M&T Bank
Attn: Charles Williams, VP
155 East Carroll StreetSalisbury, Maryland 21801
Facsimile: 410-546-1655
Re: Checking Account of Rosemary Johnson Bank: M&T Bank, 155 E. Carroll Street, Salisbury, MD 21801
Dear Mr. Williams:
Per the advice of an attorney, this letter is to formally make my complaint in letter form. Numerous times in the past few years, I have protested the unconscionable and deceptive NSF’s that I have been charged. M&T Bank and their overdraft policies are unfair, misleading and clearly discriminated against me in banking. The bank’s policies definitely have a far greater impact on low-income customers. M&T Bank advertises free checking accounts which are not free because of the unlawful and excessive overdraft fees that are regularly charged to many of their customers.
Instead of M&T Bank declining debit and/or POS/ATM transactions when there were insufficient funds or even warning me (their customer) that an overdraft fee would be assessed, M&T Bank regularly processed such transactions in order to charge the overdraft fees of $37.00, even when the transaction was only for a few dollars. Many times this has cost me hundreds of dollars in a matter of days or even hours.
M&T Bank’s practice of reordering transactions is an extreme violation of Maryland’s consumer protection laws. If it were not for the reordering of debit and check transactions from highest to lowest, I would have had sufficient funds in my account to cover almost every transaction and would not have incurred most or all of the overdraft fees. I was told repeatedly by M&T Bank reps that, “Technically, this is your fault and I can not help you. “ I was also told, “The bank purposely takes the largest charge first, assuming that it would be the most important, like a mortgage payment or something, and will knowingly overdraft the account immediately (the same day even) for all the lesser charges that it could have cleared otherwise.” I was also told that the Branch Manager would contact me upon his return to the office that day (March 5, 2010) but I still have yet to hear from him.
According to Overdraft Protection: A Guide for Bankers issued by the American Bankers Association, M&T Bank is suppose to offer their customers the option of opting out of any overdraft programs and the bank is suppose to inform their customers before they “take” their fees for a check or POS/ATM transaction that would cause my account to incur overdraft fees. This notice would have allowed me to use a different payment method in order to avoid NSF’s. This is a violation of Maryland’s consumer protections laws and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the Account Agreement, governing my checking account.
Had the bank not maliciously over-charged my account just this month for at least fourteen NSF’s in a two day period, I would not be in the position that I am in today. At this point in time I am seeking to be refunded full restitution of all overdraft fees paid to the M&T Bank on check-card transactions, including POS and ATM transactions, along with pre-judgment interest for the past year. I have the right to possess my money in my checking account. M&T Bank interfered with the possession of my money and wrongfully converted my funds to be theirs by assessing unlawful overdraft fees. If these fees are not reimbursed within the next five days, I will take this complaint and demand as far as I have to in order to get it the attention it deserves. For the record I am a college educated forty-six year old mother of three, a legal secretary of nine years, a law-abiding and respected citizen, a registered voter, a home-school teacher to my autistic eleven year old son and an established homeowner for over ten years.
M&T Bank has unjustly been enriched by their overdraft fee policies and practices, including but not limited to the manipulation and reordering transactions so that M&T Bank can increase their number of overdraft charges. I was charged excessive amounts of money for banking services and paid excessive fees, thereby suffering actual injury proximately caused by M&T Bank’s incompetent actions and I have been provided very poor customer service.
Respectfully,
Rose Johnson
cc:Legg Law Firm, LLCAttn: Scott Borison5500 Buckeystown PikeFrederick, Maryland 20703
Representative Frank Kratovil One Plaza EastSuite 103 East Main StreetSalisbury, Maryland 21801
Office of the MayorCity of Salisbury Maryland125 North Division Street, Room 304Salisbury, Maryland 21801-4940
Consumer Protection DivisionOffice of the Attorney General 200 St. Paul PlaceBaltimore, Maryland 21202
State of Maryland Office of the Commissioner of Financial Regulation500 North Calvert Street, Room 402 Baltimore, Maryland 21202
Carolyn SumaGeneral Assignment Reporter at WMDT 202 Downtown PlazaSalisbury, Maryland 21801
Daily Times Local Reporter618 Beam StreetSalisbury, Maryland 21801
District Court for Wicomico CountyAttn: Honorable Judge201 Baptist StreetSalisbury, Maryland 21801
Better Business Bureau of Greater Maryland 1414 Key Highway, Suite 100 Baltimore Maryland 21230-5189
Salisbury Chamber of CommerceAttn: President J. Scott RobertsonRobertson & Robertson, P.A.144 East Main Street Salisbury, Maryland 21801
Federal Reserve Consumer HelpP.O. Box 1200Minneapolis, MN 55480
Joe Albero, alberobutzo@wmconnect.com Salisbury News Blog
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
45 comments:
If you don't overdraft the account, there would be no fees!
