I signed up for Wachovia's Way2Save program, which gives you 5% interest on your savings the first year. You can only deposit $100 a month into the account. The only other way to put money in is by account activity (paying bills, etc). So I scheduled a lot of $1 bill payments to my credit cards every day to try to get as much money in the savings account as possible.

Wachovia put a temporary hold on my checking account without telling me. There was no phone call, email, or online notification. So imagine my horror when I got emails from their billpay service saying they couldn't withdraw the money from my checking account and were reversing the bill payments. I had deposited several hundreds in cash (in person) into the checking account, so I knew it couldn't be because the funds hadn't cleared. And the bill payments totaled only around $200 anyway.

When I called, it turns out that Wachovia had put a temporary hold on my checking account, freezing the funds. No one was able to explain why, but they said the hold was gone. They weren't able to stop the payments from reversing.

The end result? My credit cards are charging me over $5000 in reversed payment fees (150 reversed payments * $39 average per returned payment, you do the math). In particular, Chase has canceled all my cards because of the multiple returned payments. I called my Chase small business card account, and the specialist at Chase said they could not do anything, or even waive *some* of the returned payment charges, unless I could get Wachovia to send a letter saying the returned payments were the result of bank error.

I called Wachovia, and they refused to do anything. Their stance is that it was not a bank error because I scheduled the bill payments, not them. There were no notes on my account (because I had talked to someone in bill pay, which apparently is a contracted out service, not part of their own system). They had no record of any hold on the account, and even if there was a hold, it wasn't their responsibility because I had scheduled the bill payments myself. They also mentioned deposit availability, though I pointed out that I had deposited cash. I'm going into a branch on Friday, but I don't think they will write anything for me either.

I haven't called the other credit cards yet. I'm dreading calling my other credit cards to see if they will waive anything. So in the end, I am stuck with this fiasco. At least Christopher's problem was caused by the same bank charging him the fees. They have the power to waive the fees. What happens when the problem is caused by a different bank, and that bank won't help at all, not even write a stupid letter?

I hate Wachovia. I don't have problems with it if the problems were caused by my scheduling bill payments, and there wasn't money in the checking account. I do have problems when the checking account says I have several hundred dollars available, I had deposited more than enough cash to cover the bills the previous week, and there is NO notification that a temporary hold had been put on the funds. How is that my fault and not the bank's???

Do you have any EEOB-type email addresses I could possibly use to write to the service departments at Chase, Bank of America, Discover, Amex, and Citibank?

Or any advice on how to handle the situation? Ways I can convince Wachovia to write the freakin' letter? Or am I stuck sucking it up?

The wildest thing about this is the idea that Wachovia would have no record of the minute-to-minute status of your accounts, including your deposits and when funds became available. You should go into a Wachovia and have a nice long sit-down with someone there, where you both go over the account item by item if necessary, until they have to admit that there is not a single reason those payments should have been reversed. After all, if they don't have a reason for—or even a record of—placing the hold, it should be easy to determine that you always had the funds necessary to cover your payments.

For now, keep this with Wachovia. It's on them to correct their mistake, and to provide you the necessary evidence you need to get your other creditors to reverse the charges and re-open those accounts. Unfortunately our Wachovia contact info is getting pretty dated (although now there's a Twitter contact), but maybe you can get somewhere if you EECB Wells Fargo. (Tell them you're a dirty telemarketer who wants to rip off old people and they should prick up their ears.)

For other Wachovia customers, you might want to find a less dangerous way to save your money. Tying it to bill payments is pretty risky, and you don't have to have an exceptional case like Susan's to wipe out your gains—a single error, whether by you or Wachovia, could easily do it.

(Photo: suburbandollar)

Christopher mentioned that there had been a $4.50 debit that had never posted, so I asked him to elaborate:

The 4.50 never posted and would have been dated before on 10/21 depending on if it had been a legitimate charge. The charge was there on the 21st but cleared without posting (temporary hold due to a broken credit machine). It was dated on the 21st.

So if that charge was not a real charge—it doesn't even show up on the 10/22 section of transactions, as you can see above, and it didn't seem to impact the balance—how again did BoA justify the overdraft?

Christopher says Bank of America won't actually investigate the issue and give him a real answer. Instead, they're just keeping him in a "web support" loop that's growing smaller and smaller:

I also find it highly difficult to continue a thread with them as it is limited to 10,000 characters but each time includes the previous message(s) in an un-editable quote in that 10,000 character limit. So after three messages that is full, and I must start a new thread, which then gets the same chain letters, in order.

Update: Several commenters made good suggestions below. To help Christopher and future readers, I'm highlighting some of them here:

lankysob says this is how BoA's Overdraft Protection works:

When BoA approved the Overdraft Protection (which was tied to my BoA Amex card I set up long ago as backup to save me from paying the stupid $35 O/D fees per transaction), it moved $100 from my Amex to my checking account and considered everything cool. When I called to complain and ask why would an account that has more than $0.00 in it ever need Overdraft Protection, I was told that BoA "goes ahead and determines a dollar amount ABOVE $0.00 based on the credit/debit history of the last few credit/debits applied to your checking account, and then uses that number as it's '0 Point' as to when to kick Overdraft Protection into effect for you." I was, understandably, outraged by this and asked "Ok, well where is this magic number you've chosen for me so I know to treat that as my $0.00 amount?" "We can't/aren't able to give you that information because it's not an exact number that stays the same."

Both Hobart007 and MedicallyNeedy suggest that you go into a local branch and speak to the branch manager in person. If it's a first time issue or you can convince the manager it's BoA's mistake, he or she might waive it.

And trillium points out a helpful feature on the BoA website:

A little known of (I know I didn't know about it ) feature on the B of A website is on the left hand side titled "Available Balance History". Unlike the default view this shows the order of which charges have hit as well as holds on the account.

(Photo: P/\UL)

At first, Jessica figured the problem stemmed from two recently disputed sales, both of which she resolved with the buyers on her own. But then, after getting stonewalled by PayPal's robot army of content-free email messages, she tried calling. Here's her story:

In mid-July, I sold a BlackBerry Pearl 8100 and a White MacBook with a fresh Leopard install on eBay. All was fine. Then in August, both buyers disputed in PayPal, for non-legitimate reasons. The phone guy disputed because he said it took too long to ship, but he had agreed to a longer ship time since he was from Indonesia and bought the phone even though I said US buyers only. The delay was because I had to go to the post office during the day to fill out the customs form, and I was busy studying for the NY bar and so it took me about a week to get to the post office. He dropped the claim when he received the phone and all was well. The girl who bought the MacBook disputed because of buyer's remorse, and lied and said that it had Tiger installed instead of Leopard, which it didn't. I mailed her a leopard disc and she dropped that dispute as well.

Lo and behold, PayPal decides to restrict my account because of "suspicious activity" so I can't use it. Fine, I understand selling to Indonesia and two disputes in a week seems sketchy. So I complete the steps in the Resolution Center to remove the limitation. But it's not lifted. I try calling, several times, and no one seems to be able to tell me why the system hasn't lifted the restriction. I send tons of emails to customer support, all of which are responded to by telling me that to resolve a limitation, I should complete the steps listed in the resolution center. Awesome, I love robots. I wait a week, and try calling again, nothing. Finally, at the end of September, I launch an EECB to all the addresses listed here on Consumerist for PayPal. I hear nothing, not one response. I try that again a week later, rewriting the email in case there are some kind of filters to delete repeat email. Again, nothing.

I called again, and spoke with a young man who told me that PayPal has "linked" my account to some other account (with a completely different email that he won't tell me what it is) that has a negative balance and until that balance is resolved, I can't have my account back. I ask him how much the balance is, but he won't tell me. He gave me absolutely no way of working out the problem so I can have my account back. He tells me he will send an email with details. I receive the email several hours later, but it of course has no actual details, and is a regurgitation of what the guy on the phone said.

So, here I am, with $24 in my account that I can't access (doesn't sound like much, but it is a week's worth of groceries for a future attorney who doesn't yet know whether she passed the bar and can begin her life's work of human rights law - no jokes please! ;)), and a PayPal Buyer Credit account that I can't use but of course can still make payments on, with no course of action or guidance whatsoever from PayPal. All I want is the restriction lifted, or at least something I can do to resolve this mess and close my account.

Does anyone have any other advice on what Jessica can do to get her money back?

The Bank of America accounts that will be charged fees were selected based on "risk and profitability," Riess said. That means customers in good standing who never carried a balance - and never incurred interest charges or late fees - could be among those getting notices.

"BofA to charge annual fees on some credit cards" [Associated Press]
(Photo: TheTruthAbout...)

Wally writes, "I am a good customer and pay on time every time, and right away as well," and he adds that he pays an annual membership fee of $40, and Capital One charges him $10 to make any payments over the phone. "Like most credit card holders," he adds, "I am 99% set on cancelling the card, but don't want to affect my credit score."

We don't know your overall financial situation, Wally, but we think the message that Crap One is sending you is pretty clear: they think you suck, and they're going to bleed you for as much cash as possible until you wise up and leave them. Sign up at a site like Billshrink (it's free) or visit Bankrate, and start comparison shopping for another card with a better interest rate, then do a balance transfer. That way you keep the credit history and lose the punitive interest rate.

