I sent this message to my bank:
Dear Bank of America,
I have been your customer for a couple of years now. I know I have provided you with little profit, but I am a customer in good standing nevertheless.
Your decision to impose a $5 monthly fee for the use of my debit card is not acceptable. The fees you were charging merchants for the use of debit cards were also not acceptable. When the Congress curtailed them, you decided to make your customers pay the difference. Since it looks like the Congress won’t be able to act in a similar fashion this time, I am taking it upon myself to express my displeasure.
The CEO spoke about Bank of America’s right to make a profit. That’s true, BofA has the right. But the bank already makes a profit, in part because it saves a considerable amount of money when BofA customers use their debit cards instead of personal checks. Exactly how much these savings amount to, the bank’s spokespeople will not disclose. I imagine that if the information were disclosed, it would undercut the stated rationale behind this $5 fee.
Too well aware am I that the only thing I possess which matters to you is my money, so consider this: I have already opened a checking account with another financial institution. I will use their debit card instead of yours. You will not collect the $5 fee from me.
I have recently begun to save money in my BofA savings account. I still have money in it. If Bank of America reverses its decision to impose the $5 monthly debit card fee, and continues to provide free checking and savings accounts to low-balance customers like me, I might keep my money there. If not, I will definitely find a better place for it. After all, it is my money. The bank ought to be paying me for the privilege of holding it, yet any account or card fee instantly erases what meager yield of interest I might accrue.
I am sorry to be political, but the BofA leadership is utterly and totally oblivious to the economic realities that the ordinary people of our country are facing. This has been a very good ten years for bank executives and top shareholders...but not so much for the rest of us. I don’t appreciate being fleeced even when the times are good. When they are bad, the greed is inexcusable. I only hope enough customers complain that it makes a difference.
Sincerely,
[Lord J Esq.]
