16 ms·

Bank of america did this to me, in the same weekend i was moving out. All my stuff was in the car, it was a friday at 3PM and i was in the gas station. I could

Bank of america did this to me, in the same weekend i was moving out. All my stuff was in the car, it was a friday at 3PM and i was in the gas station. I couldn't fill up my gas. Called and they told me to come to the bank with two forms of ID. When I arrived to the bank the fraud department was operating in NY (3hrs ahead) and they were closing, so they told me to come next tuesday (it was a long weekend). I went homeless for 1 week with no food. It was my last semester in university and couldn't pay for tuition because my bank acc was locked, so the university dropped my classes and i was not able to graduate, as failing to stay enrolled (international student) i had to go back to my country. - 3 days before i received a transfer from my brother (6k usd) to pay for tuiton and new place - no unusual transactions, never reported any fraud before, just was hit with the "per our agreement we can close your account without notification." and they provided me the balance 1 week later.

ArabicBaklava 3y ago
Well, this happened in 2017.. fast forward to this account closure effect on my life: I had to go back to my country, without a degree, was not able to land any job. Unfortunately, good places require degrees. Stayed unemployed, hit with chronic depression as anyone would. Lost 4+ years of professional progress. When covid came, i was able to complete my degree online and graduated in 2021, but because all fresh grad programs require a certain age; i did not qualify. Was able to finally land a good job in 2023. This issue needs a resolution, what happened to me might not happen to everyone, i know my situation is different. but financial institutions should be held responsible for actions like this, imagine someone else who needs to pay for his/her medication...
- WinstonSmith84 3y ago
  Sorry to hear, but the bottom line here is to not trusting a single entity. Not having funds split between traditional banks and crypto (exchange + offline wallets) is just asking for problems.
- neonsunset 3y ago
  I wonder if the bank can be sued for this. That's how random bank managers get found in a river, due to policies like these impacting the innocent.
  - mcny 3y ago
    I got a random call from Wells Fargo fraud department and I refused to give them my information. Escalated and the supervisor also pretended to not understand my concern. In fact, they placed a stupid hold. I went to a bank and the bank manager has to call them back and basically beg these people to remove my holds. These people in the fraud department don't even deserve to get found in a river.
    - CaptainZapp 3y ago
      Why didn't you politely suggest to call Wells Fargo' central phone number and have the switch board transfer you to him? Seems pretty much a no brainer to me.
      - bombcar 3y ago
        It should be standard for all banks that if they have a fraud issue, they call you and tell you to call the number on the back of your card, and press 6 or something. The fraud departments we have are so indistinguishable from actual phishing it’s amazing. They even send you a two factor code and have you read it to them! The text says they’ll never ask for it via phone! Embarrassing.
        mcny 3y ago
        Worse, as a customer, it is almost impossible to reach a specific person at a bank over the phone. The branch manager who called had to authenticate himself over the phone (at least he was the one who placed the call) and waited on hold for over twenty minutes and even then he didn't talk to a specific person iirc. The strange thing is the supervisor was clearly on a power trip. They made me waste hours of my life chasing this nonsense.
- trompetenaccoun 3y ago
  Horrible. I've heard similar stories but this one's the worst by far. This shouldn't be allowed to ever happen again, such sudden closures without warning need to be illegal. The issue is banking is highly regulated but a lot of the regulation is about AML, terrorism screening and such. Not actually protecting customers from abuse but rather the other way around - banks are taking precautions to protect themselves from customers. Some of the regulation is also the result of decades of lobbying efforts by major players, making it extremely hard for new ones to compete. Banks are rarely held accountable because for some reason most regular people are fine with this or don't understand it. There is a solution - not sure if everyone's ready to hear it yet: Decentralized finance. Good luck to a bank trying to shut down your self-hosted Ethereum wallet. Banks provide important services and will continue to exist, but giving them full unchecked control over our life savings and finance is mad. There are a lot of other issues with the current system, and many people don't really understand the contracts they're signing, including that they don't legally own "their money" in the bank account in most cases (they're creditors). But the question of effective control over ones own funds is the most crucial one to me.
  - mcny 3y ago
    > There is a solution - not sure if everyone's ready to hear it yet: Decentralized finance. I want the pendulum to swing the other way. Everybody gets and gets to keep forever an account at the Reserve Bank. > self-hosted Ethereum wallet I'm sorry. The technology might be fine But I simply do not trust the people involved with cryptocurrency. Not just the scammers such as SBF, I don't trust the "victims" to make wise choices. They see this as a get rich quick scheme. They are not "victims". They are money hungry speculators. Most don't even host a full node. Even people who have a means to do so Such as this guy tech deals on YouTube. The miners want to turn a good profit when they should be happy to just break even. The transaction costs are still too high. It should be very close to if not exactly zero dollars. The block chain should not be a place to make huge profits. The prices should not go "to the moon". In fact, you shouldn't even be thinking of the price of your cryptocurrency with respect to the US Dollar. This already means we lose if we constantly compare Bitcoin oh sorry ethereum and the dollar.