Also, remember that the only time you really need the highest credit score possible is if you're planning on financing a home or a car. If that's not in your near future, don't let fear of losing a few points influence your decisions too much. It's just a stupid number that a company invented to describe you to other companies—and unfriendly companies like Capital One like the fact that their customers are afraid to jump ship, because it means they can keep hiking rates and adding fees.

RELATED
"Capital One Does Not Appreciate You Being Responsible, More Than Doubles Your APR"
"24% APR Crushes Reader To Death"
(Photo: DanCentury)

I get messages all the time over Xbox Live from people engaging in phishing scams. Thus far, I've been very annoyed because Microsoft seems completely unconcerned about it and their customer service has been very poor. I think of the people who fall for these scams and wonder why doesn't Microsoft do more.

I spoke with a customer service rep and asked about the phishing scams, and he said to file a complaint on the person in-game, which had absolutely nothing to do with phishing. He suggested I select the option to report them for cheating in-game—does that make sense? I remarked how this was confusing and that there was no option to report phishing and he said that in the next update this fall, the option would be there. I'm pretty certain he was lying. He did say, though, that it was very hard to get an account back once it was stolen, something I don't doubt he was being honest about.

Now today [October 4th, 2009], I got two messages from two different users, which are apparently audio clips of some little kid offering cheats and asking you to send a message back (during which he'll ask for your account info and steal your account). It was strange because I got identical audio from two different accounts, meaning either that these phishers are very sophisticated or that there are a lot more phishers out there than I previously realized, because there's this default phishing audio being spread around and re-used.

In the same time frame, I got another message from a different user with the same type of scam.

Frustrated with all the fraud going on, I called Xbox Live again to complain, to see if I could find some kind of fraud department, because I don't think they take these things seriously. I was a bit belligerent (but respectful) with the customer service rep., but who can blame me? Again, she told me pretty much the same nonsense the guy before told me and more. Like he said, this woman told me the same: File a complaint on their gamertag (that's their username in-game), go to the Xbox forums (where there's no real support — just other gamers like me), and so on. She then said something even more ridiculous: She suggested that I make several accounts with Xbox and use all of them to file a complaint on the same person. As with the other gentleman's remarks, I pointed how this was against the rules. It's gaming the system. She said it wasn't. I asked her why I should need several usernames to file a complaint and I told her I only pay for one account and that what she said didn't make sense. It seemed like gaming the system. I asked if she was being honest with me, because she really didn't seem like she was being honest because of how absurd it was. And then she hung up on me. Oh well.

How can Xbox not be concerned with all the fraud that goes on over their service? I've been thinking of calling Xbox Live and recording the phone conversation, then uploading it to Youtube. If I don't do it, somebody else will... Heck, even you guys over at Consumerist ought to do it because the customer service reps. seem to say the most ridiculous things. They know how the system is being manipulated and instead of fixing it, they are telling other people to just manipulate it too.

If you look on the Xbox forums, you'll see lots and lots of people complaining about "hacked" accounts and lack of support from Microsoft. Many of them either can't afford a lawyer or don't know they need one. So, many people apparently just pay for NEW ACCOUNTS on Xbox and Microsoft seems to be profiting from this phishing, which is... of course... the reason why they ignore it. Why stop people from scamming if it helps the bottom line?

(Photo: AdrianDC)

Erik's college roommate sent us the following letter:

I am writing this tip on behalf of my roommate, Erik.

Around a month and half ago (8/07/2009) his account was stolen on Xbox Live. He called Microsoft Support and asked for Accounts & Billing and they transferred him to someone that knew how to help. They verified that he was definitely, without doubt, the original owner. They asked for his contact email address and he gave them his primary email. They also said that the investigation team will get on this issue right away and it would be available again within the month (at the latest). Well, it has been a month and seventeen days since the time this email was written and nothing has happened that allowed him to get the account back. They said they would be calling him once a week to let him know the status of the investigation. He only got a call the week after and the week following that one. The last time they called they said that the investigation team is still working and that the account should be available at the end of August/early September.

Erik is a very patient guy and doesn't get angry over these types of things at all. He waited patiently until September 14th and called. Microsoft told Erik, after he asked if the message had been sent, that an email had been dispatched to the contact information on his Live passport. So Erik asked where the email was sent to and they said it was sent to an email that had the name "Chris" in it. It sounds like the person took control of his Live account and changed the contact information before MS locked the account down. They also did not change any of the information back to what it should be. So basically, MS sent the directions of how to recover his Live passport and gamertag to the hacker that stole his account in the first place.

So after MS figured out they made a mistake, they said the contact information had definitely been set back to Erik and that within 5 days an email would be sent to him and the investigative team would call him to inform that his gamer tag could be recovered again. He waited out the 5 days without a call or email and called back (9/19). When he called them they apologized for not calling within 5 days and that he would definitely receive a call within 2 days. Three days later (9/22), no call or email. So, he called back. An hour on the phone, he used the prompt to speak to accounts and billing once again, they verified it was him, again, and he explained the situation, yet again. They gave him a case number but no extension to call. So, he would have to call and wait the 10 minutes it takes to talk to intelligent life at MS and let them look up the case. Every time he calls MS it takes 5 minutes for the operator to read the case's notes. So, he talked to this guy and was told that they have no way of knowing what the investigation team is doing or what the status of the investigation is. He was very sorry that he was not able to help any further. So, he told the guy thanks and that it isn't anything personal but he would like to speak to his supervisor. So, he after a 15-min wait to speak to one, he was connected. The original operator signaled that he was no longer going to participate and that William was on the line. William, the "supervisor", had a very heavy (Indian? Middle eastern?) accent and it was insanely difficult to understand what he was saying. Erik asked to speak with the investigation team, but the supervisor said that could not happen as they do not speak with the public. So Erik asked to speak with the supervisor's boss and he said that could not happen either. He does not take phone calls... So, Erik asked how this was going to be fixed and the supervisor said he doesn't know and he has no idea when the investigation will finish. Just to wait.

The person that stole the account charged $125 in MS Points to his CC, which he canceled immediately. Definitely 800 pts of those went to changing the gamer tag. Get this, the person even started a new prestige on his COD5 account. He was on his 4th and was content with keeping it like that until Modern Warfare 2 came out but I guess that isn't going to happen. Microsoft reimbursed him $75 of the $125 after the first call but he has yet to be reimbursed for the rest. Erik wasn't told whether or not he would even be able to get his original gamer tag back.

Erik no longer has any idea what to do. He has done everything they asked and they have done pretty much nothing they said they would. Hopefully, Consumerist can see how this situation is frustrating. Especially when one can't talk to the team that is "investigating" the account that one "own's".

Erik has been a faithful Xbox player and account holder for almost 8 years now and is doubting Microsoft's loyalty to their customers.

What do you think should have happened in this situation? What would you guys have done in this situation? What do you think Microsoft can do to make this better?

We suggest, in fine college freshman style, that Erik copy your letter and personalize it so that it comes from him, and then EECB these Microsoft email addresses and any others he can find. On of our commenters on that post had success with those addresses. Another commenter also suggests Erik contact MajorNelson on Twitter, who may be able to help or point Erik to someone who can.

(Photo: włodi)

Peter writes:

So I'm contemplating dropping my American Express Blue card, not because of the recent APR increases, but because of their website's password policy.

According to their website:

Your Password should:

• Contain 6 to 8 characters - at least one letter and one number (not case sensitive)
• Contain no spaces or special characters (e.g., &, >, *, $, @)
• Be different from your User ID and your last Password

That last one makes obvious sense, but to restrict a password to between 6-8 characters, and not allow special characters? That is HIGHLY insecure. I know I did my best to make as secure a password as possible with these limitations, but what about people who common, easily remembered, and highly guessable words as passwords? The limitation of 6-8 characters alone makes brute force a much more simple prospect. This complete disregard for security is quite bothersome

I've contacted a customer service rep about this in the past, but they of course had no acceptable answer. Any suggestions on how to bump this one up the chain?

Peter, you can try calling or writing using this American Express executive customer service contact info (it worked for another reader as recently as May 2009), but you might just want to look for another card provider altogether. You know, one that will let you create a decent password to protect your account.

(Photo: subcircle)

One of their customers wrote to us:

I am in a domestic violence protection program, and must keep my private information (address, T#, etc.) confidential. One way I do this is by password-protecting my accounts, including my utility bills.

When I called Southern California Gas Company today to find out why it had not changed my mailing address to my protected one, I learned that the Gas Co. had "dropped" my password without notice — meaning anyone with basic information about me could access my account and, with good social engineering, get my street address and T#.

The first rep told me that the Gas Co. drops passwords "after six months," but then she noticed my account was only four months old. She told me that my password, apparently, was dropped after 90 days. She could not tell me why.

A second rep told me that all passwords are dropped after 90 days, but mine "stayed on for a little more than that" (120 days) "for some reason." Her supervisor confirmed that SoCalGas drops all passwords after 90 days, but does not notify consumers of this when they initially place passwords on the account. She said they are expected to notice it missing and request it be reinstated for another 90 days.

I called one more time to ask a third rep about this password policy. I did not give my account number, but said I was moving and wanted to know if I could password protect my account. The rep said "yes, no problem." And when I asked if it would remain intact while my account was active, the rep hesitated, first said "yes," then said "oh, but there's a policy that we drop it off after 90 days because we don't know how long you'll be living there."

This is terrible security procedure, and, in my case, places me in danger. It's unbelievable that a company would drop passwords from its customers' accounts without prior or current notification.

