As a back story, I was employed by Chase for seven years.  I had both checking and savings accounts until 2005 when I overdrafted both of them.  They were closed after two months and I owed just over $1000 on the checking and about $430 on the savings account.  Im May of 2007, Chase took $1069 from a new checking account I had opened as an employee benefit to cover the charged off checking account, which was inconvenient, but understandable.  I dealt with the implications of that.

 

On July 19, my paycheck was direct deposited into my account and i had $30 available.  I checked my account and found $150 in overdraft fees.  I called Chase and they graciously removed the fee, but immediately and without notice put a memo debit on my account for $157.15, which was my entire available balance.  They said it was for the charged off savings account.  I had pumped gas previously, so I knew that when that charge hit my account I would be negative and accrue more fees.  This time I went into the banking center and spoke with the manager.  I explained that I did not create the situation making me negative, and that I would like to see about having the new overdraft fees removed.  Not the amount to pay back the savings account; only the fees Chase created.  She smiled sweetly and said no.  That same week, I had borrowed money from a friend to make my car payment to Chase, and that check ended up bouncing because of those fees.

 

The following week, July 26, I got paid again.  This time I had more money available and they took $281.08.  When I called telephone banking, they told me the amount of the charged off savings account was $437.99.  The two amounts Chase had taken from my account was $438.23.  I thought I had found a bank error, so I went back into the banking center and spoke to a "customer service rep" who, when I told her I was asking about the possibility of being charged $.24 too much, made an audible noise and told me I would have to speak to the manager again.  She came back moments later and said the manager was busy and that I would have to call another department if I believed they had charged me too much.  I called National Deposit Account Recovery and they informed me of a $30 fee that is charged when an account comes to their area.  (Chase charges a fee to collect on their own accounts that apparently no other department (banking center, telephone banking) can see.)  I thanked her for the information and told her that I understood another charge of $29.76 would be appearing on my account.  She replied that they had waived the rest of the charge.  I ended that day with a balance of -$205.00 because my car payment check was paid the second time thru.  (Chase got a fee when they bounced the check the first time.)

 

On Tuesday, July 31, I looked at my account to find I was -$436.00.  This was all additional fees-after all, I couldn't use my debit card on an account already negative.  I got paid again that night.  My entire check was eaten up but that negative amount, and I still had a balance of          -$84.60.  They also did me the courtesy of hitting me with another fee just before posting my paycheck to my account.  Chase called me on Thursday, August 2, to find out what I was planning to do about that.  I let them know in no uncertain terms that I would be paying that off and closing my account.  That is, assuming by the time I get paid next week they haven't slapped me with more fees, and my check will indeed cover the amount that I am negative.

 

Do yourself a favor and bank with a home town bank.  It will only be a matter of time before Chase gobbles them up, but maybe you can have some relief for a time.