- Dudester230602 3y ago
  Let's transition to cashless society, shall we?
  - pc86 3y ago
    This is a tongue-in-cheek sarcastic reply, right? Because the only two cash-less options I'm aware are crypto, which is filled with rug-pulls, scams, and DPR-wannabes, or just having everything in commercial banks which is exactly what got the GP into this position in the first place. Maybe we can go back to bartering?
    - gardenhedge 3y ago
      How does the existence of rug pulls (aka scams) invalidate the option of moving to crypto?
      - OkayPhysicist 3y ago
        It's not the existence of crime, crime happens in real money, too. It's the complete and utter lack of anything else but crime. Originally, Bitcoin only appealed to 1) geeks who enjoyed the technical details and 2) people who wanted to buy drugs. Then, you got to phase 2, where bolstered by the liquidity provided by the people trading drugs and the unbridled enthusiasm of the geeks, the value went up. Then, The Silk Road got shut down, and the value started to fluctuate wildly, leading to runaway speculation, attracting the "fight club for finance" guys. Those guys marketed crypto to the broader flock of normal people, because they needed bag-holders for their (illegal securities trading) schemes. The influx of people gullible enough to listen to the finance bros provided a pre-filtered pool of people who would make good marks for scams. The useful applications of crypto are illegal (buying narcotics) and the majority of the ecosystem today is both illegal and completely economically nonproductive.
        gardenhedge 3y ago
        In phase 1, how is geeks enjoying the technical details illegal? You said "It's the complete and utter lack of anything else but crime". Regardless of that, you've stated that crypto can be used to buy things. The parent post said "Let's transition to cashless society". Why can crypto not be used?
- kylebenzle 3y ago
  You should have switched Bitcoin LONG ago. Soon we will have to stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by the banks as the alternative is just too easy and obvious.
  - kergonath 3y ago
    > Soon we will have to stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by the banks as the alternative is just too easy and obvious. OTOH we did stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by crypto bros as the alternative has been just too easy and obvious for quite a while now.
  - plagiarist 3y ago
    I think I'll wait for you all to finish the "why financial regulations exist" speedrun before I use it day-to-day.
- phil21 3y ago
  I think a lot of folks reading this will immediately be critical and tell you exactly how easy it would have been to solve your problems from spiraling out of control. They are likely largely factually correct. What is not being said is that many folks are operating at the limits of their executive function. Add something like this to an already stressful period of time to such people, and they simply will not be able to advocate for themselves in an effective manner or make logical decisions in the moment. I say this from personal experience. Small stuff like this, in particular gatekeeping kafkaesque stuff, absolutely kills my life in a way that is not logical or explainable. It effectively shuts my brain down. I've lost many years of my life due similar issues, where in the end someone else could have handled them as a minor annoyance.
  - doingtheiroming 3y ago
    Multibillion dollar organisation with an essentially unlimited scope for bureaucratic work versus kid trying to move house at the weekend. The “why did he do this to himself?” meme seems appropriate. Also, yes. I’ve gotten better over the years at taking a breath and just doing it but it still sets me off. Employers exploit this in people by adding hurdles in expense systems. It’s an oft forgotten corporate dark pattern.
  - nullc 3y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggshell_skull https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggshell_skull
  - Pet_Ant 3y ago
    > What is not being said is that many folks are operating at the limits of their executive function. I don't think this can be understated. I didn't pay income taxes for two years. Not because I was dodging them, but because I was going through a divorce, single-parenthood, and depression and was barely able to hold onto my job. 2 years later, I got my shit together, paid back taxes and fees (I had the money all along), and it was easy... when I had the bandwidth for it. I just couldn't at the time. Most things are easy in isolation, it's having patience for someone-who-can't get-your-one-simple-thing-right-because-they-have-too-many-other-simple-things-on-the-go-right-now that is hard.
- skyde 3y ago
  What do you mean by "fresh grad programs require a certain age" this seem like an easy lawsuit for age discrimination.
- lopolo333 3y ago
  Stupid people is perverse. Banks are generally full of these. They power is barely limited and in the corner cases where they are somehow forced by regulation to compensate victims those compensations are peanuts to them (and in most cases to the victims themselves). All this idiocy could have been prevented by a communication stating "come here before one week or we will close your account". They simply do not care about people.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  What an incredible horror story. I so hate the impersonal way in which large institutions deal with individuals. The least they should do is to realize that banking is 'mission critical' and that shutting down an account has an immediate real world effect that can result in any kind of mishap to a person. Very, very nasty, and props to you for not entirely losing your drive over this.
jgilias 3y ago