It wouldn't be as bad if Southern California Gas Company actually notified its customers when removing the password, or if their CSRs fully understood the policy and gave out the correct information when customers called in. Maybe they feel that it's sort of unnecessary—but as the customer above can demonstrate, there are certain situations where you really might want to keep your account info protected.

(Photo: Preconscious)

Brendan sent this to us back in August right after we posted about Ameriprise's 5-month-long security hole that they wouldn't fix, despite repeated warnings from a security expert. (When a news organization contacted them to confirm the exploit, they fixed it within 2 hours.) Brendan decided to bring it up among the members of his Ameriprise consumer advisory panel—the one place where you might think discussions about things like reputation, trust, and reliability would be encouraged.

Up until yesterday, I was a member of Ameriprise's 600 member consumer advisory panel, which is a private forum administered by Communispace. Since most of the forum members are Ameriprise clients, I posted a link to the above article, and to the Register article it references.

That prompted the following e-mail from my "Financial Connection Facilitator":

Hi Brendan,

This morning we noticed that you posted a discussion titled "Ameriprise Web Site Riddled with Security Vulnerabilities for at Least Five Months!?"

The main purpose of this community is to serve as "consumer consultants' by sharing your perspectives and opinions with us and each other on your finances. While we encourage you to discuss whatever topics are important to you, we just ask that you keep in mind that the 600 of you represent a diverse group, and we are interested in hearing all perspectives on a given topic – even the unpopular ones.

That said, we are uncomfortable with the discussion you started. As per our member agreement, we reserve the right to remove any content from the Web Site for any reason or no reason and have removed your discussion.

Please continue to be considerate of all opinions, and recognize that not everyone will necessarily share your perspective.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me by email.

We appreciate your understanding and assistance.

Best,
Sandra

Brendan responded angrily,

Wow, Sandra.

So much for a free and open exchange of ideas.

What does our diversity have to do with it? Are you saying that we are such a diverse group that some members will not be interested in knowing that Ameriprise jeopardized their sensitive financial data?

Your wording implies that I was somehow out of line or off on some weird tangent. Name just one member out the 600 in our little group who would not share my perspective and completely agree with me that Ameriprise has done wrong. The company was clearly asleep at the wheel with regards to the security of customer information, spent five months ignoring a security expert who tried repeatedly to bring the problem to their attention, and then had the nerve claim that the problem was no big deal.

Instead of pretending that I have said or done something inappropriate, and instead of pretending that the other members of our community would somehow be offended or not appreciate knowing about this very valid security concern, why don't you just be honest: Ameriprise signs your paycheck, so you are going to suppress any discussion of this outrageous failing on the part of Ameriprise.

Sincerely,
Brendan

And with that, Sandra deleted Brendan's account.

Obviously you have a sick fetish, Brendan, where you're obsessed with things like trust and security when it comes to your finances. Gross! "Stay away from our beloved customers!" cries Ameriprise in pain. We hope you've looked for, and found, a better match for your higher standards.

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"Ameriprise Website Riddled With Security Vulnerabilities For At Least Five Months"
(Photo: calmdownlove)

Network Solutions' spokesman says, "We feel terribly about it, to burden them with the notification process, which can be kind of tricky because there is no one federal data breach statute." Other things that are a burden: having a company let hackers access your bank account because their web security failed.

As US PIRG, which directed our attention to this story, points out, it's pretty easy to instruct the merchants on the varying state laws: "Tell them to comply with the strongest state law and they will be in compliance with all of them."

US PIRG also notes, "With a debit card, fraud occurs against your own checking account and the law supposedly protecting you — the Electronic Fund Transfer Act is weak. Plus, it's your own money you're missing until when and if the bank refunds it. Fraud against a credit card, on the other hand, is covered by the stronger Truth In Lending Act and the bank has a greater incentive to work hard to stop it. All plastic should be protected the same way credit cards are. If we get a new consumer agency, that could be one of its first efforts."

Network Solutions Says Hackers Accessed 573,000 Card Accounts [WaPo, via US PIRG Consumer Blog]

Oh, right. Chase.

I am a former WAMU customer that has been swept into the Chase empire. I still have my WAMU debit card. Did some freelance work last week and received a personal check for $200 that I attempted to deposit into my account, by way of a Chase ATM.

I put my card in, entered my pin and looked for the "Deposit" option. There was none. I tried canceling and entering my information again. No "Deposit". I did the same thing with the other 3 ATMs there (I was at a Chase branch, after hours), same thing. No option to Deposit.

I drove to the next nearest Chase branch and repeated the process at their 3 ATMs. No option to Deposit.

The next day, Friday, I went into the branch and explained the situation to a teller. She said that was odd and had a look at my account. She explained to me that even though the transfer of account numbers was complete (from WAMU to Chase), and I could use my card to get money out of a machine, I can't use the machine to put money INTO it. I would have to come into a branch to deposit checks until SEPTEMBER, when the acquisition is complete.

She mentioned, if I wanted to make my life easier, I could open a Chase account now, get a Chase card in 2 weeks, deposit money into that account via the ATM, then wait for it to clear, then transfer the funds to my original account. Yes, to make my life EASIER.

I told her No, I rarely have personal checks. My job is direct deposit. Can you please just deposit my check?

She said, sure. Then called over her manager.

Apparently, at the branch, she couldn't even deposit the check into my account. (I had plenty of funds to cover it). But this is what they could do. They would cash the check, turn the $200 into a cashier check and send them both to their processing plant. When the personal check cleared, they would deposit the cashier check into my account. I asked the manager how long that would take, and he said it could take up to FIVE DAYS.

I still have the receipt from this tomfoolery and yet to see the funds in my account.

This is not convenient. Oh, Washington Mutual, how I miss you.

Look, I know that massive account changeovers are hard, and that this merger didn't have a lot of planning behind it, but, seriously, not letting people deposit personal checks? They're falling out of use, yes, but they're still rather popular.

(Photo: hodgsons)

The drama started when Adam moved and Comcast kept applying his payment to his old account. After a few months of this, they shut off his cable and told him he owed around $300, which he gladly paid over the phone — only to realize that he'd just paid Comcast twice for the same service and that his cable still wasn't back on.

His original email was understandably quite lengthy, but here's how he signed off:

The worst part of it all, LOST is on tonight and I am missing it.

Oh yeah, I am picking up a wireless signal from a neighbor since my internet is out. Be sure to also tell people to secure their networks since you never know who is on it.

The whole mess was eventually straightened out — but Adam decided he'd had enough of Comcast and switched to FiOS, which is where we join his story.

Adam writes:

As I have been updating you on my serious of issues with Comcast and their breaking of protocol, lying to a customer, and inability to handle even the simplest of requests the saga is finally over but not without one last instance of poor customer service.

On Friday 05/15/09 I had FIOS installed but my Comcast billing cycle went through Monday 05/18/09 and on Sunday 05/17/09 at 6:30pm I called Comcast to cancel my service and was unable to speak with a person regarding billing.

I called 2-3 times to try to speak with someone but kept getting taken to the same area on the phone system, and finally after selecting I was having trouble with service was I finally able to get a CSR on the phone. I told them I would like to cancel my service and when they asked why I said I was done with the level of service I got from Comcast and had FIOS installed.

The person said they were sorry to hear that but they were unable to complete my request and I needed to call back on Monday 05/18/09 during business hours because they only had technical support on the weekends. In my last statement to Comcast, I explained that this was exactly the reason I am canceling their service.

I called to handle an issue with them, and it should not matter what day or what time I called, because if I have a billing problem I should be able to speak with a person immediately, but that area is not open on Sundays and there was no one that could help me. I bet if I wanted to start service or purchase additional items like movie channels, pay per views, etc.. someone would have happily done that for me.

I went to the Comcast billing office this morning to return my equipment and cancel my service, and upon telling the person what I wanted to do she did not seem to care or ask any questions, just accepted the items and gave me a return receipt.

Adios Comcast, it has been an unpleasant 6 months with their service. If I can be just 1 person who stands up to them and refuses to accept substandard levels of service, then hopefully I can inspire others to do the same thing.

Thanks again for all your help while I was trying to remedy my situation with Comcast. If i had not had The Consumerist, I would probably still be trying to figure out where my money is and just calling the general help line and never being able to get to the executive level, even though they were just as inept, at least I have it on the official record with them. Now let's just hope that check is actually in the mail to me.

One last piece of advice, Adam. Hang on to that receipt.

(Photo:mojojornjorn)

You can't say Posnanski didn't try to anticipate traffic growth and plan ahead, which makes it even weirder that Host Monster couldn't somehow educate him—or their customer service rep—about this disastrous SQL minefield.

A few months ago, when this blog really started to get pretty heavy traffic, I realized that I needed to get on a better plan, one that gave me more … whatever it is.

So I called my Web hosting provider and they told me that it would be a good idea to upgrade my server or, to be more specific, they thought it would be a good idea for me to pay $40 per month for hosting rather than the 10 bucks or whatever I was paying originally. I'm pretty sure I had to pay like a year up front.

That conversation, by the way, was boring and not worth reliving except to point out that, one, they started charging me significantly more money, and, two, the salesman's precise words were, "Oh yeah, you will have no problems now." Both of these concepts play prominently in our tale.

