A bank as mediocre as others
Written: Nov 08 '99
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Product Rating:
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Pros: No per transaction fees, online banking services offered
Cons: Engages in several confusing fee policies, poor phone service, poor online banking service
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| ryanpsims's Full Review: Wachovia |
I held a entry level checking account at Wachovia for five years. During that time, I was consistently unimpressed by their phone customer service, the fees they charged me and their online banking. I cancelled my account earlier this year because of the service and am beginning to loose faith in most 'brick and mortar' banks.
Let me detail some of the positives of Wachovia. Wachovia did not charge per transaction fees on my account. I was free to use the physical branch and their phone tellers as much as I wanted. Also there is no charge to use the basic features of their online banking.
But even with such waivers, I would not recommend Wachovia Bank. Their phone customer service was not helpful when I did anything other than check my balance. As an example, I was overcharged a few times by online retailers. The process of getting a transaction request started at Wachovia is frustrating, involving lots of paper work, and a long wait.
Several times Wachovia also engaged in the practice of letting my larger outstanding checks clear while bouncing a number of my smaller outstanding checks. The banking industry argues this is best for the consumer (by allowing more important rent checks to clear), but from my perspective this meant paying Wachovia an exorbitant number of $27 fees. There are pending class action lawsuits against other banks (Bank of America for example) that do this and I expect one to be announced against Wachoiva.
Finally, their online banking interface and electronic payment system were sub par. Online banking did allow users to download their transactions in Quicken format. It also did a good job of reconciling outstanding checking that I entered via the web. However, the online banking interface was difficult to navigate and slow. Electronic payments were cheap ($2.95 per month) but very slow to be processed and sent out.
Banks like Wachovia, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo have been lulled into a sense of complacency about the way they treat customers. Competition from net banks that offer consistent fee policies, more responsive customer service, and a better user experience may cause these banks to think again.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
ryanpsims
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Member: Ryan Sims
Location: San Francisco
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 8 members
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