Sorry this happened to you! I’m glad you managed to eventually pick yourself up after that experience! Stories like yours highlight how important the freedom to transact is. It’s all fine and dandy until one day suddenly it isn’t and you’re completely fucked.
- ArabicBaklava 3y ago
  Thank you for your empathy, it was a very difficult time and i am glad i made it out. Banks have substantial power with the ability to close accounts unexpectedly, we must push for a financial system that minimizes those risks and enhances consumer protection. Situations like this is a clear reminder of how crucial financial freedom and security are.
realcertify 3y ago
Wow, that's so terrible! Cashless society is a real threat.
Obscurity4340 3y ago
Jesus, this story :( . Your university couldn't wait a few days, their Finance department could't help? What a crazy outcome
- ricardobayes 3y ago
  I find it really difficult to believe it was a "one chance" thing. Universities have late enroll, plus appeals processes in place. It's in their interest to get paid in the end.
  - dwighttk 3y ago
    Yeah this sounds like this was the last chance to get current after many unmentioned-in-the-story deadlines
    - ArabicBaklava 3y ago
      This is absolutely 100% correct, i didn't disclose all the details since it is not relevant to bank account freeze and closure which exacerbated the situation and put me in a place where i cannot do anything. This is some of the other unmentioned instances that made the situation harder. 1) Funds took a while to be in my account, it arrived mid of 1st week of semester. 2) Procedures from the international students office -- they placed a hold on my account for not buying international students insurance from their provider, which is mandatory, and no you cannot buy the insurance somewhere else. note that this happened after the classes were dropped, it was possible to fix it and keep my enrollment had the bank not closed my banking account. 3) Simply because it was a capstone class (final major related class), the seats get full really fast so after being dropped of the class i was attending it became full, and even after receiving the funds, i paid the tuition, removed the holds, contacted the professors where there was available seats to allow me enrollment (have to have their sign off to enroll past a certain date) they refused to allow me enrollment (2nd week approaching third). If the bank did not close my account, I would've paid my tuition before the deadline, paid the universities insurance, secured a shelter, wouldn't have my classes dropped. Regardless, it is a tough experience, it taught me a lot and i came out of it stronger.
BiteCode_dev 3y ago
That's why I have 2 bank accounts. It happened to me once in Africa, and I said "never again". I now have a backup plan for everything that is critical for my life. I have several modes of transportation, several clients, 2 computers, 2 sources of internet, several ways of contacting my family, etc. System always fail.
- pc86 3y ago
  I've considered doing this for some time now. Do you have any sort of link between the two accounts? Maybe not directly, but e.g. are both connected to the same brokerage or anything? Is one online-only or do both have physical locations somewhere?
  - BiteCode_dev 3y ago
    One is online only (the one I use the most), the other one is a completely different bank with very different objectives and clients plus physical offices everywhere. Each account can send money to the other via wiring, but that's it. Saved my ass several times already when I lost my credit cards or other unpleasant situations.
- Twirrim 3y ago
  When something similar happened with an immigrant co-worker in the UK, I quickly picked up a second bank account. He got stuck for about a week and a half with his money all locked up in an account he couldn't access. It was early enough in the month that rent and bills etc. wasn't an issue, we just ended up helping him out buying food for a few days while he sorted out another account and got an advance on his salary. I remember the range of excuses and explanations for delays from the bank left us all gobsmacked.
ryukoposting 3y ago
That's fucked up. I don't know what else to say about it. I've worked with plenty of people in the US on H1B, and I've seen how that process is like bureaucratic blackmail. Your story is a whole different level.
balderdash 3y ago
I’m sympathetic, I really am, but it’s also surprising to me why people don’t have a backup credit card /bank account (shoot I think you can only buy gas at Costco with a Visa!) - I’m not saying you did anything wrong or shouldn’t be upset, but it’s the financial equivalent of only having a gmail account and then being screwed when some algorithm locks you out of your email. (Doesn’t make it ok, but it is a bit of a foreseeable situation). It does feel like depository institutions should have to make your funds available the same day via wire/cashiers check/cash if they close your account in this manner.
nly 3y ago
This is why you should always have more than 1 bank account and credit card.
- TwoHeadedBeast 3y ago
  And with different banks.
dakial1 3y ago
I never understood this "Anything goes Term & Conditions" in the US. Like, can a bank legally put that they can close account without notification in their T&C? Isn't there a regulator that would control these and fine the banks? The binding arbitration clause (or privatized justice system) is another thing that I can't believe the US population never rebelled against...
- averageRoyalty 3y ago
  Have you reviewed your banks T&Cs? This happened to me a decade ago (not in the US), and I was surprised to find that every bank in the country had similar provisions in place. I'd be surprised if yours doesn't too.
  - dakial1 3y ago
    In the country I live in (Brazil) the arbitration clause would go against the Consumer Law that says: "Are null or void, Contractual clauses relating to the supply of products and services that [...] imply a waiver or provision of rights." Access to justice being a right, arbitration clauses that forbid the consumer to go to the judiciary system are not valid. They can offer it, but not force it.
