Return to the Household Finances Forum
| Post a Follow-Up
Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
Posted by lisonwal (My Page) on Thu, Jul 3, 08 at 20:23
| I have a credit card owned since 2001 and have been making payments every month although at times, I would be 5-14 days late. This card is currently open and has a balance of about $3000 and my APR increased 7 months ago from 16% to 29%.
Long story short: The company that I initially got the card from was recently purchased by Bank of America. Since this transfer, BOA has claimed that I did not send four months of payments. What makes it weird is that I pay them through my BANK OF AMERICA checking account bill pay feature. Same company! I had BOA bill pay department contact and fax my credit card company proof of payment on three occasions within 7 months but every time it seems that I'm getting a step closer to resolving the issue, it seems that I'm back to square one, with the credit card company insisting that I did not make the payment. This has been going on for 7 months now and the problem still isn't resolved.
What makes this whole situation worse is that my credit is not very good. I am able to pay my bills comfortably but because of procrastination and other bad personal habits, I have about four or five negative marks on my credit report. Out of those five, there are two collections for amounts between 100 and 300 dollars.
Another recent downfall: I received a letter from a credit line loan company that I have had for about 6 years but haven’t used in 4 years. They informed me that they have closed my account due to my credit report and my late payment s with that credit card. It just so happens that this other credit line account is ALSO owned by Bank of America. So there goes another bad mark on my credit report.
I've summed up the issue as best as I could in hopes for advice on how to handle the issue. I've tried over the past seven months to contact BOA but to no avail. I call them all the time in hopes to rectify the situation. I am constantly being told that I did not pay my bill or there is no record of the conversations that I have had with the previous reps! So no matter how you look at it, I'm always starting from square one.
|
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Do you have no record at all of the payments? Even online, or something? Because if you do have something, you need to copy it and send it in to them (find out first who's the big cheese in the dept. and forward it to them with a short, to the point explanation of what happened. Waiting for them to 'find' your money may not happen, but if you can prove payment (even a withdrawal on your acct. on the right day for the right amt. could help) you'll have a much better chance of getting it cleared up. But... what ARE the chances, given your self admitted somewhat disorganized nature, that you only THINK you must have paid, but maybe didn't? |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Where are your account statements? |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| I have all of my statements and can also easily view them online with BOA's online bill pay service. I had BOA online bill pay dept. on a three-way phone conversation with the credit card company who proved that payment was made indeed. This happened on three separate occasions. They even faxed over the proof and on one of these occasions a rep from the credit card company called me to say they received the documentation. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Do yourself a favor and try going into a branch...hopefully they have an internal number they can use...although B of A is (in)famous for not even being able to take deposits for accounts opened out of state. If they can't get it fixed initially, see if you can get a number for their executive office, or if one of the folks at the branch can get it escalated to that level (might be an internal only number) As a former banker at a large bank (now at a credit union...thank whatever deity you believe in), I took resolving stuff like that as a matter of personal pride. "told my customer to screw off, did they? I'll show those dummies..." You need to find a banker who gives enough of a cr@p to get this fixed for you. If all else fails, contest it with the bureaus, although that will do nothing to fix your rates and late charges. Jim |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| I can't help you figure out how to fix the current issue, but - from one procrastinator to another - for heaven's sake *USE* the automatic payment feature offered online for basically all credit cards. Set them all up to pay at least the minimum balance monthly. It's ridiculous to ever have a late payment again. Do this for your mortgage, utilities, etc., too. Yes, I know that many people have an issue with this for a number of valid reasons, but for a procrastinator, auto-pay is an essential tool. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Stop calling and start writing. You do not seem to be keeping very good records of the dates/details/rep names of the phone conversations you have been having - forget the faxes, which are easily lost or misplaced. Find out who to write the letter to - a VP or regional VP at the very least - get your supporting documentation together, write a concise and clear summary of your problem, and send it off. Keep copies, and follow up within three weeks if you don't hear back. Disputes over credit handled by phone are worthless. Written documentation is worth a thousand words. Don't be sarcastic or profane, just be business-like. And I agree - you need to get your affairs in order. This sloppiness is costing you not only money, but a great deal of stress. Life is too short to spend time tripping yourself up deliberately. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
Try contacting the Bank of America corporate office thru the president's office and they will help you.
