My Checking Account Has Disappeared!

[Disfan1]

Ok, I MAY be able to understand why they would take your money for the balance, but why would they close the checking account too?

They said this morning I had lost the "priviledge" (sp?) of having a checking account there. I asked them if I had no way to get my paychecks direct deposited, how was I supposed to pay my bills? They really don't seem to care at this point and I feel like I am up a financial creek without a paddle. I need a hug.

 

[robinb]

Oh man ... that sucks.

 

[TnTsParty]

Sorry to hear that. Maybe you can get your HR / Payroll department to cut you an actual check instead of a direct deposit. Maybe if you catch them soon enough you can get it figured out.

 

[robinb]

Is there any way for you to stop next week's direct deposit? I wouldn't put it past your bank to simply take your pay checks when they come in and apply them to your remaining CC balance.

 

[Disfan1]

That's what I'm doing now. I have already opened a checking account at a different credit union (and it's closer to my house) so I can start the process of transferring the direct deposits there. I just hope it can be done before next Thursday when my paycheck hits...

 

[SundancePass]

First, you need to CALL whomever cuts your paycheck and tell them IMMEDIATELY that you need a live check and not to direct deposit your next check. It takes 10 days for direct deposit to be set up at most banks. Please call your HR or Payroll group immediately and CANCEL the direct deposit. You must do this. No one else can.

We never have out credit card accounts with any of our banks for this exact reason. There is no way DH would stand for someone closing our account!!!

Good luck to you. Please please make that call to your payroll department today!

 

[happygirl]

I'm sorry it sounded like it had been garinshed. No slams here I hope everything works out for you

 

[DisneyMomOK]

Good heavens, OP, that is really disappointing that a CU would be so quick to make such a drastic move. You should have been notified by snail mail and by phone. That is inappropriate behavior on their part, imo. I know I have forgotten to make a payment on something or other over the years (I have been with the same CU for 25 years) and I always have gotten a call from the CU so I can authorize the payment. Best of luck on getting your next check and it NOT being forwarded to the initial CU; fingers crossed.

 

[LuvOrlando]

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[trip]

Op here - Yep, they closed my account and took my money because of my credit card balance. No flames please- I know I was behind on my cc bill but now I don't have the $$ to pay my phone bill or even buy groceries.

No flame from me but if you don't mind sharing.... were you late by afew days or months? Just wondering how fast the bank acted.

 

[turkeymama]

I've worked at a bank and a couple of credit unions. The credit unions are notoriously ruthless when it comes to collecting money, especially the smaller institutions. I'm all about the non-profit aspect of credit unions, but the last one I worked at really would nickel and dime the members to death. And if they had a signed disclosure that allowed them to collect money, they would take the money first and send the member a letter later. It was "their legal right".

 

[LuvOrlando]

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[dawnn12]

get ahold of your employers NOW if they dont stop the payroll check going into that acct (yes they said its closed but they will allow a depost and you wont get it back) ive had it happen with our cu and we let the cc go so we can make sure our mortage was paid well they did the same thing to us and when it happened it was on a monday and my check hits on tuesdays they took that also when i told them that was the mortage payment they laughed(i was ) and said not now its going towards the cc bal. and they did take it and then had the guts to tell me i better not stop the payroll checks from going into the acct. we did stop them and now they are trying to get sneeky( i sent a check for our mortage payment and they tried to put it on our cc bal when i checked the acct and seen they cashed the check and put it on the wrong acct i called and they had to move the payment over to the other acct they were mad and tried to charge me a last fee cuz of there screw up(on the bottom of the check i put the acct number for our mortage thats the only reason they moved it to the correct acct if not i could of filed a fraud alert against them)

 

[turkeymama]

I can't help but wonder why people would tolerate this sort of risk? Are the interest rates and fees substantially below normal? Are they especially lenient with regard to credit scores? What's the hook?

The last credit union I worked for serviced mostly labor-type employees at our local mill. Then they branched out and began accepting many other "groups" as potential members. Credit Unions historically offer lower interest rates than banks, and since they are usually (not always) very small, they are often more lenient with lending guidelines. They are non-profit, also, which means there are no board members to worry about satisfying. Everyone (all account holders) are shareholders of the institution which means everyone should have a fair crack at obtaining any of the credit union products. That is the hook.

Back to the credit union I most recently worked for. Most of the members/account holders were not very knowledgeable about financial matters, nor were they the type of people who could easily obtain checking accounts at banks. This made it very easy for the credit union to take advantage of them by tacking on little fees here and there. Since credit unions are non-profit, all that extra money has to go somewhere right? Well, the president, vice president, etc. would vote themselves higher salaries. Problem solved. Not all credit unions are like this, nor are they supposed to be like this. They are supposed to be a step above traditional banks when it comes to providing services for their account holders. I only worked at that institution for 4 weeks. It was sickening the way they treated people.

 

[SanFranciscan]

Credit is not money. Never was. Never will be. Credit is debt bondage. Always was. Always will be. It is like falling for some pimp who promises you a nice trip to America or Europe and then being told that you must work off what he paid for you with him always keeping the books and being the judge of what you owe.

I insist upon getting a paper statement from the bank and getting my cancelled checks returned. They hate this and do everything they can to get out of sending these things to me. Never, never, never let a bank's web site be your only means of proving anything. If it is your word against a bank's, you will always lose.