- BobaFloutist 3y ago
  Terms and conditions are weird, because by and large (in the US) judges have determined that they don't really let the companies do anything that they wouldn't be allowed to do otherwise (except I guess forced arbitration), but they keep filling them with borderline illegal requirements and litigate them line-by-line when it comes up. The main thing is any company can start denying you service whenever they want as long as it's not for a protected reason, and then it's up to you to prove in the court of law (or arbitration) that they didn't specifically screw you over in any particular way, which is usually not worth the hassle.
coldtea 3y ago
>I went homeless for 1 week with no food. It was my last semester in university and couldn't pay for tuition because my bank acc was locked, so the university dropped my classes and i was not able to graduate, as failing to stay enrolled (international student) i had to go back to my country. Aside from the bank's fault, this is a failure of basic society functioning on so many levels. Dropping you because you couldn't pay for tuition for one week? Having to leave the country because you failed to enroll because of that? Being homeless for a week out of a bureucratic mistake?
- dennis_jeeves2 3y ago
  > this is a failure of basic society functioning on so many levels. True it boils down to people really. Society has just a facade of being functioning, in reality it as bad as the govt, banks that it represents.
caeril 3y ago
Contrasting the replies to this comment with the replies in all the "cashless society" posts are hilarious. "Oh I never use cash, cashless transactions take 0.00362 seconds less, so taking the risk that I become homeless is worth it to me." - followed by outrage at discovering that trusting your entire financial life to the whims of a compliance department is a real risk. At some point, you have to assess your risks and realize that your "convenience" comes at a cost. Why people don't use cash, or at the very least have a few stacks in a safe somewhere, always floors me.
- etothepii 3y ago
  I suspect the reason most people don't have a few stacks somewhere is that the vast majority of people have no savings. 45% according to one survey I saw don't have $1,000 in savings.
k99x55 3y ago
Each country's Fed (Bank of England for UK) should provide a very basic free bank accounts to all residents. That would be the baseline from which all private bank would have to compete with. The cost is minimal (OK maybe charge 5USD a year or something). I don't see any reason why this hasn't happened except that the Fed has been captured by private banks.
- etothepii 3y ago
  What would this organisation do if it finds that you are using this account for money laundering / terrorism financing? Is the suggestion that it should have to get a court order to close your account, or that even then it should leave your account open?
averageRoyalty 3y ago
Almost exactly the same story, different country. Long weekend, Friday I'm working on site and go to grab a drink at the shop and my card declines. I go to log into internet banking and I can't. I call them, and the tone goes from friendly to frosty out of nowhere. Took us a full week to get a cheque (!!) that we could take to another bank to move all of our money there. Thankfully, I had just sold something online for cash and was able to live off that, and let my landlords and billers know that I was in the process of rebanking. Since then I've made it one of my lifes goal to sabotage any benefits to the bank (Macquarie) since. I've so far denied them about $700k AUD in revenue by ensuring any time I see their name I shoot down the deal or find an alternative provider. Luckily they operate heavily in the commercial space. I'll continue to do whatever I can to hurt them. Fuck you Macquarie.
- RoyalHenOil 3y ago
  Thank you for naming the bank. I will make absolutely sure to avoid them and to warn others about them. Having something like that happen can be ruinous.
CodeWriter23 3y ago
I keep some cash in reserve for these kinds of situations. Not a huge amount but enough to get my family through a week or two of eating and gasoline.
paulddraper 3y ago
> couldn't pay for tuition because my bank acc was locked, so the university dropped my classes This sentence is simply BIZARRE. As an example, I'll use the public university geographically closest to me. (University of Utah) * It requires no payment until two weeks after classes begin. [1] * It offers monthly payment plans. [2] * It allows for late payments, with a late fee capped at $75. [2] This is not the exception. Much like rent, utilities, etc, there is ample consideration for interruption of tuition payment. --- What institution is as utterly inflexible as you describe? [1] https://registrar.utah.edu/academic-calendars/fall2023.php https://registrar.utah.edu/academic-calendars/fall2023.php [2] https://fbs.admin.utah.edu/income/tuition/tbc/ https://fbs.admin.utah.edu/income/tuition/tbc/
cheema33 3y ago
Banks have algorithms that can detect when a customer is going through a serious financial difficulty and may become a liability. I know because it happened to me. The fact that you became homeless, no food for one week, couldn't graduate because you couldn't pay tuition etc. all point to the same thing. BTW, colleges don't screw you over if you are late paying tuition for just one week. I know that quite well too. When my bank closed my accounts, I was super annoyed. But I knew why they did it.
usamaro 3y ago
Hi ArabicBaklava. truly saddened to read that. I would love to interview you and give a platform to your story that resonated a lot with me. I've been unbanked for a while due to paperwork issues in France but thankfully didn't have any life-changing consequences like you. I would love to present to the world your story. Can you e-mail me at lepenguin.stableunit@gmail.com Thank you.

