Thursday, August 12, 2010

Chase Bank & Its Idiotic Incompetent Texas Phone Bankers

It was 2 weeks ago today that I called Chase Bank because they'd sent a Visa card to my old address. I was told I'd get the new card at my new address in 2 business days.

Ten business days later I had not received the new card, so I called again.

Let me back up to say, prior to calling Chase 2 weeks ago, I'd tried to get the new card sent to my new address by using the Chase secure online message center. What I got from that was confused gibberish.

When I called 2 weeks ago and was told I'd get the card in 2 business days I could barely understand the person I was talking to.

Today's Chase customer service person was equally difficult to understand.

To get to the live person you enter your debit card's account number and your PIN. When I got the live person, I explained the problem. Of course she was terribly sorry and apologized profusely. And then told me she could not send out a replacement card because I was requesting it within 30 days of changing my address.

I then said that just 2 weeks ago this was not a problem and I was told a new card would be sent in 2 business days. She then got confused and seemed to be thinking I was requesting a replacement for a stolen card. I explained I did not ask for this new card, that it was Chase's doing, sending a Visa card to replace the MasterCard.

She then tells me she'll transfer me to a supervisor who may be able to authorize the sending of a new card.

I was now on minute 16, five minutes later, spent listening to bad music, the supervisor came on the line. Asked me my name. And my address. Questions already asked and answered.

I re-explained the problem. The supervisor then said she'd check the UPS shipping record. She then told me the card had been sent, via UPS, August 2. And was returned August 6 after 2 delivery attempts. Then she said someone named Trung had signed for it.

Huh? You just said it'd been returned. That seemed to confuse the supervisor.

Then she told me the card had been shipped to an address in Coppell. But I am in Fort Worth, I said. She told me she could give me the tracking info so I could see for myself the journey the card had taken. I asked, why would I want to see the tracking info for the card that was sent to the wrong address?

Then she said she'd cancel the card that went to Coppell because it had not been activated.

Then she told me she could not authorize a replacement card over the phone, that I would need to visit a Chase branch. But, 2 weeks ago this was not a problem. I was then told the phone banker had made a mistake and the card had been pulled after Chase caught the mistake.

Huh, again? You just told me the card had been sent to a wrong address and returned. Now you're telling me Chase had pulled the card. And that you are canceling the, uh, pulled card.

Anyway, it was all very aggravating. I asked the supervisor where she was located. Arlington was the reply. Two weeks ago it was Irving. Does Chase have phone answerers spread all over the D/FW Metroplex? At least the supervisor spoke somewhat understandable English.

I think Washington Mutual must have had its phone bankers based in Seattle. I recollect they always spoke very good English and were able to understand English and seemed to follow logical trains of thought.

I don't understand why Chase Bank has secure online banking and a phone bank system that has you verify who you are with your account info and PIN, only to tell you that this is not secure enough and this important business must be conducted in person.

The new Visa card is not my doing, it is Chase that decided to replace MasterCard with Visa, not I. It is Chase who has not been able to deliver the new card to the new address, not I.

If it weren't for the fact that the Chase account were tied to my Google account and it being a big pain to change the Google bank account, I would dump Chase.

I miss Washington Mutual. Such a well run bank til its meltdown. While a bank as badly run as Chase survives.

Well, Chase bank has now wasted at least 2 hours of my time. With me unable to assess them some sort of fee. My only recourse is to blog about the bad bank's bad operating procedures.

5 comments:

Bill Miller said...

We've had similar travails with Chase. I am not sure the people we spoke with were in Texas, though. Or the US, for that matter.

Durango said...

The first Chase phone banker I spoke to was so hard to understand, I was sure she was in India. I was very surprised when she said she was in Irving. Maybe they are told to tell the caller they are in a town near where the caller is located. Why would Chase have people answering the phone who can't speak well?

I sure it's gonna be more idiocy when I visit a branch to request a new card be sent that I never asked for in the first place.

Patti D. said...

Am I understanding this right? Chase sent a card to a wrong address. You then went to the bother of letting them know this and get told a new card will be sent in 2 days. You get no card, you go to the bother again of calling and now get told Chase can't mail you a card that you did not ask for and that you have to now go to the time and bother of going to a bank in person?

Thanks for the Chase bank warning.

Durango said...

You got it, Patti D., for supposed security reasons I have to show up in person with ID. When you call you use info only you know so they can identify you, but that's not good enough with Chase. The first time I blogged about this I mentioned that I was told via their secure online message center that the transaction I was requesting could not be transacting via email! I explained to the Chase online banker that their online secure message center was not email.

Pure nincompooping idiocy.

some redhead said...

I don't work for Chase, but perhaps they, like the company that I do work for, allow their reps to work from home? This could explain why one said Irving and another Arlington.

Or maybe they're just lying.