union. I had never had problems with TD til one day I walked into withdraw some money and I was asked to show my social security id and dls. Now keep in mind everytime I went in there I used to give them my dls and had my money and was out of there. The second the lady said that I went to see a rep and closed my account. The rep asked me why I was taking out my money and I was like its none of your business.

 

So after that I went to a credit union njt recommended and never had a problem since.

 

Some of these banks treat these people like they are terrorist. They actually have you feeling like your stealijg your own money, like damn is this even my money or is it the banks...smh.

 

Ive heard some horror stories of people having to show a BIRTH CERTIFICATE @ boa. And to open a student account had to have written proof that they was still in school.

 

Yeah, I went over to that branch there on 5th and 16th I think it is and the branch manager or whatever she was said that they had to do it now after 9/11, which is total BS seeing that Chase didn't ask me for all of that, so I said to myself really? To say I was pissed is an understatement, so I said f*ck it and just walked over to Chase and was done in 15-20 minutes. I hear Fidelity is pretty good though. One of my co-workers uses them and speaks highly of them.

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Bank of America is disgusting. After I dumped Citibank (another set of crooks always talking about identity theft when they're the ones looking to rob you) and closed my accounts, I went to Bank of America and they told me I needed all of this stuff just to open an account (passport, another form of ID and so on), so I went down the block to Chase instead with the ID that I had and opened my accounts there and haven't had a problem since. I mean who in the hell is going to walk around with a passport? :mad: My friend uses Bank of America and he has been screwed over with them a few times. Once we went out drinking in the city after going to the final Mets' game at Shea stadium against the Marlins, and he offered to pay for the drinks there. It was me who was drinking since he was driving, so I had several imported beers and a little grub which came to about $80.00 or so once you throw in his drink and grub, so he goes to pay and his Bank of America card had been frozen simply because they claimed that they detected fraud on the account, so he had to use another card to pay for everything. It was probably because he doesn't go to that bar that often. :P

 

I had that happen to me with HSBC when I was a college student, and I called them and told them that they had better not f*ck me over because I needed to use my card in Europe. :mad: I eventually dropped them too because they are also ridiculous. Chase isn't the best, but they're reasonable and try to help when they can and they even pre-approved me for a mortgage with a good interest rate. :cool:

 

If it were me, I would close down my accounts w/Bank of America and move on to a credit union or something where I could use my cards with ease.

 

Agreed, after reading this BofA can go kick rocks...I'll stick with Chase and MCU.

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I hear Fidelity is pretty good though. One of my co-workers uses them and speaks highly of them.

 

Fidelity consists of a bunch of frauds as well. My mother's friend used to do business with them... until one of their workers showed up to an isolated branch with her kid, and made up some random story. She took out all the money that my mother's friend had at Fidelity, and disappeared. To this day, the cops have never been able to trace her, and the money has never been found. My mother's friend is sure that this is the same Fidelity worker that had helped her open an account in the first place. And that's not the only horror story involving Fidelity that I've heard of...

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SubwayGuy's lessons in wise finance.

 

Stop using debit cards.

 

-They take money directly out of your account immediately.

-If you allowed yourself to be duped into signing up for "overdraft protection", you'll be charged a large fee if you exceed your balance, even if it's only over by a few cents. Fees for this type of incident typically run between $35 and $40, plus interest on the "borrowed" money.

-If your debit card information is skimmed by a device or other reader, the identity thief has direct access to YOUR BANK ACCOUNT.

-If your identity is stolen, purchases made with a debit card WILL go through and you will lose your money. You will have to fight to get it back, all the while living without the money that's rightfully yours. Most debit cards are not protected with "no questions asked" reimbursement or removal of fraud items upon a report - you will likely be on the hook for the damage caused by identity theft.

 

Tell the banks NO YOU WON'T PAY THEIR FEES.

 

I've never paid a bank fee, and when they fought me I've fought back and won every time. All of you should do the same. RESPONSIBLE SPENDERS SHOULD NEVER SUBSIDIZE IRRESPONSIBLE SPENDERS.

 

Oh and f*** the banks. Had to throw that in there too.

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SubwayGuy's lessons in wise finance.

 

Stop using debit cards.

 

-They take money directly out of your account immediately.

-If you allowed yourself to be duped into signing up for "overdraft protection", you'll be charged a large fee if you exceed your balance, even if it's only over by a few cents. Fees for this type of incident typically run between $35 and $40, plus interest on the "borrowed" money.

-If your debit card information is skimmed by a device or other reader, the identity thief has direct access to YOUR BANK ACCOUNT.