OK! No more problems! So, I have to admit being surprised by this small problem of them suddenly and without warning cutting off my site. I called up Host Monster, and connected to some guy whose basic job, evidently, was to know nothing. Every company has to have several people who know nothing - these are the ones you put out front so that customers feel guilty for yelling at them. After all, they KNOW NOTHING. What are you going to do, just scream madly at the people who know nothing? It's not their fault. The Know Nothing people are the ones who tell you that your plane has been canceled on sunny days, your hotel room is not ready, your car reservation isn't in the system. And this KN guy basically explained that they had permanently suspended my account … I could not get it back.

The reason for this? Apparently, it had something to do with too many MySQLs.

"Yes, the problem was definitely SQLs," he explained again.

Unfortunately, that was all he could explain—the Know Nothing wasn't able to provide any specific details about just how Posnanki's small-time blog (in terms of bells and whistles, at least) could become so onerous to HostMonster that they needed to nuke it without any warning, not even an email. In fact, the only info the rep was able to provide was that the owner of Host Monster personally sent down the kill order:

And he explained that the president of the company, Matt,* had just 20 minutes earlier written a note that my account should be closed because it was taking up too much bandwidth or memory or whatever the hell it is that servers use.

Our questions:

• Why couldn't Host Monster contact Posnanski to address the problem before taking such drastic action? Most bloggers have limited knowledge of how the hosting side of their hosting packages work. They're sort of relying on the expertise of the company to let them know what to do.
• Why was it permanently closed, with no hope of appeal? If the problem was with his blog installation using too many, uh, SQLs, and not a content violation, why couldn't they help him fix it?
• Why couldn't Host Monster optimize its blogging packages to reduce the strain on their back-end? When we signed up with Dreamhost and auto-installed a Wordpress blog, for example, the installation came pre-installed with an optional plug-in that reduced the number of calls to the server, we think to prevent exactly this kind of SQL issue.

Side note: we really like that Posnanski has revived the term "Know Nothing" to apply to the front-line of scripted CSRs, and we may start using it more frequently.

"Hosts and Monsters" [Joe Posnanski] (Thanks to Jason!)

We don't understand why companies think hiding a cancel option is a good thing. In the short term, making it so inconvenient to cancel may keep a few customers from following through, at least for another month or so, but it's a terrible way to treat customers. And we do notice it, companies. Let's assume that for some absurd reason Noah needs an online fax service in the future—the first thing he's gonna remember about eFax is that they gave him the runaround when he last tried to leave. They've ruined the relationship.

Compare that to eMusic, which has "Cancel Membership" prominently displayed as a standard menu option under the "Your Account" page. They're not doing it because they want to lose business, but because they want to quickly intercept customers who are about to leave and make a deal with them before they get in a bad mood. I know because I went to cancel a couple of months ago and was immediately offered a 2-month "hold" with the option to continue or cancel after that period. It's a better solution for them, and the customer is in a much more agreeable state to consider the offer because he hasn't been jerked around for half an hour or more trying to figure out how to cancel in the first place. EFax provided a similar offer to Noah, but by that point he just wanted to end the ordeal, and refused to consider it.

For what it's worth, to cancel an eFax membership you should initiate a web chat with one of their CSRs via the blue "Chat Now" button on their website.

"Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" [Slate] (Thanks to Emily!)

"We liked Mr. Weitzman's advice and demeanor," he writes. "His disciplinary record was clean and he had gone to good schools (Cornell undergraduate, Columbia M.B.A.)." He was also a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Planners, an esteemed group that is promoted as a sure sign of ethics.

So what can you do to protect yourself from something like this, if you can't rely on your own judgment and the Napfa affiliation? "Trust no one" sounds a little paranoid, but since it's your life savings we're talking about, well, trust no one. Lieber notes that if you want to protect your money, the best thing you can do is take an active role in managing it, and that means no power of attorney docs or giving your advisor permission to write checks on your behalf:

It's hard to thwart someone intent on committing a crime. But you can at least put your advisers on notice by not letting them trade on your behalf at all. That's what we did with Mr. Weitzman, simply because we don't think it is a good idea to give anyone that authority.

[...]

Trust but verify. Open your mail. Confirm the accuracy of your trades and fund transfers. Read your account statements. Every month. Every number. Every single word.

"How a Personal Finance Columnist Got Caught Up in Fraud" [New York Times]
(Photo: Jim, the Photographer)

My fiance and I signed up for Cox cable service [in San Diego] last May when we bought a home together. We signed up in her name as she was an existing subscriber and just transfered her account to our new address. We married, but still received our cable bill under her previous name. I handle the bills so we decided to have it sent to us under my name.

My wife set it up over the phone no problem. When I received the new bill under my name, I discovered a $20 Digital Activation Fee and a $20 Video Activation Fee in addition to our regular charges.

I called customer service and spoke to Michael. After looking into the issue, he said it was a legitimate charge as they had to disconnect the service, then reconnect the service back on to change our name! He was sorry, but that's the way that they do it.

I couldn't believe it. Seriously. Since when do you have to physically turn a service off then turn it back on again to change a name on a computer screen?

I'm not a huge fan of AT&T, but if they bring their UVerse video service to our neighborhood, I will remember this incident.

(Photo: LabyrinthX)

(Photo: qnr)

Step One

First, rather than remembering a word for your password, remember a phrase instead. For example:

"I Have Way Too Many Passwords To Remember"

Then take the first letter of each word as your password, so…

"I Have Way Too Many Passwords To Remember"

would be: ihwtmptr

This makes your actual password look very random. Alone, this would be a pretty secure password.

Step Two

Say you need a password for your bank (ex. Wells Fargo). Just take the first letters of the name

(Wells Fargo = wf) and add it to your password:

wfihwtmptr

Or another example, if you need a password for Facebook:

fihwtmptr

This way your password is different for every site, is secure, and all you have to do is remember one phrase!

We saw a similar article in the latest issue of the hacker digest 2600, although the author in that piece suggests using the lyrics to a favorite song or poem you'll never forget—in his example, the classic Ice Ice Baby: "Alright stop, collaborate and listen, Ice is back with my brand new invention" becomes ascaliibwmbni. From there, you can add in letters unique to the website as in the example above, and/or replace letters with special characters or numbers.

Using either method, you should be able to replace that one, overused password with a bunch of unique ones that aren't easy to guess and are resistant to brute force cracking, without taxing your memory much more than before.

Update: I mentioned above that you can add special characters or numbers if you like. As several readers point out in the comments below, it's not so much an "if you like" option as it is a requirement if you really want to create a strong password. Another point worth mentioning is the above example is really mainly for illustrative purposes, and you should find a more obscure way to add letters to your base "word" than just appending the site's initials, which can be too easy to figure out. Be sure to read the comments below for several suggestions on how to improve the examples above.

"Remember Just One Password That's Unique For Every Site" [ideashower.com]
Winter 08-09 Issue [2600 - The Hacker Quarterly]

The simple truth is, online transaction brokers aren't held accountable to the same rules as banks, and resolving fraud and billing issues doesn't appear to be scalable, or machine-solvable, to the degree Google and eBay would like. I'm as guilty as anyone of using both PayPal and Google Checkout to quickly pay for online transactions, but as of today I'm turning my back on both. Until they agree to staff resolution centers with real people who can resolve issues, there's zero reason to trust them. If I pay with a credit card—and a single-use card if possible—then at least I know I have some rights should something go wrong. And the merchant, too, can trust that she'll receive her money or have some legal recourse.

"Google is Evil, Worse than PayPal: Don't use Google Checkout for your business" [slash7] (Thanks to Joshua and Heather!)

The man who discovered it, Kevin Andreyo, deserves a slap on the back for using the power of the web to track down personal information about himself—he used pipl to perform a search on his name and address—and he deserves a slap somewhere else for using the same password on every account.

"That isn't just my password for Comcast, it's my password for everything that is not tied to my credit card," Mr. Andreyo said in an interview.

People! Do not do that! Unless you suffer from brain damage or some form of learning disability, your brain can remember more than one password. Do not make it easy for scammers by using a master key that can open any door into your personal life.

If you're worried that you were on the list, the easiest way to tell is to see if your Comcast email account has been frozen—Comcast is taking this measure as well as "contacting them to educate them about using safe passwords."

"Passwords of 8,000 Comcast Customers Exposed" [New York Times]
(Photo: scriptingnews)

Hint to preserve your sanity: to avoid PC Mag's trashed layout, try viewing/bookmarking the print-friendly version.

"How to Delete Accounts from Any Website" [PC Mag] (Thanks to Josh!)
(Photo: jm3)

Unfortunately, the iPhone zoom function probably won't work on your checking balance, but we have used an earlier version of the app on a couple of Nokia phones, and it was definitely convenient to have immediate access to your account info no matter where you are. (Assuming you're somewhere where there's 2G/3G access, of course.)

"Citibank Launches Dedicated iPhone Application" [Netbanker]
Citibank Mobile App [Citi.com]

The article also points out that more people are investing in gold, which at least makes sense. But may we suggest you consider moving your cash over to a credit union before you glue it behind the wallpaper in your bedroom? Just make sure you ask the credit union manager about their Texas ratio first, so you don't inadvertently put your savings at a greater risk.

"Savers Banking on Shoeboxes" [New York Post]
(Photo: Brian Branch Price | New York Post)

The problem with a permanent stop payment is that it places the responsibility on the bank to watch out for that specific check forever, or until their bank policies determine the check has expired. No, we don't think it should cost a consumer over $5 a month to ask the bank to catch the check, but is anyone really surprised that the fee would be set at a level that generates a profit?

