I was just wondering if anyone gets good service at their bank. I normally don’t and I really think it’s the norm. Also, it always take forever when I have to go in, even if like barely anyone is before me. What kind of service do you get at your bank and what bank do you use?
I used to be good service at my bank when I worked at a job that didn’t have direct deposit. I think the teller that was there when I would cash my check was sweet on me. His name was Daniel. This is all coming back to me.
My bank has been through many name changes and is now a Capitol One.
I get great service at my bank (TDBank). My branch is very small but I have never had to wait. Everyone there is very nice and efficient. I’ve never had a problem they couldn’t fix. They’re also open 7 days a week which is very nice. There are closer banks to me but I wont change for the convenience. I’ve never had a problem with my bank or branch.
I have always had very good service at Wells Fargo. Been a customer since 1989. I don’t go in very often, but the several times I’ve had to there hasn’t been much of a wait and the service was friendly.
I use a community bank, my current one I’ve been at for over 10 years. I’ve always used local community banks. Never have and never will use a large national chain type bank. I get great service, immediate help with a live human if I need it, and no fees for anything. The couple of times I’ve accidentally overdrawn due to direct deposit and autopay timing, they’ve reversed the overdraft, no problem.
My bank was like that when I first started using it when I opened my checking account, but they got bought by a chain who bought/merged into another chain. Except when they were indie they didn’t offer better service. Around where I live, it seems all the indie banks are being gobbled up by chains.
At my local Bank of Montreal, I generally get good service, although I avoid going in around the middle or end of the month.
I am about to close my (joint with my wife) Wells-Fargo account in the US, which used to be Wachovia because they will start charging $12 a month to hold my money. Outrageous since they do nothing for the money. The most surprising fact is that the $100,000 my wife has in CDs there (but not for long) make no difference at all. They obviously don’t want our business.
I use two different banks. One is a local with just 3 branches. The other is a national name most Americans would recognize.
I get by-name service from each. And I only need to go inside each about once every 2 months. I walk in to the empty lobby, say hi to whichever one of the small crew is on the desk today, do my thing, and leave.
I’ve taken to not bothering with the outside ATM for deposits because it’s no faster than going inside and dealing with the live tellers. For cash withdrawals I’ll use an ATM wherever unless I need something special, like all C-notes.
And no, I don’t keep any big quantity of money in either bank. It’s just a matter of choosing a small branch with not much traffic & taking a little effort to learn the names & bios of the workers. Who’s married, who’s going to school, etc.
I use a small local bank (Bank Iowa). I’ve never waited at a teller station for any appreciable length of time and in general I’m very happy with them. I also got my mortgage through them and it was pretty painless. One or two minor problems, sure, but they seem generally well-meaning and I can’t quibble with 3% interest on a checking account.
In fairness, they don’t “do nothing”. The biggest thing they do is pay for FDIC insurance for that money that you keep there, which obviously makes it a pretty secure place to hold money. They also administer the account, which at the very least would include generating and sending out statements either in the mail or by email. If you have any transactions on your account then they process those. By saying they “do nothing” I assume you mean they are not paying interest on the money. If so, then I am sure they have some free checking that simply requires you to hold a small balance to avoid a charge. They also offer the convenience of having branches and ATM machines throughout the country as well as offering internet banking. Now, obviously you may not think it is worth $12 / month, but it’s not like there are no expenses associated with them having your account. I would agree though that there are plenty of banks that would appreciate your business more and not charge you a fee.
I don’t use banks. I have been a member of my credit union for over 30 years and they have been providing excellent service all that time.
When I go shopping for a car I tell them in advance about how much I intend to spend and they provide me with pre-approval for that approximate amount. No hassles with car dealerships.
When I wanted to build a garage I took out a HELOC (home equity line of credit) for which I pay a rediculously low interest rate. They handle my checking, visa, all my banking and I manage it myself on line, just like a *real *bank.
Credit Unions are member-owned non-profits so the profit generated must be returned to the members through either lowered interest rates, dividends, or new investments and expansions.
I’ve had wildly varying quality of service from various different banks and credit unions, ranging from flat out refusing to assist me in a minor way, to eye-rolling and sighing while assisting me, to stone-cold ignorance, to cheerfully bending over backwards to help me out without even having me ask. I’m convinced that it has far more to do with the individual employee I’m interacting with rather than the name on the building outside.