-If your identity is stolen, purchases made with a debit card WILL go through and you will lose your money. You will have to fight to get it back, all the while living without the money that's rightfully yours. Most debit cards are not protected with "no questions asked" reimbursement or removal of fraud items upon a report - you will likely be on the hook for the damage caused by identity theft.

 

Tell the banks NO YOU WON'T PAY THEIR FEES.

 

I've never paid a bank fee, and when they fought me I've fought back and won every time. All of you should do the same. RESPONSIBLE SPENDERS SHOULD NEVER SUBSIDIZE IRRESPONSIBLE SPENDERS.

 

Oh and f*** the banks. Had to throw that in there too.

 

 

I agree with that. I don't use my Chase debit card anymore except to withdraw cash or for checks or whatever. They claim that if there is fraud that you'll have the money back in your account the next day, but they can't do anything until the charge actually posts to your account. Meanwhile with my Amex any dispute that I have they remove from my account until the dispute has been settled. :cool: Amex also offers great insurance on items so you get an extended warranty. My Ray Bans fell on the ground over there where that Bank of America is by Grand Central and they would've replaced them, but my warranty with Amex had passed by several days. :( They always encourage us to dispute any charge and they are pretty quick w/settling disputes. I had a pair of $168.00 pants that were slightly defective and I disputed it and was sent a new pair by Nordstrom, but Amex never charged me for them. :cool:

 

I think Chase only charges an overdraft fee if you over by like $10.00 or so, which isn't bad, and they also allow you to get your balance current the same day if you go over, which I think is pretty fair.

 

Fidelity consists of a bunch of frauds as well. My mother's friend used to do business with them... until one of their workers showed up to an isolated branch with her kid, and made up some random story. She took out all the money that my mother's friend had at Fidelity, and disappeared. To this day, the cops have never been able to trace her, and the money has never been found. My mother's friend is sure that this is the same Fidelity worker that had helped her open an account in the first place. And that's not the only horror story involving Fidelity that I've heard of...

 

Hmm... Sounds like a terrible worker, but I wouldn't say that is representative of the entire company. My co-worker has been with them for years and has never had a problem.

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Being fair Subway Guy not everyone credit approval these days can get a credit card these days including American Express. So what you suggest than? With that said, I do agree to pay cash whenever possible. Just like VG8 i also have Chase and use their debit card.

And don't use debit cards at say bars/pubs, bootleg atm machines or other shady type of places that more likely to 'rob' you. I never had any problems either so far (knock on wood). However for certain things like a car rental you need a debit or credit card or else you can't use it. Just wondering SB and await your reply?

 

 

SubwayGuy's lessons in wise finance.

 

Stop using debit cards.

 

-They take money directly out of your account immediately.

-If you allowed yourself to be duped into signing up for "overdraft protection", you'll be charged a large fee if you exceed your balance, even if it's only over by a few cents. Fees for this type of incident typically run between $35 and $40, plus interest on the "borrowed" money.

-If your debit card information is skimmed by a device or other reader, the identity thief has direct access to YOUR BANK ACCOUNT.

-If your identity is stolen, purchases made with a debit card WILL go through and you will lose your money. You will have to fight to get it back, all the while living without the money that's rightfully yours. Most debit cards are not protected with "no questions asked" reimbursement or removal of fraud items upon a report - you will likely be on the hook for the damage caused by identity theft.

 

Tell the banks NO YOU WON'T PAY THEIR FEES.

 

I've never paid a bank fee, and when they fought me I've fought back and won every time. All of you should do the same. RESPONSIBLE SPENDERS SHOULD NEVER SUBSIDIZE IRRESPONSIBLE SPENDERS.

 

Oh and f*** the banks. Had to throw that in there too.

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I should invest in a safe, a another handgun, and an AK-47.... I think I'm gonna start slowly pullin my money out of banks, period.... I was two steps away from choosing BofA, good thing I didn't.....

 

I used to be a part of a credit union a while back, but I didn't like the fact that they tried to delve too much into my personal life (the persistence is what got to me)... I understand that it's an attempt to be more personable w/ its members, but after a while it got annoying, and I pulled out.....

 

I can't wax poetic about credit unions too much b/c I had that bad experience.... but whoever mentioned credit unions becoming the new fad or w/e, I have to agree.... they're "banking" off the fact that banks aren't lookin too good at all right now.... sorta like how twitter swooped through & took over facebook as the prevalent social networking site out.....

 

Anyway, $5/month for making purchases with a debit card..... smfh... comin up w/ yet even more ways to make money off its patrons.....