Bank of America
100 North Tryon Street
Mail code NC1-007-18-01
Charlotte, NC 28255 Toll free 1800-432-1000 |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| I second jcom51's remarks: When you resolve credit-card issues by phone, the resolution isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Seriously: Document your position in writing, and then whenever they tell you something that disagrees with a previous resolution, send it right back to them with a comment such as "Your claim contradicts the letter you sent me on ; I have enclosed a copy for your reference." |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Thank you so much for your valuable advice! I've always been able to solve problems over the phone. Never thought it would come to this but, hey, there's a first time for everything. I've also been trying to get the corporate office's address/number for a while. When I ask the reps their response is "I don't have that information." |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| I wanted to add: I just called the office to get the address for the Senior Credit Analyst from the Retention department who, on 6/25, told me the he would be working on resolving the issue. I decided that I would send all documentation to his office as well as the corporate office. The representative specifically stated that all communication must be done over the phone. She stated that I can fax the document or send a one-time scanned email but, because it is high risk information, they cannot communicate by mail or by email, only over the phone. Is this normal??? This is driving me NUTS!!! |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| "I just called the office to get the address for the Senior Credit Analyst from the Retention department who, on 6/25, told me the he would be working on resolving the issue. I decided that I would send all documentation to his office as well as the corporate office. The representative specifically stated that all communication must be done over the phone." "ALL communication must be done over the phone"? Don't let them pull this crap on you. They are giving you the runaround. The following has worked for me in the past when I've had problems with a bank. Years ago I had an credit card/account with Colonial bank. Introductory rate was 8% interest for the life of the loan. Colonial was bought out by Advanta and promptly raised my interest rate to 26%. I contacted the Office of the Comptroller. They asked if I had written proof. I did. A short time later a class action lawsuit was filed against Advanta for this practice. I got a check from the settlement. This is why it always pays to get everything in writing. BOA KNOWS this, which is why they want to 'talk over the phone'. So YOU don't have proof. Start taking in-depth notes of each time you call. Get the name and title of who you speak to, as well as what is discussed and what they promised to do about it (and WHEN). Anything you send should be mailed certified mail. THAT will wake them up. I also would contact someone on the board at BOA's investor relations site. Don't go to the very top, go a rung or two below and/or send it to about 5 different people with a CC of who ELSE got your letter. Tell them you will be contacting the Office of the Comptroller if they can't iron out this little problem. If that fails, contact a consumer reporter at your newspaper.
Who Regulates a Certain Bank or Thrift? The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency examines nationally chartered banks. These are typically the country's largest banks, such as Bank of America and Wells Fargo. Their names are usually followed by "N.A." or "N.T. & S.A." to signify a national charter.
If you have any complaints about your bank, you should always insist on speaking with a high-level manager, not a teller, and in most cases they will solve the problem. But, if you still feel that they are giving you the run-around, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency can help. Formal written complaint with the OCC about a national bank or its operating subsidiary Customer Assistance Group
1301 McKinney Street
Suite 3450
Houston, TX 77010
Contact-(202)-622-2000 Links that might be useful: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
www.occ.treas.gov/Mail1.htm Bank of America-Investor relations
http://newsroom.bankofamerica.com/index.php?s=company_bios |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| I am totally confused as to just how this could ever happen. I thought if one missed a payment, it would be added on to the next statement and the amount due would be a total of Last months minimum amount due,
late charges,
this months minimum amount due ...and that would equal the
new total amount due. I agree...when you talk to someone via phone, get their first and last name, their phone number and extension, their title, and their location (city and state). Get a folder and keep all correspondence all together with who said what, when and where. Best of luck at getting things solved, and I too suggest you trying to get things set up so that at least the minimum amount is automatically withdrawn from your checking account, to assure that it will never be late.
