How Is Your Bank Treating You?

I have been hearing some horrendous stories about banks gauging people in the Morningside Heights area -- Columbia and other academic institutions here and an hospital that has become a part of a consortium now doing battle with UnitedHealthCare over rates:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/25/health/policy/25insure.html?th&emc=th

We are happily served by our local branch of Banco Popular where we stayed when it replaced another bank (because we had a conveniently large safety deposit box there). They offered us $5000.00 overdraft protection at no cost (but no longer available) and we need keep only $250.00 in our savings account to avoid check charges.

Other banks in our area are doing such as the following:

1) raising interest rates on credit card balances to 29.99%.

2) charging $100 for an overdraft which previously would have been covered with a transfer from savings (one of those small print letter changes).

3) charging overdraft charges when the account has less than $100.00 remaining (another small print notice).

The banks seem to be rushing to do as much damage as possible before restraints are legislated -- a reason to support Obama's team.

I have directed this comment to my neighborhood, but others should feel free to add their own experiences by posting to the 440 list:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/440neighborhood

I mentioned our local hospital also because we are receiving erroneous bills from hospitals, too. One has to check everything these days. Being retired I fortunately have time to do so, but I worry about those to hard-pressed too do so.
--
"A war is just if there is no alternative, and the resort to arms is legitimate if they represent your last hope." (Livy cited by Machiavelli)
--
Ed Kent [blind copies]