I have had the same problem with Bank Of America!!!!!!
The banking industry as a whole, is corrupt and evil.
Thats exactly why i kick the half-a** bank to the curb. I held my very first checking account at that bank and experienced the exact same problem. when you would normally have one overdraft of a few dollars because of a small miscalculation, you get hit with multiple. i would have thought they would have changed by now. guess not
I can assume the OP was not a math major. You're kidding, right? "I can't be out of money, I still have checks left". Sorry, no sympathy here.
Notice the 1000s of stories in the media right now about BOA changing their policy on this. Notice also that none of them mention that this only started in the last 8 to 10 years. All transactions were declined if there was insufficient funds. Then they went the greedy route, the reordering transactions, holds, processing everything.
I think some banks are starting to drop debit NSF fees, but it come down to being responsible, and not spending more than you have.
While it's not exactly fair this issue would never arise if you did not overdraft, simple as that. I have nothing but good things to say about M&T after switching to them when Chevy chase decided to close all of their Salisbury Branches. Stop shifting the blame, if you do not over draft you won’t get hit by the unfair charges.
Don't write bad checks! This is what happens, and by all right should happen.
It happen to me too! at PNC Bank same thing.
You are kidding right? Why should it be the banks responsibility to go through all your checks and then decide which one may or may not be important before posting them. As an educated woman, do you not have overdraft protection? As an educated woman, then you should know the bank is not your accountant, and you should be well aware of the bank's policies. Overdraft fee's serve a purpose, and that is to deter bad checks. If you want to be out of this situation, then here is the answer. It's simple really. You wouldn't believe how simple...stop writing bad checks. If you feel like you can't stop writing bad checks, then by all means, enroll in overdraft protection, or NSF anonymous.
Anon 8:45...Haven't you ever attempted to charge something on your credit and it was declined?
The topic is about banks' greedy & corrupt schemes to allow debit card transactions to be processed even though there are insufficient funds in their customers bank accounts (sometimes even if they have a negative balance!) to cover the charges rather than declining the transaction, and then HAMMERING them with an NSF fee. In most instances it's an honest mistake, not a matter of one's intelligence or if the person is a mathmetician or not.
I’m totally in agreement that most major banks make en extra effort to screw their customers as much as possible (which is why I use a credit union where the people working there actually have some brain power), but I have no symphony for the original poster on this one. When you use your debit card without having sufficient funds in your account, you may as well be writing a hot check. As far as I’m concerned you are stealing the banks money if they allow that transaction to be processed. The bank charging you a fee is irrelevant. Learn how to add and subtract people…
9:15, I do have symphony for her. And orchestra, ensemble, combo, choir, and chorale as well. "Learn how to spell, people"...if you were banking words, you would be NSF.
I agree that you are responsible for knowing your account, but when the bank knowingly processes checks in order of amount, not when they come through, they are violating the law. PNC does this and only when they were confronted with being reported to the banking commission did they refund the NSF fees and also paid extra for my daughter's trouble. It is a practice that continues because they coun on people not complaining and being too ashamed to report it.
Cheapest solution - spend $1 at the Dollar Store and buy a calculator if you can't add and subtract. Otherwise, close the account. I have no sympathy for you - you are not responsible enough to have a bank account, and you are not a victim here!!
ok you guys are acting like you have never had a returned check, or wrote a check hoping your deposit makes it in before your check hits. these days when people are hurting for money and need to buy food and pay bills yes sometimes they write a check knowing it might be returned but are willing to pay overdraft fee just to eat or have electricity, is it right no, but not right of banks to reorder checks so you get hit with a bunch of overdraft fees.
I really cant understand what you people want from the banks. You want them to deny a charge when you dont have the money? Are you then going to complain and write letters when you get stuck somewhere without a way to pay for you dinner, gas, or movie. You want them to put the small charges in first and not the larger ones? So its ok for your $5 coffee to get paid but you want your car or house payment to be turned down? Whatever happened to personal responsibility?
Let's think about this rationally for a second. How do banks make money? By chagring interest and fees for services. Who wouldn't take the opportunity to make that kind of money if they had the chance?