I have my Discover card (that is about the only one I ever use) set up to pay the minimum amount automatically. I then (try to always) pay the remaining balance b4 the due date via their phone pay. As far as I know, Discover is the only card that takes phone payments (via their voice response system) and does not charge any fee to do so. Sue |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
Much of this problem is due to your own disorganization, but you readily admit that, so I'll cut you some slack.
I have always banked at small community banks or credit unions. On the rare occasion when I've had a question or problem, it was always taken care of with ONE phone call.
I believe small banks are more motivated to retain customers, and therefore willing to help them out. When you get this settled, say goodbye to BOA. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Just a note on automatic bill pay. I did this w/ DH's Visa card, because the turnaround was so short that I was getting a lot of late payments. So I set it up to pay $20 every 2 weeks, thus supposedly ensuring that the minimum would always be covered. Except one month they credited only one of those payments to month A, then they credited the next 3 to month B. Thus causing month A to be 'late' and charged $39. (How does that even work w/ 'monthly' billing??) I told him 'take that card out of your wallet and put it away; we'll never use it again unless the house burns down.' (Of course, the card would burn w/ the house, but whatever.) Nowadays, all our cards allow payments to be scheduled, so i just check online every so often and when the cycles closes I schedule the payment for on or slightly before (if it's a Sunday) the due date. Every so often, I panic thinking I've missed a payment, but when I go online I find that the payment just posted or will do so tomorrow. Works great. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
BOA has always been difficult to deal with. When they got bought out, but kept their name, the main offices which had been in San Francisco for years and years and years got transferred to NC. It also is owned by the Rockefellers. Yes you can write to them. No you do not have to do everything by fax or phone.
Having worked for a bank for many years, just some suggestions.
Write to the CEO, list things briefly, send copies of the statements showing when they payments were made, who you talked to, if you have the information, along with any other communication--such as, you were told you could not send letters etc.
Keep it simple, brief and keep copies of everything you send.
Send it certified mail, and require the person to sign for it. Tell them you will be contacting them within 10 days.
DO not threaten, just state facts.
Good luck. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| As suggested by dreamgarden, I contacted the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Like many of you stated, they informed me that the statement made by the rep about communicating by fax or phone was not standard. They provided me with the address for BOA's executive office and a case number for filing a complaing. I contacted BOA immediately after and as soon as I mentioned the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, I got their attention. The rep, who has been dealing with my case since June, gave the address then said, " May I ask why you do not want to communicate over the phone?". I was shocked that he would even ask that question knowing full well the battle that I've been through trying to get this resolved. Anyway, he informed me that he credited me all penalties since this occurred AND my APR has been reduced to it's original amount! |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| Terrific! The biggest waste of time I experience with any large company (when there's an issue to resolve) is talking to front-line 'agents' on the phone. You have to speak to supervisors and/or managers, but if getting nowhere fast, go straight to the top and do it on paper. |
RE: Credit Issue that doesn't seem to get resolved
| | |
| lisonwal-"As suggested by dreamgarden, I contacted the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Anyway, he (the BOA rep) informed me that he credited me all penalties since this occurred AND my APR has been reduced to it's original amount!" EXCELLENT news! Glad you got BOA to play fair. That is a feat in itself. Please make sure you follow up by asking this rep to send you a copy of the new agreement in WRITING! For those who may be interested, the contact info for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency was obtained from the book: "Free legal help-by Matthew Lesko" Copyright 1995. ISBN: #1-878346-35-0 There are lots of other contacts listed in this book that might be useful for banking issues or other consumer complaints. I found the book in the library, but I have seen used copies at Amazon.com that can be purchased for as little as $0.04 + $3.99 S&H.
|
|
|
|
|
