# BoA CEO "Incensed" About Public Hostility **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 26, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896 "2011-10-26T19:45:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/41 "2011-10-27T00:46:25Z")
Yeah, FUCK YOU and your “volunteer work”, Bryan. It doesn’t lessen the stain on your soul. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/42 "2011-10-27T01:31:48Z")
I hate his employees because I had to talk to five of them to get them to stop stealing from my eight year old. I set up a savings account for her a few months ago. The moron who did it made a mistake with the paperwork and set it up as an ordinary account instead of a savings account. It took me two separate office visits and three phone calls to get them to stop stealing five bucks a month from her account. One of those phone calls was thirty minutes long and included being put on hold for over ten minutes. I also hate his employees and his lousy bank because when I called to complain about the new monthly debit card fee they told me this was all the government’s fault. They told me I should call my congressperson to complain instead. Assholes. Moynihan’s a greedy, incompetent, overpaid useless shmuck. If he were tarred and feathered I would applaud. ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/43 "2011-10-27T01:38:52Z")
He was speaking to BoA employees. Was he supposed to sling turds at them? Tell them how shitty they are then sling shitty turds their way? ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/44 "2011-10-27T01:58:52Z")
> [@LavenderBlue](#): > > I hate his employees because I had to talk to five of them to get them to stop stealing from my eight year old. I set up a savings account for her a few months ago. The moron who did it made a mistake with the paperwork and set it up as an ordinary account instead of a savings account. It took me two separate office visits and three phone calls to get them to stop stealing five bucks a month from her account. One of those phone calls was thirty minutes long and included being put on hold for over ten minutes. So why are you still giving them business if you hate them so much? You and people like you are the reason they get away with this shit, you complain and complain and yet _you keep giving them your money!_ Instead of whining and bitching on message boards, switch your business to another bank and tell the manager why you did it! Is that too much trouble? Well shit, I guess they’re not so bad after all if you can’t be bothered to actually do anything about it. > [@](#): > > I also hate his employees and his lousy bank because when I called to complain about the new monthly debit card fee they told me this was all the government’s fault. They told me I should call my congressperson to complain instead. Assholes. They are correct. The government passed a law that essentially lowers the fees that banks can charge merchants to accept debit cards. To make up for the lost revenue, they are simply charging you instead. Of course, merchants see no reason to lower their prices in response to the lower fees, so you’re essentially paying for the fees twice. You should definitely call your idiot Congressman and thank him for that. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/45 "2011-10-27T02:06:16Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > In its insensitivity, the comment reminds me of this one, by former BP CEO Tony Hayward, “There’s no one who wants this [i.e., the Gulf oil spill] over more than I do. I’d like my life back.” I agree this sort of honesty has no place in corporate PR. > [@BigT](#): > > And when you have horrible PR, you don’t start doing more things that people will dislike. And you definitely don’t try to make people feel guilty and shame them into using your service, as this cunt of a CEO is doing. You don’t want people to be unhappy? Then don’t do something that anyone with even a quarter of a brain would know would be unpopular, especially when your good will is spent. I agree. What they should do is stop making a profit so that all investors withdraw their funds and they collapse which will help, umm, someone. Or they should be sneakier and find a way to make a profit that is hidden so people don’t get upset about it. Both of those options would be far better than charging an upfront fee for their services and telling people about it, which is extremely underhanded. Appalling, really. The other day an employee came to me and said he wanted to be paid money for his work beyond what it cost for him to attend here. I sacked the profiteering cunt immediately, natch. Then I learned by local bread shop was charging me more than it cost to make the bread it sold me. Complete rip off. I told everyone and they don’t go there anymore, but the wimpy asshole refused to run his bakery for no return and now its closed. That’ll learn him. Though I wouldn’t mind if there was somewhere to buy bread… ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/46 "2011-10-27T02:11:31Z")
> [@Absolute](#): > > So why are you still giving them business if you hate them so much? You and people like you are the reason they get away with this shit, you complain and complain and yet _you keep giving them your money!_ > > Instead of whining and bitching on message boards, switch your business to another bank and tell the manager why you did it! Is that too much trouble? Well shit, I guess they’re not so bad after all if you can’t be bothered to actually do anything about it. Calm down, dear. We’re planning to move our accounts by the end of the year. We’re busy people and need time to investigate our options. Any suggestions? One of the companies I work for each week does not do direct deposit. I’m thinking perhaps a credit union right now. When I opened up a savings account for my eldest I hardly thought BoA would attempt to steal from it for nearly six months. I certainly didn’t think several of their employees would try to imply I was somehow at fault for their repeated fuck ups and failure to stop. I’m still trying to find out if I can legally move my daughter’s savings account somewhere else. > [@](#): > > They are correct. The government passed a law that essentially lowers the fees that banks can charge merchants to accept debit cards. To make up for the lost revenue, they are simply charging you instead. Of course, merchants see no reason to lower their prices in response to the lower fees, so you’re essentially paying for the fees twice. You should definitely call your idiot Congressman and thank him for that. Nonsense. No one told BoA to raise fees. They did so because they thought they could get away with it. They’re greedy slime. They had the nerve to tell me I could avoid the fee if I kept 20k in a non-interest bearing account. Yeah I’m going give them 20,000 rent free. Fuck them. And fuck Brian Moynihan and his taxpayer subsidized ten million dollar a year salary. He can choke on every penny of it. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/47 "2011-10-27T02:19:40Z")
> [@LavenderBlue](#): > > Nonsense. No one told BoA to raise fees. They did so because they thought they could get away with it. They’re greedy slime. Oh, what bullshit. Have you ever asked your boss for a raise? Are you therefore greedy slime? ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/48 "2011-10-27T02:23:18Z")
