More young Americans – even those earning between $50,000 and $75,000 – are using payday lenders, prepaid debit cards and other questionable financial services. But there are better alternatives to those “alternatives.”
ATMs are getting a new face — literally, a human face. Some bank customers are already encountering what might be called ATM cyborgs, in which a machine includes a screen showing a bank teller’s head. The teller, in a remote location connected via webcam, is able to perform tasks that traditionally have been handled only by bank employees in person, such as check cashing.
These 10 people were more tenacious than the average wronged customer. When efforts to rectify their problems via customer-service channels failed, they took their grievances to small-claims court. It’s a drastic step, for sure, but it paid off. Not only did they get reimbursed for their trouble, they also got the rare satisfaction of winning a fight against a much bigger opponent.
Bank of America announced it has begun mailing letters to the first wave of up to 200,000 homeowners who are eligible for mortgage principal reductions, part of a settlement the bank worked out with the federal government and 49 state attorneys general. In a statement, the bank says homeowners who qualify will see an average [...]
Updated: 6:15 p.m., March 1 Bank fees are in the spotlight again. The Wall Street Journal reported that Bank of America is planning to roll out new checking-account fees, and the news stirred up negative sentiment in the social mediaverse almost immediately, with consumers reacting angrily to the idea. Chase, meanwhile, wants to charge customers even [...]
It took over a year for lawmakers and state AGs to agree to the terms of the $26 billion foreclosure settlement announced this week, and it could take up to another three years for eligible homeowners to see a share of that money. But the deal does mean that, for the first time, many distressed [...]
If you think your bank’s CEO lies awake at night thinking of ways to take away your customer perks, here’s a surprise: debit rewards are coming back. Sort of. Bank of America is testing a pilot of a new merchant-funded reward program called BankAmeriDeals, in which rewards come in the form of special Groupon-like discounts [...]
A lot of people got really bent out of shape when Bank of America announced last fall that it would start charging a $5 monthly debit card fee. Online petitions were launched as the blogosphere and social media sites like Twitter overflowed with messages denouncing banks in general and Bank of America in particular.
Several big banks have reported their earnings over the past week, and the results aren’t pretty: JP Morgan Chase & Co. had a 23% drop in profits, Citigroup’s fell 11% and regional bank PNC Financial Services Group suffered a 40% drop. While this kind of news primarily gives heartburn to investors and bank executives, consumers also [...]
Updated: 6:45 p.m., Dec. 30. Why should banks have all the fun? We can only imagine that’s what Verizon Wireless executives asked themselves before deciding to hit customers with a $2 fee — for paying their bill via a one-time payment on the carrier’s website. Angry customers have taken to the Internet to flood social [...]
A highly volatile stock market may have given you whiplash in 2011. But as the year draws to a close, the final numbers don’t look so dramatic: the S&P 500 is poised to end the year almost exactly where it began, and about as many Fortune 500 companies’ shares rose as fell.
