POSTED BY: Bob (November 21, 2008 10:24 AM)
Every time I read an article like this I wonder whatever happened to the consumer protection our government should be providing. While financial institutions whine about restrictive regulations,it's obvious that there aren't nearly enough to protect the customer. It wouldn't be hard to set standard limits on fees and charges and the practice of processing the largest checks first to increase overdraft charges is nothing less than theft. In the past year I have received letters from banks,a credit union,and my credit card companies about increased fees. The rules were complicated and I needed a magnifying glass to read the fine print. The most insidious thing was the credit card company changing billing dates. Anyone used to paying the credit card on the same date every month would almost certainly be caught if they hadn't read the notice very closely. One company even issued a new credit card with a new number a year earlier than the expiration date on the old card. Supposedly,because of a system change, the first month's payment on the new card would be on a different date and revert back to the old payment date after that. (An opportunity for two late fees in a row.) With our aging population, fine print should be illegal and the rules should be simple with no confusing legalese that many people can't understand. The elderly seem to be targeted with increased frequency by many businesses. One elderly lady told me that if she received a bill, she MUST owe the money. She couldn't believe that a business would try to over bill her. I have been helping her check her bills over the past four years and have found more than sixty overcharges totally over $12,000. These were from two local hospitals,three local doctors, two insurance companies, and one credit card. Every business that I called for her brushed it off as a billing error. Worse yet, these businesses tried to use privacy laws and HIPPA to keep this lady from getting any assistance.

POSTED BY: rdzins (November 21, 2008 12:09 PM)
I agree with Bob, something needs to be done with the fees, and corruption that a bank hands out, I would say fire the big bank and go find yourself a local community bank or credit union that actually wants and values your business.

POSTED BY: Helen (November 23, 2008 10:32 AM)
Bob, Try reporting this abuse to the Commissioner of Banking. It seems once they get involved initially (not they favor the consumer in most cases)but I've experienced the Bank initiating the abuse is a little more willing to work directly with you on your issues after the Commissioner's office contact them.

POSTED BY: Bob (November 24, 2008 11:26 AM)
Helen,i f it were only that easy. State banks,national banks,credit unions,and others all fall under different laws and jurisdictions. Twenty years ago I personally knew almost every bank president in town. Now almost all of these financial institutions are owned by larger ones out of the area. On more than one occasion when trying to help an elderly person, I have sent a local banker running to the phone for legal counsel from the home office. One local credit union now demands that a POA list EVERY possible type of financial transaction individually or they won't honor it. They are basically challenging anyone with a complaint to take them to court. So Helen, not only are there not enough specific regulations to protect the customer but these megabanks are using their political clout and legal departments to fleece every dollar out of every loophole. These techniques increasingly seem aimed at preventing those that need help the most from getting any,especially the elderly. In years past ,if a dispute came up, I would simply close my accounts and move to another bank but they ALL have recently doubled the penalties for early withdrawals. Like every other definition being reversed these days, a bank robbery means that the bank did the robbing.