ArabicBaklava 3y ago

Well, this happened in 2017.. fast forward to this account closure effect on my life: I had to go back to my country, without a degree, was not able to land any job. Unfortunately, good places require degrees. Stayed unemployed, hit with chronic depression as anyone would. Lost 4+ years of professional progress. When covid came, i was able to complete my degree online and graduated in 2021, but because all fresh grad programs require a certain age; i did not qualify. Was able to finally land a good job in 2023. This issue needs a resolution, what happened to me might not happen to everyone, i know my situation is different. but financial institutions should be held responsible for actions like this, imagine someone else who needs to pay for his/her medication...

WinstonSmith84 3y ago
Sorry to hear, but the bottom line here is to not trusting a single entity. Not having funds split between traditional banks and crypto (exchange + offline wallets) is just asking for problems.
neonsunset 3y ago
I wonder if the bank can be sued for this. That's how random bank managers get found in a river, due to policies like these impacting the innocent.
- mcny 3y ago
  I got a random call from Wells Fargo fraud department and I refused to give them my information. Escalated and the supervisor also pretended to not understand my concern. In fact, they placed a stupid hold. I went to a bank and the bank manager has to call them back and basically beg these people to remove my holds. These people in the fraud department don't even deserve to get found in a river.
  - CaptainZapp 3y ago
    Why didn't you politely suggest to call Wells Fargo' central phone number and have the switch board transfer you to him? Seems pretty much a no brainer to me.
    - bombcar 3y ago
      It should be standard for all banks that if they have a fraud issue, they call you and tell you to call the number on the back of your card, and press 6 or something. The fraud departments we have are so indistinguishable from actual phishing it’s amazing. They even send you a two factor code and have you read it to them! The text says they’ll never ask for it via phone! Embarrassing.
      - mcny 3y ago
        Worse, as a customer, it is almost impossible to reach a specific person at a bank over the phone. The branch manager who called had to authenticate himself over the phone (at least he was the one who placed the call) and waited on hold for over twenty minutes and even then he didn't talk to a specific person iirc. The strange thing is the supervisor was clearly on a power trip. They made me waste hours of my life chasing this nonsense.
trompetenaccoun 3y ago
Horrible. I've heard similar stories but this one's the worst by far. This shouldn't be allowed to ever happen again, such sudden closures without warning need to be illegal. The issue is banking is highly regulated but a lot of the regulation is about AML, terrorism screening and such. Not actually protecting customers from abuse but rather the other way around - banks are taking precautions to protect themselves from customers. Some of the regulation is also the result of decades of lobbying efforts by major players, making it extremely hard for new ones to compete. Banks are rarely held accountable because for some reason most regular people are fine with this or don't understand it. There is a solution - not sure if everyone's ready to hear it yet: Decentralized finance. Good luck to a bank trying to shut down your self-hosted Ethereum wallet. Banks provide important services and will continue to exist, but giving them full unchecked control over our life savings and finance is mad. There are a lot of other issues with the current system, and many people don't really understand the contracts they're signing, including that they don't legally own "their money" in the bank account in most cases (they're creditors). But the question of effective control over ones own funds is the most crucial one to me.
- mcny 3y ago
  > There is a solution - not sure if everyone's ready to hear it yet: Decentralized finance. I want the pendulum to swing the other way. Everybody gets and gets to keep forever an account at the Reserve Bank. > self-hosted Ethereum wallet I'm sorry. The technology might be fine But I simply do not trust the people involved with cryptocurrency. Not just the scammers such as SBF, I don't trust the "victims" to make wise choices. They see this as a get rich quick scheme. They are not "victims". They are money hungry speculators. Most don't even host a full node. Even people who have a means to do so Such as this guy tech deals on YouTube. The miners want to turn a good profit when they should be happy to just break even. The transaction costs are still too high. It should be very close to if not exactly zero dollars. The block chain should not be a place to make huge profits. The prices should not go "to the moon". In fact, you shouldn't even be thinking of the price of your cryptocurrency with respect to the US Dollar. This already means we lose if we constantly compare Bitcoin oh sorry ethereum and the dollar.
Dudester230602 3y ago
Let's transition to cashless society, shall we?
- pc86 3y ago
  This is a tongue-in-cheek sarcastic reply, right? Because the only two cash-less options I'm aware are crypto, which is filled with rug-pulls, scams, and DPR-wannabes, or just having everything in commercial banks which is exactly what got the GP into this position in the first place. Maybe we can go back to bartering?
  - gardenhedge 3y ago