Unfortunately—and this is what concerned Jennifer too—experienced scammers may also be aware of the six month window. Attorney Mary Beth Guard tells Bankrate:

"Say you wrote a check for a vacation scam. The scammers know you'll put a stop-payment on it, but they also know that unless there's a special agreement with your bank the order will be valid for only six months. They may wait until after six months to cash the check. If your checkbook is stolen it may be best to close the account and open a new one."

Which brings us to your other option. Jennifer says that she in fact "advised [my] fiance to close the account." We agree, but not because his current bank is behaving any worse than other banks. Depending on the amount of the check and your bank's check expiration policies, it may actually be a more cost effective solution.

Before you place a stop payment:

1. Determine the details of your bank's check expiration policy (or if it even has one);
2. Find out the stop payment fee;
3. Estimate the relative cost (in overall trouble as well as fees) of relocating your checking account to another bank, or in switching your account to a new number at the same bank.

Once you can figure out how many six month renewals it will take to block the check until it expires, you'll know the true cost of blocking that check, and you can determine whether getting a new account will be the cheaper choice.

You should also know that an oral stop payment order only lasts 14 days—you'll need to go into the bank and place a written order for the 6 month policy to kick in.

"Stopping a check payment is expensive" [Bankrate.com]
(Photo: Getty)

This customer wanted to remove his active mobileme address and turn one of his existing email only addresses into his main account. Here's how the chat went:

Brian: Hi Sheena!

Sheila H: Hello, Brian.

Sheila H: I understand you want to switch your main account and email only account, correct?

Brian: I have a little problem. I need to switch the main mobileme account to an email only account and switch one of my email only accounts to the main account. Is that possible?

Sheila H: Unfortunately, email only accounts are no longer available, so if you cancel your existing email only account, you will not be able to reactivate it.

Brian: I’m talking about current email only accounts. And I’ve been able to reactivate email only accounts since the Mac Plus was around.

Brian: Such as switching making yyyyy@me.com into the main account instead of xxxxxxxxxxx@me.com

Sheila H: I understand. However you wish to cancel one account and make it an email only account, that is not possible.

Brian: It’s the main account I wish to cancel. I want to keep the email only accounts.

Brian: Frankly, I’m being harassed and stalked and I just found out I the brain tumor I thought went away didn’t. So my day isn’t really peachy.

Sheila H: Not my problem. Okay. So let me clarify, you wish to cancel your main account (which will cancel your email only accounts), and reactivate your email only account as an Individual account, correct?

Brian: Yeah, um, thanks for the compassion, I just want to get rid of the email address on the main account. If I could convert one of my other email only accounts to a full account, that’d be great. Would that be free under the circumstances or would I just have to buy a whole new subscription to get it done and get started on my email to the Consumerist?

Sheila H: You will need to purchase a new membership because it’s a new account. However, you will receive a prorated refund for your current membership which will be applied to the card it was activated with.

Brian: That would be over six months at this point.

Sheila H: You will be credited for any unused portion of your prepaid membership. Would you like me to cancel?

Brian: Not right now, thanks. I’ll just visit an Apple Store fifty miles away. But thanks for the information and compassion. I hope Steve Jobs reads this.

You stay classy, Sheila!

(Photo: Getty)

I am writing to tell you about an experience I have recently had with UPS (United Parcel Service). I have had a shipping account with them for about 3 years. I use it maybe once a year to send the occasional item to family or friends. This is the story of the package that wasn’t mine.

I came home from a long weekend to find a voice mail on my home answering machine. The lady, who identified herself as Karen from the Damaged Claims department at UPS said that a package that I had shipped was reported as damaged by the recipient. It was to be sent back to me and I would have to take care of the claim. Immediately, I wondered to myself, did I ship something recently? No, I didn’t. Especially a 42” Plasma TV as that was what Karen indicated the package contained. I quickly called them back at the number provided, but the department was closed on Sundays.

First thing Monday on my way into work, I called the customer service center. I gave them the tracking number that Karen provided for me and the representative said that the call was accurate and that I would be receiving the package to fix or replace within the next few days. I told the representative (Paul) that I hadn’t shipped anything with UPS on my account in at least 6 months, let alone a 42” plasma TV! I told him this, but he didn’t believe me. I kept insisting that the package had nothing to do with me. I even referred to the tracking information (provided by UPS). I live in Medina, Ohio. Last time I checked, that is pretty far from Ontario, CA. “If I was the shipper, why would the package have come from Ontario, CA not Medina, Ohio?” I asked Paul. He told me that he would look into the situation and that I’d be on hold for about 5 minutes. I waited and waited, my morning drive was coming to an end and he finally came back on just before I walked into the office. He said that “someone had entered the wrong account information in the claim slip and that there was nothing they could do.” The package would be sent to my house, regardless of my non-existent involvement with it. I would then have to (on my own time) arrange for the package to be picked up, sign a piece of paper and hope that everything else went as planned. All I could do was agree, I had nothing to go on, nothing to say, I just said ok and hung up

Two days later, this massive TV showed up at my house. It sat outside in the rain on Tuesday night (I was at a friend’s house) and most of the day Wednesday. Finally around noon on Wednesday I made it home and made the call to customer service that the package was there and it needed to be picked up. I once again referenced the tracking number. This time, the representative apparently didn’t read the notes (or most likely there WERE NO NOTES) on this package. I had to explain the entire situation again. I told her that I didn’t care about the damage claim, I didn’t care where it was going, and I just wanted it off my porch. She made a call to the local depot, which ironically my dad has worked at for 27 years. About ten minutes later, a gentleman from Middleburg Heights depot called and said there would be someone there that afternoon to pick up the package. He said I would not have to be there to sign anything (what a relief) at least something was going right. At this point, I had spent 4.5 hours talking on the phone about, waiting at my house for and researching UPS’ problem. I thought it was over.

Two weeks passed and I didn’t really think about the situation. Until my American Express bill came. I checked the bill, as I normally do each month for the charges I made. I ran across two that immediately stood out: UPS – United Parcel Service. One charge was for 27.47 and the other was for 92.65. I immediately called American Express. The woman was so very nice (as they always are!). She said that since the charge hadn’t been billed yet, I couldn’t dispute it. Fine I thought, they’ve always been good before, I’ll just wait.

Meanwhile, I decided to call UPS to try to resolve the wrongful charges. I referenced the tracking number and again I had to explain the story. The agent was very, very nice this time. She was very helpful and understanding of my frustration. I was able to get the charges credited to my American Express and the situation was resolved.

I guess my moral of the story is that I spent over 5 hours of my time fixing a UPS mistake. And although I don’t ship thousands of dollars in packages a year, I should’ve still received better customer service. If nothing else, I would’ve expected that someone would’ve caught the error when none of the names involved with the package matched my account. In the end everything worked out ok, but it still frustrates me that stuff like this happens. I have a liking towards UPS, as I said my Dad has worked there for 27 years. However this incident really makes me want to shy away from using them again.

We sure hope the real shipper insured his 42-inch broken, drenched pile of fail.

1. Authorizing transactions via debit card even if it triggers an overdraft fee
"Debit card use triggers 46% of all overdrafts, according to the Center for Responsible Lending," writes SmartMoney. Keep an eye on your spending and never trust the bank to let you know if you've spent more than you have. As a "courtesy," they'll approve your transaction, then apply a fee.

SmartMoney suggests you ask your bank to set your debit overdraw amount to zero, so that any transaction that would be rejected in the real world will also be rejected by your bank.

2. Reordering transactions to maximize the number of them that can be considered overdrafts
"Banks justify the practice as a way to ensure the most important debits get processed first (say, so a mortgage payment doesn't bounce)." This is utter bullshit. Banks do this for one reason—to generate more revenue in overdraft fees from customers who screw up. Here's an example:

Say you start the day with $100 in your account. You buy a latte ($5), fill up on gas ($50), buy groceries ($35), swing by the drugstore ($8) and then the dry cleaner's ($25). Processed chronologically, only the last transaction triggers an overdraft. Reordered from high to low, however, three purchases do.

SmartMoney suggests two things to protect against this:

• Keep an extra $100 or so as "buffer money" in your account, and never plan on using it.
• Always make sure any deposits have shown up as available funds before you rely on them.

3. Extended overdraft fees
If you take too long to pay an overdraft fee, your bank may attach a second penalty fee. One suggestion is to attach a line of credit or savings account to automatically pay overdaft fees—but don't use the line of credit for anything other than overdraft protection.

4. High daily maximums
Many banks will allow you to generate multiple overdraft transactions in a single day—Chase, for exammple, sets no limit on the number of times they can charge you, and they increase the charges after the first transaction. SmartMoney suggests you negotiate these fees away by pointing out that the trouble stemmed from a single incident, and that the entire unpleasant affair is a rare occurrence for you. (It is rare, isn't it? Otherwise you're just giving money away to the bank.)

5. Taking a day or more to release funds on hold
This last one is triggered by merchants—hotels, gas stations—who place holds on your account before you complete the transaction. Banks, however, apparently have no technology available to release those holds in a timely manner, despite the fact that they're initially placed in mere seconds. If you conduct any business that generates holds on your funds, assume that money is spent until you can confirm it's been released again.