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I think the government should intervene with banks. The banks have done nothing but hurt us especially during the recession. The government should create a law to keep banks in check, and if they aren't following the rules the government would have a right to take over the bank. That should scare most banks straight.

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Being fair Subway Guy not everyone credit approval these days can get a credit card these days including American Express. So what you suggest than? With that said, I do agree to pay cash whenever possible. Just like VG8 i also have Chase and use their debit card.

And don't use debit cards at say bars/pubs, bootleg atm machines or other shady type of places that more likely to 'rob' you. I never had any problems either so far (knock on wood). However for certain things like a car rental you need a debit or credit card or else you can't use it. Just wondering SB and await your reply?

 

Those who have bad credit have their irresponsible practices to blame. Don't play devil's advocate just to play devil's advocate...going deeper into debt and incurring fees just because there's no easy alternative is never a solution. Just look at the US government. Kicking the can down the road is a strategy that never works.

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So... what happens if you have very little money and you have to choose between a credit card payment and groceries? With the recent surge in food prices, this is becoming more and more common.

 

You love to speak in platitudes, Subway Guy, but never offer solutions to real people.

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So... what happens if you have very little money and you have to choose between a credit card payment and groceries? With the recent surge in food prices, this is becoming more and more common.

 

You love to speak in platitudes, Subway Guy, but never offer solutions to real people.

 

And you love to sit their and ridicule me like the a**holes you worship on TV, but you have no solutions of your own, and you're not even educated about the topics you comment on.

 

No one "has" to choose between a credit card and groceries. The cable TV, expensive cell phone plans, etc. all can go on the chopping block first.

 

But I guess it makes more sense in your world to pay the bank fees so that them, their shareholders, and executives can keep getting rich off impoverishing everyone else...because they "have it so hard" that they need to charge fees to customers, despite record profits.

 

Many of the losses they are suffering are because of BAD INVESTMENTS (it's not just foreclosures!)...hey if investment banks were separated from commercial lending like it USED TO BE BEFORE THE BANKER LOBBY GOT IT CHANGED that would never happen.

 

But you wouldn't know that. Your solution is for the little guy to keep racking up the debt and spending money he/she doesn't have to "keep the economy afloat" and pay the bank fees. After all the banks just want what's good for America, right? Free credit and love and happiness for all.

 

:tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown:

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So... what happens if you have very little money and you have to choose between a credit card payment and groceries? With the recent surge in food prices, this is becoming more and more common.

 

You love to speak in platitudes, Subway Guy, but never offer solutions to real people.

 

Are you sure you're Canadian? LOL You speak like the average American... B)

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And you love to sit their and ridicule me like the a**holes you worship on TV, but you have no solutions of your own, and you're not even educated about the topics you comment on.

 

No one "has" to choose between a credit card and groceries. The cable TV, expensive cell phone plans, etc. all can go on the chopping block first.

 

But I guess it makes more sense in your world to pay the bank fees so that them, their shareholders, and executives can keep getting rich off impoverishing everyone else...because they "have it so hard" that they need to charge fees to customers, despite record profits.

 

Many of the losses they are suffering are because of BAD INVESTMENTS (it's not just foreclosures!)...hey if investment banks were separated from commercial lending like it USED TO BE BEFORE THE BANKER LOBBY GOT IT CHANGED that would never happen.

 

But you wouldn't know that. Your solution is for the little guy to keep racking up the debt and spending money he/she doesn't have to "keep the economy afloat" and pay the bank fees. After all the banks just want what's good for America, right? Free credit and love and happiness for all.

 

:tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown::tdown:

 

Uh, what? I never said I was in favor of the bank fees. But I take real issue with you saying that things can simply be cut. Real family budgets don't work that way.

 

Let me paint you a picture: Say you have a family of four with both kids in college. That's lots of student loan debt. The parents make approximately $75k combined annually, which, in NYC hardly anything. Then one of the parents loses his job due to downsizing. In order to make up for the lost income he gets a credit card. He uses it to pay his other bills such as power, taxes, student loans, food, gas, car payments, car insurance, transportation costs (like monthly commutation passes), and the biggie: rent. He struggles to pay his bills once his credit dries up. Then food prices go up which causes him to make difficult choices. Survival of him and his kids is way more important than a little bad credit. Thus he spends what little cash he has on food, because you have to eat to survive.

 

The long-tern financial stability is only available for the rich who have income to dispose on debt. The poor family who can't make it until the next paycheck only thinks as far as the next paycheck.

 

How would you fix that problem? Tell them to cut rent? Car insurance? Power? Perhaps we should all just live in the 1800s and grow our own corn in the non-existent backyard.

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