    How does the existence of rug pulls (aka scams) invalidate the option of moving to crypto?
    - OkayPhysicist 3y ago
      It's not the existence of crime, crime happens in real money, too. It's the complete and utter lack of anything else but crime. Originally, Bitcoin only appealed to 1) geeks who enjoyed the technical details and 2) people who wanted to buy drugs. Then, you got to phase 2, where bolstered by the liquidity provided by the people trading drugs and the unbridled enthusiasm of the geeks, the value went up. Then, The Silk Road got shut down, and the value started to fluctuate wildly, leading to runaway speculation, attracting the "fight club for finance" guys. Those guys marketed crypto to the broader flock of normal people, because they needed bag-holders for their (illegal securities trading) schemes. The influx of people gullible enough to listen to the finance bros provided a pre-filtered pool of people who would make good marks for scams. The useful applications of crypto are illegal (buying narcotics) and the majority of the ecosystem today is both illegal and completely economically nonproductive.
      - gardenhedge 3y ago
        In phase 1, how is geeks enjoying the technical details illegal? You said "It's the complete and utter lack of anything else but crime". Regardless of that, you've stated that crypto can be used to buy things. The parent post said "Let's transition to cashless society". Why can crypto not be used?
kylebenzle 3y ago
You should have switched Bitcoin LONG ago. Soon we will have to stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by the banks as the alternative is just too easy and obvious.
- kergonath 3y ago
  > Soon we will have to stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by the banks as the alternative is just too easy and obvious. OTOH we did stop having sympathy for people who get screwed by crypto bros as the alternative has been just too easy and obvious for quite a while now.
- plagiarist 3y ago
  I think I'll wait for you all to finish the "why financial regulations exist" speedrun before I use it day-to-day.
phil21 3y ago
I think a lot of folks reading this will immediately be critical and tell you exactly how easy it would have been to solve your problems from spiraling out of control. They are likely largely factually correct. What is not being said is that many folks are operating at the limits of their executive function. Add something like this to an already stressful period of time to such people, and they simply will not be able to advocate for themselves in an effective manner or make logical decisions in the moment. I say this from personal experience. Small stuff like this, in particular gatekeeping kafkaesque stuff, absolutely kills my life in a way that is not logical or explainable. It effectively shuts my brain down. I've lost many years of my life due similar issues, where in the end someone else could have handled them as a minor annoyance.
- doingtheiroming 3y ago
  Multibillion dollar organisation with an essentially unlimited scope for bureaucratic work versus kid trying to move house at the weekend. The “why did he do this to himself?” meme seems appropriate. Also, yes. I’ve gotten better over the years at taking a breath and just doing it but it still sets me off. Employers exploit this in people by adding hurdles in expense systems. It’s an oft forgotten corporate dark pattern.
- nullc 3y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggshell_skull https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggshell_skull
- Pet_Ant 3y ago
  > What is not being said is that many folks are operating at the limits of their executive function. I don't think this can be understated. I didn't pay income taxes for two years. Not because I was dodging them, but because I was going through a divorce, single-parenthood, and depression and was barely able to hold onto my job. 2 years later, I got my shit together, paid back taxes and fees (I had the money all along), and it was easy... when I had the bandwidth for it. I just couldn't at the time. Most things are easy in isolation, it's having patience for someone-who-can't get-your-one-simple-thing-right-because-they-have-too-many-other-simple-things-on-the-go-right-now that is hard.
skyde 3y ago
What do you mean by "fresh grad programs require a certain age" this seem like an easy lawsuit for age discrimination.
lopolo333 3y ago
Stupid people is perverse. Banks are generally full of these. They power is barely limited and in the corner cases where they are somehow forced by regulation to compensate victims those compensations are peanuts to them (and in most cases to the victims themselves). All this idiocy could have been prevented by a communication stating "come here before one week or we will close your account". They simply do not care about people.
jacquesm 3y ago
What an incredible horror story. I so hate the impersonal way in which large institutions deal with individuals. The least they should do is to realize that banking is 'mission critical' and that shutting down an account has an immediate real world effect that can result in any kind of mishap to a person. Very, very nasty, and props to you for not entirely losing your drive over this.

jgilias 3y ago

Sorry this happened to you! I’m glad you managed to eventually pick yourself up after that experience! Stories like yours highlight how important the freedom to transact is. It’s all fine and dandy until one day suddenly it isn’t and you’re completely fucked.