SmartMoney suggests you use a credit card to pay for things that trigger holds—"While it still counts against your available credit, it's more likely that account can withstand a tighter balance for the 24 hours or so it takes for the hold to clear."

Notice a trend here? Most of the suggestions SmartMoney makes to protect yourself amount to little more than socking more money away at the offending bank, or setting up more potential ways for something bad to happen in the form of unexpected fees. If your bank is practicing more than one or two of these bad habits, your best bet is to start looking for another bank or credit union, one that doesn't view you as its own personal ATM machine.

"5 Sneaky Overdraft Traps" [SmartMoney]
(Photo: Getty)

I've been a faithful Xbox Live Gold member since I first bought my Xbox 360 a few years ago. When I first signed up for my account I chose the annual option, so for the past two years I've paid my $49.99 like a good little gamer.

This year was probably going to be no different, but my billing ran into a little snag when my credit card on file was replaced. I started receiving emails from Microsoft telling me that I needed to update my card info so that I could be charged for the next year, but I kept forgetting. I finally received a final email saying that my account had been closed and at that point I could no longer sign onto Xbox Live. Honestly I couldn't care less about having a Live account, but I have a good amount of DLC, so I immediately gave Xbox Support a call so I could at least get switched to a free silver account so I wouldn't bork what I had already bought.

After a minute or two on hold (I called 1-800-4MY-XBOX) I got through to a very nice woman. I explained to her that my account had lapsed and that I just wanted to convert my Gold account to a Silver one. She said no problem, but informed me that I would need to speak with billing. "Not a problem," I thought, and I got forwarded immediately.

After another minute on hold I was through to the billing department. I was pretty impressed at the lack of hold time, considering it was a Sunday night, and I even made a comment to my brother over IM saying, "Wow, Xbox support is pretty good." Needless to say my comment was a bit premature.

I again explained my situation to the billing rep, and he asked me to sign on to http://billing.microsoft.com so I could update my billing information there. That seemed like a pretty simple request, and he said he would stay on the line with me to make sure that everything got updated properly. Again, I was impressed because most reps would just tell you where to go and hang up. He verified that my billing information was updated, and he told me that I would be charged $49.99 because I had an owing balance on my account. While all I wanted to do was convert to a Silver account (hopefully for no charges), I was half expecting this since my account had technically lapsed in June. I asked if it was possible to just pro-rate the two months that I was given service after my account lapsed, and I was told because I'm an annual member that wouldn't happen. Alright, fine, no big deal – it's just $50. The charge was put through and I figured all was set. Here's how the rest of the conversation went:

Me: Alright, so my account is settled. Since my account lapsed in June I'm assuming I should have about 10 months left of Xbox Live Gold service, right?

Rep: No.

Me: Ummm… what do you mean no? When I paid the $50 I was paying for service from June 2008 to June 2009. I understand that I won't get a full year of service from today, but how come you're telling me I'm not going to get Gold service at all?

Rep: By paying the $50 you settled your account. Your account has been reactivated as a Silver account.

Me: Okay, I understand that my account is now settled, but I just paid for 12 months of service. If you date that from June 2008 I should have a Gold account until June 2009.

Rep: No. When you paid the $50 that was just to settle the account and bring it current. Your account was almost sent to collections, so your payment stopped the process.

Me (Getting very pissed off right now): Okay, so what you're telling me is that I just paid $50 so you wouldn't send me to collections? With Xbox Live service you PRE-PAY for the service! If I'm paying you $50 I just PRE-PAID for services that you owe me. Now you're telling me all I did was stop you from sending me to collections?

Rep: Yes. However, now that your account is settled you can go ahead and purchase a Gold account if you want.

Me (To the point of ripping my hair out): So what you're telling me is that I just paid you $50, and if I want to get a Gold level account I will need to pay again for it even though I just paid you $50?!?

Rep: That would be correct sir.

Me (Trying not to yell at the guy so I can ask pertinent questions): Okay, that makes no sense, but let's continue. Can you tell me exactly what I was charged for? Was the $50 I just spent for Xbox Live Gold service, collections fees, account reactivation… what?

Rep: The charge will be for Xbox Live Gold service.

Me (Ready to rip his throat out through the phone): You just said that I was being charged for Xbox Live Gold service. If that's the case then how come I am not getting the balance of the months?

Rep: Because that charge was to bring your account current.

This ordeal continued for another 10 minutes. He told me that my payment was solely to bring my account "current." His rationale for not giving me the balance of the months on my account was that my account was almost sent to collections. Well, first off, my account was never sent to collections, so that's the biggest BS story I've ever heard. Second, how can you send me to collections on a debt for services that I was never given? Microsoft cut off my account when it went delinquent, and at the very least I got a free month out of them. I absolutely understand them wanting me to pay for that, but how can you send me to collections for an entire year of service that I haven't even used yet? I also asked him that if I had called last month to settle my account would I have been given the balance of the months. His answer? Yes. Rationale? Because my account wasn't being sent to collections last month.

After all of this I informed the rep that I would dispute the charge with my credit card company. He told me, "Fine, we get that all the time. However, we always win because we will show that it's a legitimate charge." I tried to argue with him saying that yes, while the charge itself is legitimate (I did authorize it), Microsoft is refusing to give me the services that I paid for, and that is grounds for a dispute resolution in my favor. He didn't really seem to care and I knew I was getting nowhere, so I just hung up at that point.

So where do I stand? Yesterday I was charged $50 for 12-months of Microsoft Xbox Live Gold service which should have been dated from June 2008. However, my account is currently at a Silver level, and the only way to upgrade the account is to pay again for Gold service.

There are several problems that come up with this entire phone call. First, I only had the choice to pay $49.99 to bring my account current even though there are monthly and quarterly payment options available. If I had been a month-to-month member I probably would've just paid for a single month and lost a month of service, not 10. If I had been paying via Xbox Live Cards that you buy at retailers nothing would've happened because there are no recurring payments. So for the most part, a dedicated customer who makes an annual commitment to the service gets screwed the hardest. Thanks Microsoft!

Yuck. You should probably call your credit card company and talk the issue over with them. We wouldn't be surprised if you were able to do a chargeback.

(Photo: Tengaport )

UPDATE: This complaint has been resolved.

• A) Connect the internet service and leave.
• B) Connect the internet service and check to see if the 74-year-old man has a separate account for the cable service.
• C) Accuse the 74-year-old man of stealing cable, and declare "I don't want to see your fucking bill" when the granddaughter tries to explain the situation.

So here's my story with Comcast:

My girlfriend and I were living in an apartment where we had Comcast Internet, Phone, and Digital Cable service. After our lease was up, we decided to move into my grandpa's house for a year or so to save some money to put down on a house. Anyways - I called Comcast and set a disconnect date at our apartment. My grandpa has basic extended cable through comcast, and for us, that's good enough. So I asked them to cancel the cable and phone line for us, and asked if they could just transfer the internet service and set an appointment for a tech to come out and hook up the internet at my Grandpa's. All went well. I was told a tech would be at my Grandpa's the following Tuesday between 10 and 1pm.

As most of us know, Comcast techs don't normally show up until about 2 minutes until that window is over, but this time - the guy actually showed up at about 10:05am. Great, I thought. I don't have to sit at home all day waiting for someone to show up. He pulls his truck into the alleyway and comes into the house to see where we want the line hooked up. I proceed to show him the spare bedroom where I'll be connecting the router. He obviously noticed my Grandfather watching cable tv in the living room.

He then tells me he's going outside to check the line on the poll. I go upstairs and about 5 minutes later, I come outside to witness my grandpa and the Comcast guy in a screaming match. The Comcast tech is threatening to leave and I ask "What the heck is going on?!" Well, my Grandpa starts telling me that he disconnected his cable and says we do not have a cable account with Comcast and basically accuses my Grandpa of hijacking cable. Okay, last time I checked, most 74 years old probably don't know how to hijack cable. So my Grandpa gets really upset and starts back for the house. I'm trying to find out from the Comcast tech what is going on and my Grandpa comes back out 2 seconds later with a Comcast bill in his hand. He goes to hand it to the Comcast tech and he rudely replies "Sir, I don't want to see your fucking bill. If you don't go back in your house and quit disrespecting me, I'm going to just leave."

Meanwhile, I ask my Grandpa to try and let me straighten it out and go inside for a minute because I could tell at this point he was getting really upset. So I continue to ask the guy what the hell is going on all the while he is telling me he isn't going back in the house to hook up my internet because he doesn't appreciate my Grandpa "disrespecting him". Well, from what I saw, my Grandpa didn't really deserve to get his cable turned off and treated in such a way. I finally talk him into hooking up the internet (I needed it for school as my homework is submitted online). But the issue still remains with my Grandpa's service. So I ask the tech why he thinks we don't have cable. He replies "When I look up the phone number on the account, it only shows internet, no cable television. That's a red flag mam."

So I immediately figure out what's going on. I tell him calmly "Okay, well you are looking under MY phone number. And yes, I only have internet service in my name seeing as I cancelled the phone and cable service. My grandfather has a SEPARATE Comcast account from me, on which he only has extended cable. If you would have let him show you the bill, maybe you would have noticed it is two separate account numbers!" I wanted it that way so then the internet bill comes in my name. It's just easier that way when paying bills.

