I opened my first checking account, by my parents guidance, before I was 18 years old. When it was time for me to get my first credit card, I went to US Bank. As a result, I’ve had both a checking account and credit card with them for quite some time. For my checking account that is something around 10 years of being a loyal customer. My credit card is slightly less, at around 7 years, but I’ve never missed a payment. Hell, they’ve raised my credit limit to levels affectionately titled “ludicrous” (Editor’s note: Seriously.). All this and yet still I’ve closed out my accounts. Why? Because they want to charge me $6.95 a month just for the privilege of being a customer (Editor’s notes: Specifically: a checking account)? Yeah, I don’t think so.
I understand that the big financial companies want/need to screw their customers. Billions of dollars are lost every day for
stupid shit that was detected, but ignored. They need to make that money up somehow, but it shouldn’t be by abusing long time customers who’ve changed nothing on their accounts.
Take a look at cell phones. You can have the service contract for 5+ years. They’ll never change the amount they charge for the features you get. The banks on the other hand will just roll you over, shake, and see how much money falls out of your pockets. They’ll claim that they’ve “upgraded” your account or offer you new service, but it’s a lie. I’m now paying $6.95 a month for a service I used to pay $0 a month for — for TEN YEARS.
Now you’re probably saying to yourself “Jon is just being a bitch, he spends more money a month on candy than he will on that US Bank account” and you’d be partially correct. I will spend more money a month on a lot of things than I will on US Bank, but that isn’t the point. The point is that US Bank is charging me for nothing. When I buy candy, I get to enjoy said candy.
Before you say “The bank needs to make money too”, they do, hand over fist. First, they sell my information to third parties. Then, they offer me “special deals” with other third parties. Lastly, they take that money that I keep in the bank and they loan it out to other customers who pay them money. They make money on my money.
So, US Bank, after 10 years of being a loyal customer and actually recommending you to my friends… you can go take a hike. I’ve canceled my account and I will take my business elsewhere. I don’t need your free checking, there many banks still offering free checking elsewhere. I don’t need your credit card, I have several more. Most importantly, I refuse to pay you $6.95 for a “Monthly Maintenance Fee” that provides me diddly squat.