If you did not spend more money than you had you would not incur insufficent funds fees. I do not feel as though it is the banks job to advise you when you may incur an overdraft charge. A bank account is not a personal accountant. Keep a register of your transactions and you will not run into this problem.
A lot of people are too lazy to keep a register of their transactions anymore. Or live beyond their means. This is why so much money is being made off of NSF fees...
Why not just change banks? Would you be appalled to learn your new bank would also charge an overdraft fee if you wrote a check and there was not enough money in the account to cover it.
You say you are a college grad and from your other info you provided about yourself it appears you are smart. But lady you do not have a lick of common sense. What part of the bank telling you repeatedly that it is your fault, did you not understand?
The first thing you should do is fire your lawyer because it appears he also lacks common sense or is taking you for a ride. Ask him if he writes checks or uses his debit card for more money than is in his bank account.
You CANNOT write checks or use a debit card for more money than is in your account OR you will be charged an overdraft fee. It is that simple. Stop trying to blame everybody but yourself for the overdraft fees.
This whinny letter makes you and your lawyer both look ridiclous, in my eyes.
The whole Banking system is corrupt. Bankers are no better than Politians or Crooks. I just closed an account due to Obamanomics at Farmers Bank of Willards. Then received my statement for the previous month and they charged me a fee for my account being inactive. This charge was more than the interest I received on this account from many previous months. Putting it in perspective, I had to pay the FB of W to keep my money in a savings account. I did not have the money to deposit in that account but kept it open as a reserve. By allowing FB of W to use this money over the years they charge me for not having money to increase my balance. I emailed the President of FB of W but as usual no response because they know they are screwing their depositors.
Jesus, not only do some of you not ever write bad checks or have overdraft fees but you have never spelled a word wrong either. If everyone in this world were as perfect as you people we would be in so much better shape. I say you should organize just like Nazi Germany and rid the world of us lower beings. Freaking idiots, Get over yourselves, people make mistakes.
She admits that she would have been overdrawn for some of the transactions. Why was that? If she wanted to borrow money maybe she should have asked first and signed a loan agreement. Since she didn't, she should have to pay more than someone who does ask first and sign proper forms. Maybe she should go to a cash advance place for a short term loan. I bet she will soon see that those companies charge alot more than banks. She apparently knows how to use a computer. Doesn't she know she can see her account balance at any time by going on her bank's website. That bank even has mobile banking now and she can get her balance any time any where.
PNC is another bank that does this crap. I am closing my account out with them. in my pending charges...i had a direct deposit of $730....then i had like 6 little charges... like $5 -$6 dollars or what ever....my balance was low...like $5 we will say....so on fri morning (direct deposit was there at midnight) they deducted the 5-6 little charges...causing me 4 over draft fees of $36 each ($144.00 i can add) and then applied my direct deposit....which was WRONG...deposit was there before debits! banks are all out to rob you thats for sure...and you people who are sitting on your high horses probably work for them....i hope this woman gets all her money back and more! you go girl
Sounds to me as if M&T is not charging you enough for overdraft fees. At $32 bucks a pop you should have learned a lesson yet you went on for years doing this. Perhaps they should charge $100 then you would learn how to balance your bank account. Way to blame someone else for your mistakes. Seems to be the American Way these days.
Absolutely amazes me that people think it is the banks' fault for them trying to spend money they don't have. Wasn't all that long ago that was called theft and resulted in a stint in the pokey. Instead of $37 maybe a week in jail per item would solve the problem.
She seems to have enough $$ to create and mail her crude attack to the world. It's a shame she doesn't have the integrity to be responsible for her own actions.
It is M&T's fault that they are cahrging 10 fees when only one thing would have bounced if they but the charges through in the order they came! So this lady has a case! Maybe not for the one carge but for the ten smaller ones! That's the point people... Should she be more responsible... absolutely, but the bank should do things the legal way as well!
I love how all of a sudden we have all these goodie tooshoos on here who have never bounced a check.
I would much rather have that card denied if I didn't have the money to cover it than to have to pay all those fees!
ok, really? It's called responsibility. It doesn't matter what your income is - it is your responsibility to make sure you don't spend money that you don't have. As for the fees...they are perfectly legal, and designed to profit off of people who can't handle their money. Its a service called overdraft protection, and if you simply call the bank, they will remove the service, and next time you spend too much money your transaction will be declined. This is the problem with America. Everyone is always looking for a payout, and pointing the blame at somebody else.