> [@LavenderBlue](#): > > Calm down, dear. We’re planning to move our accounts by the end of the year. We’re busy people and need time to investigate our options. Any suggestions? One of the companies I work for each week does not do direct deposit. I’m thinking perhaps a credit union right now. I have had excellent customer service from Wells Fargo, although many people like to complain about them as well. My name is on a business account that has a _lot_ of money in it, and presumably they don’t know it’s not all mine, so perhaps that’s why they always make sure I’m happy. I stopped using a debit card for security reasons, so the fee doesn’t bother me. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/49 "2011-10-27T02:36:52Z")
> [@Absolute](#): > > Oh, what bullshit. > > Have you ever asked your boss for a raise? Are you therefore greedy slime? Well that really depends on the nature of ones job, doesn’t it? If you make your living through outrageous fees, and being “too big to fail”, then yes. ---
**Author:** ![SweetLucy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@SweetLucy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SweetLucy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/50 "2011-10-27T03:25:43Z")
I prefer to use debit for regular purchases, because it requires self-discipline (i.e. if the money’s not in the account you can’t spend it with a debit card) and it’s easier to track my spending. Most businesses don’t take checks anymore, so it would really be inconvenient (and unsafe) to haul lots of cash around. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/51 "2011-10-27T03:50:16Z")
Why would anyone want to bank with BoA? They have US-dollar only accounts, credit cards that barely work in most of the world and are dependent on threatening society with its own failure to stay in business. Better to put your cash in a credit union. The credit cards are no better, and you still have to keep greenbacks, but at least your money is safer. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/52 "2011-10-27T03:57:29Z")
> [@Cubsfan](#): > > This only makes sense if retailers across the board lowered their price to reflect their reduced costs. > > Has that happened yet? > > Didn’t think so. I dunno. The Thrifty gas-station mini-mart next door used to charge $0.45 for a debit card transaction. That’s gone down to $0.35. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/53 "2011-10-27T04:10:42Z")
> [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](#): > > Well that really depends on the nature of ones job, doesn’t it? > > If you make your living through outrageous fees, and being “too big to fail”, then yes. I can’t see the logical connection between the fact the banks are “too big to fail” and wanting banks not to make a profit. I thought that they were said to be too big to fail in the sense that allowing them to do so would have fallout on broader society. If that’s true, then isn’t it better if they don’t fail? And isn’t that going to have to involve them turning a profit? And are these fees outrageous? What objective yardstick do you use to judge that? How much do you think a debit card service should cost a customer? I’m not sure I can see $60 per annum as being out of proportion to the cost of running such a system. Yes, I know the banks also take fees from merchants. Without knowing the total cost of running the system compared to the income it brings in I am not in a position to judge. However, I would have to say that if (as a standalone service) a salesperson explained to me a debit card system and how they could let me use that system for $60/yr, it would sound quite convenient for the money, personally. ---
**Author:** ![rock\_party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@rock\_party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rock_party)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/54 "2011-10-27T05:38:20Z")
The 5 dollar fee is snatched out of your account with your first purchase of the month. I call rip off. They should charge what it costs them per transaction PLUS a profit on each transaction. Show some even fairness. I use credit cards mostly but use my debit card maybe once or twice a month…that $5 GOTCHA charge is such a rip off and so typical of banks these days. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/55 "2011-10-27T07:39:27Z")
> [@rock\_party](#): > > They should charge what it costs them per transaction PLUS a profit on each transaction. Why? Do you think each transaction is hand processed by elves who charge by the hour? I would guess that the cost to the bank of a debit card system is development cost to get all the systems in place and then an overhead that month by month is fairly fixed. I don’t that the per transaction cost would be the issue. What the bank would be saying is that if you are offered the facility, they have to keep it running whether you have three transactions or thirty, so for any given month either you are in or you are out. Not sure I’d call that outstandingly unfair, actually. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/56 "2011-10-27T09:26:13Z")
How odd European banks manage to provide the same service at a much lower cost. Somehow, I blame Obama! ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/57 "2011-10-27T11:13:28Z")
> [@Absolute](#): > > Oh, what bullshit. > > Have you ever asked your boss for a raise? Are you therefore greedy slime? Inventing new fees is not analogous to asking for a raise. Inventing new fees is analogous to telling your boss that henceforth there will be surcharge for the labor of opening your office door to get in and out. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/58 "2011-10-27T11:16:37Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > I can’t see the logical connection between the fact the banks are “too big to fail” and wanting banks not to make a profit. Framing the issue in these terms is either dishonest or obtuse, depending on whether or not you actually understand that the issue is public resentment of being charged again for the privilege of sustaining a business our tax dollars rescued from the abyss. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/59 "2011-10-27T11:24:47Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Inventing new fees is not analogous to asking for a raise. Inventing new fees is analogous to telling your boss that henceforth there will be surcharge for the labor of opening your office door to get in and out. Tosh. Monthly fees are not a per item charge, they are a time charge. The analogy to a raise holds. You seem hung up on exactly what way the bank gets its money. Raging at whether it is a monthly fee or what-the-hellever, just seems like an excuse to me. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2011, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896/60 "2011-10-27T11:45:13Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > Tosh. Monthly fees are not a per item charge, they are a time charge. The analogy to a raise holds. Except the boss has the ability to tell the raise requester to STFU and GBTW. BofA customers do not have that ability, they only have the ability to stop doing business with BofA altogether. If I believe that a company is overcharging, or otherwise taking advantage of me, it’s entirely appropriate for me to take my business elsewhere. I’d point out that BofA will not lose a single solitary customer over these fees if other service providers charge the same fees. If other service providers can deliver similar services for a lower cost, it would be anti-capitalistic to suggest that BofA has a “right” to anything but losing their customers to lower cost providers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boa-ceo-incensed-about-public-hostility/600896.md?page=4)