ArabicBaklava 3y ago
Thank you for your empathy, it was a very difficult time and i am glad i made it out. Banks have substantial power with the ability to close accounts unexpectedly, we must push for a financial system that minimizes those risks and enhances consumer protection. Situations like this is a clear reminder of how crucial financial freedom and security are.

realcertify 3y ago

Wow, that's so terrible! Cashless society is a real threat.

Obscurity4340 3y ago

Jesus, this story :( . Your university couldn't wait a few days, their Finance department could't help? What a crazy outcome

ricardobayes 3y ago
I find it really difficult to believe it was a "one chance" thing. Universities have late enroll, plus appeals processes in place. It's in their interest to get paid in the end.
- dwighttk 3y ago
  Yeah this sounds like this was the last chance to get current after many unmentioned-in-the-story deadlines
  - ArabicBaklava 3y ago
    This is absolutely 100% correct, i didn't disclose all the details since it is not relevant to bank account freeze and closure which exacerbated the situation and put me in a place where i cannot do anything. This is some of the other unmentioned instances that made the situation harder. 1) Funds took a while to be in my account, it arrived mid of 1st week of semester. 2) Procedures from the international students office -- they placed a hold on my account for not buying international students insurance from their provider, which is mandatory, and no you cannot buy the insurance somewhere else. note that this happened after the classes were dropped, it was possible to fix it and keep my enrollment had the bank not closed my banking account. 3) Simply because it was a capstone class (final major related class), the seats get full really fast so after being dropped of the class i was attending it became full, and even after receiving the funds, i paid the tuition, removed the holds, contacted the professors where there was available seats to allow me enrollment (have to have their sign off to enroll past a certain date) they refused to allow me enrollment (2nd week approaching third). If the bank did not close my account, I would've paid my tuition before the deadline, paid the universities insurance, secured a shelter, wouldn't have my classes dropped. Regardless, it is a tough experience, it taught me a lot and i came out of it stronger.

BiteCode_dev 3y ago

That's why I have 2 bank accounts. It happened to me once in Africa, and I said "never again". I now have a backup plan for everything that is critical for my life. I have several modes of transportation, several clients, 2 computers, 2 sources of internet, several ways of contacting my family, etc. System always fail.

pc86 3y ago
I've considered doing this for some time now. Do you have any sort of link between the two accounts? Maybe not directly, but e.g. are both connected to the same brokerage or anything? Is one online-only or do both have physical locations somewhere?
- BiteCode_dev 3y ago
  One is online only (the one I use the most), the other one is a completely different bank with very different objectives and clients plus physical offices everywhere. Each account can send money to the other via wiring, but that's it. Saved my ass several times already when I lost my credit cards or other unpleasant situations.
Twirrim 3y ago
When something similar happened with an immigrant co-worker in the UK, I quickly picked up a second bank account. He got stuck for about a week and a half with his money all locked up in an account he couldn't access. It was early enough in the month that rent and bills etc. wasn't an issue, we just ended up helping him out buying food for a few days while he sorted out another account and got an advance on his salary. I remember the range of excuses and explanations for delays from the bank left us all gobsmacked.

ryukoposting 3y ago

That's fucked up. I don't know what else to say about it. I've worked with plenty of people in the US on H1B, and I've seen how that process is like bureaucratic blackmail. Your story is a whole different level.

balderdash 3y ago

I’m sympathetic, I really am, but it’s also surprising to me why people don’t have a backup credit card /bank account (shoot I think you can only buy gas at Costco with a Visa!) - I’m not saying you did anything wrong or shouldn’t be upset, but it’s the financial equivalent of only having a gmail account and then being screwed when some algorithm locks you out of your email. (Doesn’t make it ok, but it is a bit of a foreseeable situation). It does feel like depository institutions should have to make your funds available the same day via wire/cashiers check/cash if they close your account in this manner.

nly 3y ago

This is why you should always have more than 1 bank account and credit card.