Most people are saying they have bounced a check 11:11, BUT if you know you do not have the money in the bank it is your fault! Which she obviously knows she doesn't have the monry if she keeps doing it like is insinuated in the statement: "Many times this has cost me hundreds of dollars in a matter of days or even hours".
My mother is the only person I have ever known that hasn't accidentally or intentionally overdrafted an account. She will drive herself crazy if her checkbook is off by .02!
It happens, but it seems the OP thinks the bank is her personal financial provider and the last time I checked a checking or savings account does not permit account holders to freely use the banks funds without paying a fee!
Learn to manage money and this would never be an issue. Seems she is finally seeing the ignorance of her ways and now wants someone to reward her for her dimwitted decisions that have probably cost her hundreds if not thousands of dollars!
It's always someone elses fault.........
Sounds like the same mindset that the current administration is promoting. Never mind the fact that you had no clue how much money you had in your account. Never mind the fact that you obviously wrote more checks than you should have. Its called fiscal responsibility. You need to own up to your own problems, regardless of what fees the bank imposes. Be accountable for your actions and don't push the blame off on someone else. They charge a fee as a deterrent from this type of behavior. Obviously it didn't deter you from repeatedly incurring fees. Grow up and be responsible for you actions.
What I am saying here is that the bank putting larger amounts through first and then bouncing each smaller amount is illegal. I understand there needs to be some responsibility on the customers part! BUT that bank in particular will put through a larger amount first. They openly admit to doing this. For instance... I switched from auto payroll deposit to manual and went through the drive through at 5 pm on a friday night. Assuming the money was in there I went grocery shopping and then bought several smaller items. Well the next morning I saw they put every withdrawl through BEFORE putting my deposit through! This is illegal! The check was in their possession BEFORE those withdrawls were. When I went to complain they told be for future reference they will run purchases through before deposits if they are done on the same day! So I didn't make that mistake again. But it doesn't make it legal!
When and if I bounce something, intentional or unintentional I will pay for it. But why should I have to pay 10 fees rather than one because they are breaking the law?
You cannot call a specific branch on the phone. There are no phone number listings anywhere.
How does my bank know which check I wrote first especial when they are ck by phone and no ck #? Cks can be out when I use my card and look like there is money in the bank at that time. If I want the transactions to clear in the order I do them, I would have to expect the bank to read my mind. Maybe they should make me send them a memo each day telling them a list of transactions that I did and what order I want them paid.
Is this a joke? Tell me this is a joke. IF YOU DONT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY IN YOUR ACCOUNT, STOP WRITING CHECKS OR USING DIRECT DEBIT. Unbelievable...
11:55- you sure think you know alot about what is legal and illegal. WOW you know alot about the law. You must be a lawyer or something. I don't know much about laws BUT common sense tells me that electronic transactions would clear quicker than paper.
I love the people that write "everyone bounces at least once" and "haven't you ever had a credit card declined?"
NO!!! Be an adult! Be responsible! Don't try to spend money you don't have! You all behave like children and you wonder why we have economic problems in this country...
Large banks are a real problem. My son lives in Philadelphia and last Saturday he found out someone had cleaned out his account. He contacted the bank and an investigation revealed that someone using a debit card which at first the bank told him was "cloned" had been photographed at an ATM in Queens, NY {where my son has never been in his life}removing his entire balance. My son identified this individual as someone who was standing behind him in line recently at the ShopRite in Philadelphia and had casual conversation with him. We now know this was so the individual could watch him enter his PIN and get the number. Now at the end of the week, the bank is saying that the individual came into one of their branches last week in Philadelphia and told them they were my son. The teller asked him for my son's account number and PIN as well as his SSN. Without any request for a photo ID to ensure that this was my son, they GAVE this individual a copy of my son's debit card since he said he was my son and had misplaced his.The bank apologized when they figured out what their teller had done and reimbursed my son the $600.00 that was in his account and had been taken. But, get real, shouldn't better precautions have been taken in this age of identity theft?
I am the writer of this letter. Many of you who are critizing me for writing bad checks and not accepting responsibility for my actions do not completely understand the message I was sending. This letter was posted to inform people what is going on within the bank industry. The bank credits any and all deposits AFTER it takes out any debits. I do not write checks, I use my ATM card. I use my online checking on a very regular basis wherein it will show my deposit is available, then two days later it will reorder many transactions and will have charged me for numerous overdrafts, which in turn continue to overdraft my account further. The bank will clear my local paycheck immediately one week and hold it for five days the next week. I am not ashamed to say that the people that are being affected by these unlawful actions are lower class income people, which is discrimination.