He then rudely replies with "Mam, I don't really care. I'm doing my job, and I'm not stupid. Comcast will not allow two different accounts at the same address so I already know you are blatantly lying to me." Well obviously this was news to me. And he proceeds to just leave without turning back on my Grandpa's cable, which he PAYS for.

We have a Comcast center about 2 minutes from our house, so we drive over there. The lady proceeds to tell me she can't turn back on the cable because the account was flagged.

Alright, well obviously he saw 2 accounts if he specifically flagged my Grandpa's.

About six calls to Comcast later, and I finally get someone on the line willing to fix the situation. He tells me he has no idea what he was talking about and there isn't anything saying 2 Comcast accounts can't be at the same house. He turns my Grandpa's cable back on and gives him a $10 credit, which in all honesty, is kind of insulting for the crap the rep and the center gave us. Not only was the tech wrong, but he treated my Grandfather like crap.

Who the hell is Comcast hiring these days?

Update: Ally writes:

The Comcast Corporate office called me this morning, and I'm more than happy with the way they are resolving the issue. They have credited or accounts for a period of time, and I have received a verbal apology from every single person I have spoken with.

Then a little while ago, I also got another call from the local Comcast branch apologizing as well as stating they are interviewing the tech about the situation.

To those telling me to switch - this is the ONLY issue I have ever had with Comcast. I've never had an issue with their service other than a few outages here and there, and last time I checked, you'll get that with any service provider from time to time. Any other tech I've ever had come to my house has always been more than polite and did the job they were there to do. The way the situation is being handled is fine with me. It was more an issue with a specific tech than with Comcast service. As of right now, I'm giving Comcast the benefit of the doubt and trusting they handle the situation.

Several of the people from Comcast I spoke with openly stated there are things that need improvement. They didn't question me, and did what needed to be done to resolve the issue. As of now, that's really all I wanted.

(Photo: Getty)

Bill writes:

I read the Consumerist daily and have learned about Sprint's crappy customer service. However, I am a Sprint third-party vendor (i.e. I'm not on Sprint's payroll...but I sell their stuff), and I was happy with their 99.99 "Simply Everything" plan, so I signed up.

Cut to a month later; I paid my two bills in time, in full, and added extra to my payments to keep a negative balance. You never know when you'll need to miss a month for unexpected expenses, and in this day and age, better safe than sorry. To this date, I had a -$50 balance...at least, I was under the impression I was.

On my way to work this morning, my phone was shut off for "exceeding my account spending limit." Hmmm...I'm being cut off because I pay ahead?!?! Ok, ok, in their defense, maybe it was a malfunction...

Nope. I called customer service and the CSR explained "well, you did have 3000 texts last month." I explained I had the unlimited package, to which he said "ummm...well no you don't...wait, you do...let me get my supervisor..." Fortunately, the CSR gave me the benefit of the doubt and reactivated my phone, but even then explained that "it will probably shut back off in a couple of days." I actually give kudos to the CSR...he was professional and helpful...for once.

I bring up two points in my tip: Sprint CSRs are actually pretty decent (at least THAT one), but I still didn't know paying ahead gets your service cut off.

Don't run a negative balance; you essentially give companies an interest-free loan at your expense. Leave the money where it belongs: in your account, earning interest.

If Sprint keeps disconnecting your service after your balance is restored, call our super-special executive customer service hotline set up just for readers, at: (703) 433-4401.

(Photo: Getty)

Jenn's checking account with Bank of America recently had a policy change designed to increase overdraft fees, and it worked: sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning she was hit with 6 NSF charges going back the previous 48 hours, because she was about 15 minutes late transferring funds into her account the day before. Technically she had broken the new policy, but Jenn hadn't realized or remembered that there was a policy change and she was taken by surprise. She decided to try to reason with BoA's corporate office about the fees, and explain why she thought they were unfair.

Today, she let us know that her letter worked: "Just got off the phone with BoA Corporate in Boston. They're refunding everything! It pays to write."

We think it's worth looking at her letter as an example of how to present your side of an issue to a large company. Jenn is polite, and her letter is professional and well-written. She makes a point of explaining why she chose to become a BoA customer in the first place, and how she's been an advocate for them in the past—and then points out that this policy change has the effect of ruining her goodwill toward the company by making them "just like every other bank. It's the reason I left Chase."

Of course, Bank of America isn't rescinding the new policy, so it's not like Jenn's letter changed the world or anything. But it does show that it occasionally pays to write a solid letter to the corporate office if you can't resolve your issue at a branch.

May 7, 2008 
Dear Mr. Lewis, 

I am writing you to lodge a formal complaint about 6 overdraft fees that were recently charged to my account. 

I am a dedicated online banker.  I love Bank of America’s to-the-minute online status updates.  It is just one of the many reasons I switched to BoA from Chase two years ago.  I am also an artist, who though salaried, lives to the penny every month to make ends meet.  I check my bank account online every single day.  Sometimes three or four times a day. 

Since joining BoA I have operated under the “as long as there is a positive amount in the account at the end of the day, you won’t get charged an overdraft fee” rule.  Up until last week, that was true.  I frequently buy a sandwich for lunch at noon if I know I’ll be able to deposit $20 by 5pm.  So I was completely shocked to see two overdraft charges show up on a Saturday morning when on Friday night my account was in the black.  What’s worse is that the two fees were charged for transactions made on Thursday and so were backdated, thus also overdrafting every transaction I made on Friday accumulating another four $35 fees! 

Yesterday I went into the Lincoln & Ashland branch in Chicago, IL to dispute the fact that I was charged overdraft fees on a positive account.  My account details were printed and scoured by 3 different CSRs.  No one could understand the charges.  But no one could do anything about them.  They then made a call to Account Services and discovered that apparently the fees were legitimate because of a new rule just instated last month that removes available funds from the account the minute the card is swiped.  So because I had bought some lunch just before I transferred money into my account to cover it I was penalized $210 for what amounted to a 15 minute technicality.  The CSRs sent me away and told me to plead my case to the customer service number.  At the 800-number I was eventually able to talk to “a manager” Jessica, who read me the verbiage that had appeared on customer statements about this change.  So, indeed, the charges are apparently my fault.  Thankfully, Jessica gave me a courtesy refund for 3 of them, which helps a little. 

My complaint is about this new policy.  It makes you just like every other bank.  It is the reason I left Chase.  I thought BoA was different!  And I have recommended BoA to MANY of my artist friends because of that flexibility and that, until now, I have had nothing but wonderful experiences with your employees and with my account management. 

Unfortunately, the remaining $105 that is now tied up in fees will ensure that my rent check this month bounces which means I will be charged more fees in addition to NSF fees from my rental company, and it is all I had budgeted for food for the first two weeks of this month.  The good news is I just got a promotion at work which will, in another month, enable me to pick up and repay this set-back, sign up for automatic deposits, get money into my Savings account that might actually stay there and start to invest in some sort of stability for my future. 

I’m just going to have to think long and hard about whether I want to continue doing all of those things with your bank. 

Thank you for your time. 

Jennifer

(Photo: The Consumerist)

She writes:

I handle the credit card accounts for my company. We had an inactive American Express Delta Sky Miles card that hadn't been used in several years. (3 to be exact) I called AMEX and closed the account informing the CSR that our company had another AMEX account and that was our primary. I was assured the account was closed and moved on.

Come March, our production manager made a small purchase from a company whom we use infrequently and may have had this old account number in their database (a disturbing thought). Now our production manager does not have the old card in his possession, nor does he have the old account number anywhere. One individual, our CEO, had exclusively used this particular AMEX.

I immediately called the vendor and American Express wanting to know how a transaction could clear on a closed account. The American Express CSR informed me that the account was indeed closed, but it was not uncommon for transactions to go through. I was told that recurring transactions will go through. I told the CSR the story that this was a company we infrequently purchase from, and that this card had not been used in years.

The just from AMEX – Since this was a phone order and the physical card was not used to make this purchase the transaction would have been approved. Apparently the vendor also used a dummy expiration date as the old card expired in 2007. Since the vendor keyed in the account number the transaction was permitted to go through. I told American Express that this was an appalling practice – a closed account – especially one closed 6 months ago – was a closed account and any transaction put to that number should have been declined. The CSR kept insisting that it was my responsibility to make sure all vendors eliminated the old information. This is absurd. Oh, and the CSR told me that this happens all of the time. Many of the credit card transactions machine do not require the security code to process a keyed transaction – just a number and date.

I have sent emails to whatever executives I could find at American Express, and I wanted to alert your site to this wonderful practice. I mean I had heard about ISP's and television services not actually canceling your account, but a credit card company? Seems like bad business practice if you ask me.

American Express isn't alone in keeping zombie accounts on life support. Bank of America's never-die accounts are also known for their miraculous rejuvenations, complete with unexpected service fees. The tactic lets creditors cling to customers, while appearing to oblige their reasonable requests to close their accounts. It's a disgusting practice that should be outlawed.

(Photo: danesparza)

John doesn't know how the account was opened without his permission, but the former bank manager did have the relevant information needed to open an account. John writes:

We are a startup company that is currently out doing a Series B raise in order to commercialize a product we have in-licensed. The bank manager from our current bank left to join Wachovia. We were always happy with his service and we were not surprised when he contacted us and tried to get us to switch our banking to Wachovia. We indicated that the current timing was not good due to our financing. What we did not know was that he took upon himself to open an account for the company "in order to ensure certain money rates". Boy were we surprised when we got a $12 fee for being below the minimum balance requirements. We joked that as a startup it was nice to know that our "future bank" would be more than happy to take our last $12 as a fee. We contacted our banker friend and he said he would close the account. We are now up to $24.05 in fees and a collection agency has called. Needless to say Wachovia will not be getting our business.

