Consumerist
don't try this at home
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savings accounts
Don't Let Maintenance Fees Ruin Your Automatic Savings Program
If you participate in an automatic savings program like Bank of America's Keep the Change service, where debit card purchases are rounded up and the difference is deposited into your savings account, keep an eye on maintenance fees. James says he was hit with a $5 charge last month because he hadn't met the minimum monthly deposit requirement of $25: "It turns out that I wasn't even accruing $5 worth of change per month, so I was losing more money due to the maintenance fee than I was saving via Keep the Change!" More » -
travel
Bank of America Cancels Solo India Traveler's Debit Card, Shrugs
Does "Bank of America" actually mean "Bank of America Only"? After pulling another reader's debit card access back in August even though she had explicitly notified the überbank about her travels, BoA has apparently done it again. Reader Bristol tells us that she has been penniless in India for the last week after the bank's mysterious computers canceled her debit card. More » -
testing the water
Is Bank Of America Of Trying To Skirt The CARD Act With New Annual Fees?
In a series of recent posts, WalletBlog has accused Bank of America of breaking the spirit of its "no new fees" promise and of potentially breaking the law next year, after it announced it will introduce annual fees on some existing credit card accounts in 2010. More » -
bank of america
BoA EECB Gets $525 In Overdrafts Refunded
Bank of America charged Kelsey 15 overdraft fees totaling $525. Which was weird, because Kelsey had overdraft protection on the account. A BoA customer service rep would to refund $140 as a "courtesy" but that's not very courteous when you're still out $385. That's when Kelsey decided to whip out the ol' EECB and kick some ass: More » -
overdraft fees
Bank Of America Uses Temporary Hold To Trigger Overdraft Fee?
Bank of America got so fee crazy last week that it applied a $10 overdraft fee to Christopher's account even though it wasn't overdrafted. I went back and forth with Christopher to try to figure out what BoA could have done to trigger this, but as you can see from the screen cap below, he only had two debits on the day of the event. More » -
populist rage
Government Orders Pay Cuts For Bailed-Out Firms
The huge salaries and bonuses paid to executives of banks and other firms that received government bailout funds have been the subject of a lot of taxpayer rage. The Obama administration listened, and will order pay cuts. More » -
annual fees
Bank Of America Will Introduce Annual Fees Next Year On Some Cards
Bank of America has announced that it plans on "testing" annual fees on some of its reward cards starting next year. The odds are good you won't see this—a BoA spokeswoman says it will only be tested on 1 percent of accounts globally—but who knows? Maybe the BoA Fairy will smack you down. More » -
bank of america
Salary Czar To Ex-BoA CEO: No Pay For You!
Departing Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis will get no 2009 pay or bonus. But won't this serve as a disincentive to future executives who are thinking about totally cocking up their company and bringing down the US economy? [WSJ] (Thanks to Snarkysnake!) -
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schadenfreude
Bank Of America Posts $1 Billion Loss In Third Quarter
Do you hate Bank of America? Well take today's earnings report and wallow around in it like Ann-Margret in beans, becuse the bank has posted a loss of $1 billion before dividends to preferred shareholders—"When those dividend payments are included, the loss was $2.24 billion," reports the New York Times. More » -
when hell freezes over
Union: Don't Let BofA CEO Keep Ginormous Pension
Outgoing Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis looked like he had a pretty sweet deal, with the $53 million pension he's due to get when he walks. Hold on, says one union, in a letter to White House "pay czar" Kenneth Feinberg: "The American people are counting on you to reform the reckless culture of Wall Street that allows bank executives to drive our economy into the ground and walk away with millions." More » -
fees
Consumerist: Better Than Your Dad (At Fighting Bank Of America)
Sometimes, your dad's advice doesn't apply anymore. Companies have realized that giving a damn is too expensive. That's when it's time to kick ass, Consumerist style. Craig writes: More » -
lack of interest
BofA Pledges To Stop Raising Credit Card Interest Rates
The AP reports Bank of America has promised to stop jacking up interest rates on credit cards with fixed interest rates. But that doesn't mean your rate won't jump. More » -
rich dudes
Soon-To-Be-Ex Bank Of America CEO Has $53 Million Pension
Ken Lewis is probably a little bummed out that he will no longer be the CEO of Bank of America — but how sad can he be with a $53 million pension? More » -
ken lewis
BoA CEO Resigns
Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis resigned yesterday after becoming a lightning rod for criticism after his controversial takeover of Merril Lynch. Even though BoA has appeared in our Worst Company in America contests each year, it's kind of sad because his office had a good record of solving our reader's problems they sent in to the executive office. Too bad that ethos couldn't have flowed downhill more.
Lewis Resigns After Betting Bank of America on America When America Broke
RELATED: Frontline Examines The Bank Of America/ Merrill Lynch Merger (Photo: CBS) -
hello, I'm crazy
Man Sues Bank Of America For $1.78 Trillion Billion Dollars
Dalton Chiscolm has sued Bank of America and its board, and wants "1,784 billion, trillion dollars" in return for being subjected to what the judge describes as "inconsistent information from a 'Spanish womn' [sic]" as well as allegedly misrouted checks. In addition, Chiscolm wants another $200,164,000 in damages. We're not sure why that amount is separate, but who knows how a mind like Chiscolm's works? More » -
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overdraft fees
BofA, Chase To Limit Overdraft Fees
Sometimes lawmakers can cause reform just by threatening legislation. That seems to be the case with Sen. Chris Dodd making Bank of America and Chase flinch by proposing legislation that would force banks to get customers' permission to charge them overdraft fees. More » -
fee parties
Should Banks Be Forced To Ask Permission Before Overdrafting Your Account?
Sen. Chris Dodd plans to introduce legislation that would require banks to get permission before allowing fee-generating overdrafts. Banks are on track to earn $38.5 billion in overdraft fees this year and, according to a study by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, most banks offer the "service" automatically. Common "features" of the programs include not notifying customers when an overdraft is about to occur, not offering them a chance to cancel the transaction, and processing the transactions in ways designed to increase the number of fees. More »