I haven’t been into a branch of my bank for several years and I’m extremely happy with the service I get at The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)
I renewed my mortgage this year and did the entire transaction over the phone and then a notary showed up at my door, papers in hand for the final signatures. I do all of my banking online and have access to whatever support I need over the phone. It’s awesome.
Credit Union employee here… I was gonna come in here and pump up credit unions but I see Dallas Jones already beat me to it! The biggest problem I hear people having with joining a credit union is that many of them have restrictions on their field of memberships. You have to work for a certain company, live in a certain area, or have a family member who is already a member. But a lot of CUs are opening up their memberships more and more, so ask around.
I have a theory that the size of the bank is inverse proportion to the quality of service you receive.
I will always use smaller banks.
My bank story? Well, I pulled in the drive through at Suntrust to make a deposit. I didn’t have a deposit slip. I asked the clerk to send me one. She said it’s against the rules. I told her that I know the rule; but I also know the rule is because it’s not fair to make people wait in line for me to fill out a deposit slip. I told her that there were two other lanes open; and that if someone (stupidly) pulled in behind me, I’d circle the bank, making sure my deposit slip was filled out before I came back around. She refused. I pulled up to the nearest parking spot, went inside and closed out my checking, savings, money market, kids custodial checking, and kids custodial savings account and went to my ‘local’ bank where I’ve been happy ever since. Hello idiot bank people… rules are to guide, not constrain.
I have a theory that the size of the bank is inverse proportion to the quality of service you receive.
I will always use smaller banks.
My bank story? Well, I pulled in the drive through at Suntrust to make a deposit. I didn’t have a deposit slip. I asked the clerk to send me one. She said it’s against the rules. I told her that I know the rule; but I also know the rule is because it’s not fair to make people wait in line for me to fill out a deposit slip. I told her that there were two other lanes open; and that if someone (stupidly) pulled in behind me, I’d circle the bank, making sure my deposit slip was filled out before I came back around. She refused. I pulled up to the nearest parking spot, went inside and closed out my checking, savings, money market, kids custodial checking, and kids custodial savings account and went to my ‘local’ bank where I’ve been happy ever since. Hello idiot bank people… rules are to guide, not constrain.
Which credit union has bank branches and ATMs throughout the country?
Also, while most credit unions are insured by NCUA, which is practically the same as the FDIC, not all of them are. A portion of state chartered credit unions do not have insurance backed by the government.
The simple fact is that while credit unions are a great option for the vast majority of people, they do not have the same expansive product offering of larger banks, and just like any small local bank, they are not as conveniently located.
Some smaller credit unions are part of a nation-wide shared branch network, where you can go into any branch and access your account just like you would at your home branch. The place I work is part of the Credit Union Service Center network, and there are even a few branches in other countries. ATMs the same way, there’s several national networks for those too.
As far as the insurance goes, I don’t personally know of any CUs that aren’t with NCUA, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they exist. I would think that those CUs would have some sort of private insurance then.
I had an experience with my bank just this week that restored some of my faith in humanity. My bank is not a large national mega-bank, but is a fairly large regional bank based here in Utah with offices in several western states.
Recently this bank upgraded their ATMs with a new feature that automatically scans checks you deposit and prints a copy of the checks on your receipt. You can feed in up to 15 checks at once, and I have used it several times with good results.
This week, however, I stopped by the ATM after work and fed in four checks to deposit. For some reason the mechanism failed, and it scanned one of the checks but completely ignored the other three, which were now inside the machine with no way for me to get them back.
I went home and called the bank’s customer service line, and Heather was very pleasant and understanding. She took my information and told me that when the ATM was serviced the next day they would retrieve my checks and make sure they were credited to my account. Heather told me that she would personally follow up to make sure this happened and contact me the next day.
The next day I received no less than three phone calls, two from Heather and one from an employee at the branch where the ATM was located, to update me on the progress, and to let me know that the checks were recovered and credited to my account.
After some of the customer service horror stories I have read online, this was like a breath of fresh air.
This is all coming back to me.