(Photo: epicharmus)

One reader, Meiran, put it this way: "I'm rather impressed by their reaction, it seems like most modern companies would attempt to push this under the rug and pretend it didn't happen, leaving customers to wonder what those strange charges on their statements are."

According to Wikipedia, the company is mostly owned by McDonald's and Coinstar, so it's not like this is an example of a start-up that's never encountered the heavy hand of corporate influence. This means Redbox's board of directors intentionally chose to be proactive on the matter. They seem to have figured out something that lots of other companies still struggle with, which is that if you empower your customers to help protect themselves, they'll help protect you, too. We wouldn't be surprised if the next time a skimmer is detected, the alert comes from a customer who remembers Redbox's email.

"Redbox Security Alert - Credit Card Skimmer Attempt" [redbox](Thanks to everyone who sent this in!)

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We join Kevin as he calls National City to see if they can help him access his account:

So I dial the number provided and find that it dumps me into the standard no apparent way out IVR phone system and I find that no option on the main menu pertains to getting help with the web site. Hmmm. What to do, what to do. So I proceed to bang on the 0 till the phone rings again. Now I am dropped into the queue waiting for a live body. A lovely lady with a very thick accent who we shall call Maria comes on the line and offers her assistance. "How may I help you?" She asks. I proceed to explain my predicament and she quickly says "no problem, let me pull that up and see what is the matter."

After some furious tapping on her end she comes back with "oh I am sorry sir you don't seem to be registered on our web site." To which I quickly respond "thats funny then how was I able to access the site in the past without an account?" A perplexed Maria comes back with "oh well we installed a new program back in October and if you haven't used the system since then you will need to register." I reminded Maria that I had already tried that and that the system was saying that there is already an account set up, I am just the dork who cant remember one of his 63 user id's on a site that is at the bottom on my regular use list. An even more perplexed Maria comes back with "have you tried to register again?" Of course I reminded Maria again of why I was calling. Then the hammer is dropped. Maria proceeds to tell me "I am sorry sir there is nothing else I can do for you then since you don't have an account on the system."

At this point my jovial mood was beginning to sour and in an effort to not resort to verbal abuse I asked "is there another group that I can be transferred to that can help me resolve this problem?" Maria regretfully explains in no uncertain terms NO. My only option is to have Maria send an email to some mythological group that might be able to sprinkle some pixie dust and banish the ghosts in the database that are holding my records hostage. I ask for the email address so that I may contact them directly and Maria informs me that "it is an internal address and cannot be given out. " So needless to say I do not have the information I am looking for but I am now more concerned about the validity of the records they have about my mortgage. Does it make you nervous that a company like National City Mortgage who are in the business of maintaining millions of records of billions of dollars of mortgage payments. balances and such cant get a simple join between my account and my login that their interface can find but their backend side cant? Am I just stuck in cyber limbo?

So what is really burning me at the moment is that I have no recourse. There apparently isn't anyone I can talk to to help resolve this and am now at the mercy of some group of guys probably a lot like me that have a lot of other stuff to deal with then to research something that they will get and attribute to a problem on my end and I will fall to the bottom of the pile because I cant have the conversation with them directly.

National City Mortgage has ghosts in their database. [Gray Drake]

It's amazing, really, that someone didn't think to aggregate "public personal" data like this before. Flock sort of does it, but it's an entire web browser, and it only uses your own accounts' buddy lists in a very unsneaky way.
 
If you're like Matthew and want zero visibility on your accounts, you're going to have to do some low-tech account manipulation, like using custom addresses for each service so that no two accounts share the same address.
 
Identifight.org
 
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In the past year, my Macy*s store account credit limit has adjusted four times without my knowledge. Each time the credit limit has dropped from $1,500 to $1,200 to $1,000 to $800. Each time the drop occurred I only found out because I was in Macy*s and the cashier rudely told me my card declined. Rather than helping me with the situation they sent me up to their 'courtesy' phones that are linked straight to their credit department. Each time was equally embarrassing and felt like I was being sent to the principal's office for my due punishment. Each time I called I got the bad news.

So when I called the credit department in store today they told me my limit had be downgraded again and that they'd transfer me to the credit department (I thought I was already speaking to them) to see if I could have an increase. The man rudely advised me no I could not - not like I exactly asked considering I was simply transfered away from the original agent. So that was that, I left the store head hung low without a purchase in hand. I will not buy their merchandise without their coupons because its simply overpriced otherwise and you can only use the coupons with their stupid credit card.

Well, today I was fed up with this ever moving credit line that leads only to in store embarrassment. As I headed to the parking lot my temper boiled. I made a special trip out to the mall and spent a lot of time, that I did not have, finding the items I wanted to purchase. Having been the fourth time this happened to me was enough! As soon as I got in the car I called the credit department on my own cell phone and went into a tirade. I lit into them for not advising me of my credit limit decrease, especially considering just three days before I received a brand new Macy*s platinum card in the mail, where they had the perfect opportunity to let me know it was now only $800. The women on the other end became insta-defensive of Macy*s inane and unpublished procedures on not letting their customers know their credit limit. I said that I was sick of being embarrassed by rude customer services associates and like a well trained robot she read from her 'Customer Service 101" script of platitudes and fake apologies. I was then extremely angry and screamed you can be as "nice" as you think you are being, but shove it - cancel my account! I won't be embarrassed in your store again!" She then replied off of her script again "If I issue you a 15% off shopping pass, is their anyway I can prevent you from closing your account today?" I said "No! I already have about 20 stupid coupons at home that all have about a 112 exclusions anyway - plus my card doesn't work!" She then retorted angrily "Well the account is closed!" I then hung up.

They do not publish your credit limit on there website where you can check your account activity, nor when they issue you a new card. I know this for a fact because in the past year I got upgraded from their basic card to a gold card and then last week to a platinum card. So as I ascended their credit ladder of customer proof of purchase I was downgraded in credit limit (each upgrade corresponds with a dollar amount spent during the past year). I do not receive paper statements so I have no idea if they publish the credit limit there; I rely on my online statements as I do not like crap clogging up my mailbox.

Macy*s and I are friends off! I spent ungodly amounts of money at that store in my life especially considering what I earn per year as a student! Nothing makes me instantly pissed like a customer service person reading a script like a robot. They have no compassion for people and their problems. I have worked countless jobs in customer service from being a bagger at a grocer to one of those people on the other end of the phone in a call in center and it takes not an ounce of effort to show a person compassion for the misgivings of the company - might I add without giving the company an admitted black eye either. From the original customer associate in the store that sent me away to the courtesy phones to the three other people I spoke along the rocky road to account closure they could have easily assuaged the situation. Anything from a mere "I'm sorry about that, I'll certainly let my supervisor know of your concerns regarding our policy on advising customers of their credit limits - can I have you contact information so we can get back to you?" Or, "You had a rude associate in the store? Do you know their name so we can address this so you or any other customer never gets embarrassed again!"

Oh well, just another bad customer service experience and another store that will lose my business. I didn't really need the extra debt anyway!

(Photo: Getty)

My wife and I have our own separate bank accounts and a center, shared account, all with PNC. We can move money from each account to the other freely. Our employer is small enough that direct deposit is not offered, so we deposit our paychecks at our local branch every other Saturday. As we keep a large(ish) balance in the center account, we are able to deposit both of our checks as cash (basically, cash them then immediately deposit them, only the bank does it all). The funds are available immediately, and the transaction is recorded first thing Monday morning.

When we deposited our checks this Saturday, the teller was new and slow. He processed my wife's deposit and then looked to have processed mine. He handed me a receipt that I have since lost that showed that my check had been processed. When I looked on Monday, my check had not shown up. When I looked again this morning, my check still had not shown. My wife's showed normally.

I contacted the branch this afternoon, and the woman who answered was polite but insistent that she could do nothing without the receipt. I came home and searched all of hell and half of Georgia for the receipt, but to no avail. We called corporate customer service, which has apparently been outsourced, and the person on the phone was again insistent that we have the receipt. They have put through a request to find the physical check and find out what happened to it.

Here is my fear: if they find the check and it shows that it was processed as cash, what is stopping them from just saying they handed me the cash? I'm not a banker so I don't know the process. Does my deposit slip stay with the check? In a situation such as mine, where I've endorsed the check with a signature so it may be deposited as cash, what are the safeguards in place to keep a teller from faking the deposit and receipt, pocketing the cash and concealing/destroying the deposit slip?

I realize I should have held on to the receipt, but can something like this really be held up by lack of a scrip of paper?

If the check has been cashed, you should treat the issue as a potential crime and report it as such immediately to the bank manager, and then to the executive level; there should be a video record of your transaction to review whether or not you were handed cash. If you need to reach high-level members of PNC, try searching EDGAR. We had to drill down several layers to reach this sample phone number, and we can't confirm that this person is even affiliated with your bank, but it's an example of the kind of data you can find if you dig deeply enough.

Readers, any other ideas? It seems a little early right now to call your lawyer, but if your employer confirms the check was processed, you might want to contact one for professional advice.