Although I can understand your situation because I've had the exact same experience, I have no sympathy. Let's just get a few things straight here. Should it be any surprise that the bank wants to take your money? No - they are in the money business, they provide a service to help you manage money, they don't sell bread, they don't give you a manicure, they specialize in money. They have employees who will analyze and track consumer spending habits and figure out how to capitalize on it. Banks don't make money by letting your money sit in that account and do nothing. I work for a bank, that's how they roll. When they tell you that they have to warn you or inform you that you will be charged an NSF fee, they did that when you opened your account and they handed you a savings disclosure and schedule of fees. Furthermore, they allow you to overdraw from your account with your debit card to help you avoid embarrassment. If you want to be that person at the check-out line in the grocery store, by all means, tell them that you would like to decline all overdraft protection services. Good luck with this by the way, since you have no idea how much money is in your account. They will not help you map out a budget or decide what dates you should pay which bills - that is your responsibility. Does it suck that they always take out the largest debit transaction first? Yes, but they're not going to change that. For the record, I hate working for a bank and most of the procedures they have in place are to make the most money possible. But it's not like I can quit and find a new job right now. It's like everything else in life - if you don't like it, change it.
That being said - The poor customer service is unfortunate. I guarantee that your letter and complaint is on the desks of quite a few people right now. However, no matter how justified your complaint is, this won't get much further than - sorry about the bad customer service, the correct actions have been taken to discipline and educate our employees and thanks for bringing it to our attention.
Again... check card! Not checks.... I can go online right now and see that there are 3 or 4 small amounts pending withdrawl, go pay my car payment and that will go in first! They have admitted to me they put all transactions that come in on the same day in order of amount, starting with the largest and moving on to the deposits. Its not right no matter how you look at it! Should there be enough to cover everything? absolutely... and I'm not saying that you should go writing checks for money you don't have. It is illegal to write bouncing checks... which is one reason they reserve the right to charge you those fees. BUT it is also illegal for them to change the order of transaction. So maybe when I see they do this I should charge them a $37 fee. Seriously people, it's black and white. Don't overdraft, but when you make a human error as humans do, make sure your bank is not breaking the law. I am sure this lady is not asking for a refund of all the money she intentionally bounced. But I bet if they didn't put them through high to low and put them through the order they came in the fees would not equal hundreds of dollars!
PBS had a Frontline show on this subject. It is intentional to take money from customers. It is a trick to the free checking advertising. It is legal. She is correct, it is done on purpose. And they also reported that some banks make overdraft protection a requirement and you do not even know it. It is built in and they do not reveal it and you can not get out of it. You go girl, it only takes one person to make a difference. I applaud you.
Although the "buck starts and stops" with Ms. Johnson, Charlie Williams should have replied to her letter. It's quite obvious that he feels he's above customer service to this person. Customer service is due to someone regardless if they're a good or bad customer.
Get it Charlie?
You all should get a grip!!! The banks do reorder how things are billed and work it in their favor...everyone out there is struggling right now and as stated before shit happens...get off of your high horses and realize that the only people that make out okay are those who are undeserving of state assitance and those who are paid entirely to much for how little they truly do...but wait unless you were struggling you wouldnt understand!!! instead of blaming her why dont you blame the banks with their overdraft charges, the companies we work for that do not pay what they need to oh and the government that is more vested in how many wars we can fight and how to help every other country out there but our own!!! grow up everyone get a life and realize just how tough it is out there!!
Why would anyone think they can use money that does not belong to them for free?? Cherokee Rose needs to learn to manage her checking account perhaps by going back to school to learn basic math. People like this lady always place the blame on someone else rather than taking full responsibility for their own actions. Back in the day we learned to keep track of how much money was available to us by keeping track of what was put into our account as well as what we took out.
I think the point that most people are missing here is that the bank is using dishonest accounting to charge overdraft fees on transactions that were not overdrafts.
Transactions should be posted in the order they are made. If I make four transactions, and only the last one goes over balance, I should be charged ONE overdraft, not four. To do otherwise is dishonest.
Reordering transactions makes it possible to charge overdrafts on accounts which haven't even been overdrawn! If my account balance is in the black for every transaction I've made, the bank should have no right to post those transactions differently to create a deficit where none exists.
This isn't about a person crying over the fact that they overdrew their account. It's about someone who was charged fees for transactions that never caused an overdraft to begin with!
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