TwoHeadedBeast 3y ago
And with different banks.

dakial1 3y ago

I never understood this "Anything goes Term & Conditions" in the US. Like, can a bank legally put that they can close account without notification in their T&C? Isn't there a regulator that would control these and fine the banks? The binding arbitration clause (or privatized justice system) is another thing that I can't believe the US population never rebelled against...

averageRoyalty 3y ago
Have you reviewed your banks T&Cs? This happened to me a decade ago (not in the US), and I was surprised to find that every bank in the country had similar provisions in place. I'd be surprised if yours doesn't too.
- dakial1 3y ago
  In the country I live in (Brazil) the arbitration clause would go against the Consumer Law that says: "Are null or void, Contractual clauses relating to the supply of products and services that [...] imply a waiver or provision of rights." Access to justice being a right, arbitration clauses that forbid the consumer to go to the judiciary system are not valid. They can offer it, but not force it.
BobaFloutist 3y ago
Terms and conditions are weird, because by and large (in the US) judges have determined that they don't really let the companies do anything that they wouldn't be allowed to do otherwise (except I guess forced arbitration), but they keep filling them with borderline illegal requirements and litigate them line-by-line when it comes up. The main thing is any company can start denying you service whenever they want as long as it's not for a protected reason, and then it's up to you to prove in the court of law (or arbitration) that they didn't specifically screw you over in any particular way, which is usually not worth the hassle.

coldtea 3y ago

>I went homeless for 1 week with no food. It was my last semester in university and couldn't pay for tuition because my bank acc was locked, so the university dropped my classes and i was not able to graduate, as failing to stay enrolled (international student) i had to go back to my country. Aside from the bank's fault, this is a failure of basic society functioning on so many levels. Dropping you because you couldn't pay for tuition for one week? Having to leave the country because you failed to enroll because of that? Being homeless for a week out of a bureucratic mistake?

dennis_jeeves2 3y ago
> this is a failure of basic society functioning on so many levels. True it boils down to people really. Society has just a facade of being functioning, in reality it as bad as the govt, banks that it represents.

caeril 3y ago

Contrasting the replies to this comment with the replies in all the "cashless society" posts are hilarious. "Oh I never use cash, cashless transactions take 0.00362 seconds less, so taking the risk that I become homeless is worth it to me." - followed by outrage at discovering that trusting your entire financial life to the whims of a compliance department is a real risk. At some point, you have to assess your risks and realize that your "convenience" comes at a cost. Why people don't use cash, or at the very least have a few stacks in a safe somewhere, always floors me.

etothepii 3y ago
I suspect the reason most people don't have a few stacks somewhere is that the vast majority of people have no savings. 45% according to one survey I saw don't have $1,000 in savings.

k99x55 3y ago

Each country's Fed (Bank of England for UK) should provide a very basic free bank accounts to all residents. That would be the baseline from which all private bank would have to compete with. The cost is minimal (OK maybe charge 5USD a year or something). I don't see any reason why this hasn't happened except that the Fed has been captured by private banks.

etothepii 3y ago
What would this organisation do if it finds that you are using this account for money laundering / terrorism financing? Is the suggestion that it should have to get a court order to close your account, or that even then it should leave your account open?

averageRoyalty 3y ago

Almost exactly the same story, different country. Long weekend, Friday I'm working on site and go to grab a drink at the shop and my card declines. I go to log into internet banking and I can't. I call them, and the tone goes from friendly to frosty out of nowhere. Took us a full week to get a cheque (!!) that we could take to another bank to move all of our money there. Thankfully, I had just sold something online for cash and was able to live off that, and let my landlords and billers know that I was in the process of rebanking. Since then I've made it one of my lifes goal to sabotage any benefits to the bank (Macquarie) since. I've so far denied them about $700k AUD in revenue by ensuring any time I see their name I shoot down the deal or find an alternative provider. Luckily they operate heavily in the commercial space. I'll continue to do whatever I can to hurt them. Fuck you Macquarie.

RoyalHenOil 3y ago
Thank you for naming the bank. I will make absolutely sure to avoid them and to warn others about them. Having something like that happen can be ruinous.

CodeWriter23 3y ago

I keep some cash in reserve for these kinds of situations. Not a huge amount but enough to get my family through a week or two of eating and gasoline.

paulddraper 3y ago

> couldn't pay for tuition because my bank acc was locked, so the university dropped my classes This sentence is simply BIZARRE. As an example, I'll use the public university geographically closest to me. (University of Utah) * It requires no payment until two weeks after classes begin. [1] * It offers monthly payment plans. [2] * It allows for late payments, with a late fee capped at $75. [2] This is not the exception. Much like rent, utilities, etc, there is ample consideration for interruption of tuition payment. --- What institution is as utterly inflexible as you describe? [1] https://registrar.utah.edu/academic-calendars/fall2023.php https://registrar.utah.edu/academic-calendars/fall2023.php [2] https://fbs.admin.utah.edu/income/tuition/tbc/ https://fbs.admin.utah.edu/income/tuition/tbc/

cheema33 3y ago

Banks have algorithms that can detect when a customer is going through a serious financial difficulty and may become a liability. I know because it happened to me. The fact that you became homeless, no food for one week, couldn't graduate because you couldn't pay tuition etc. all point to the same thing. BTW, colleges don't screw you over if you are late paying tuition for just one week. I know that quite well too. When my bank closed my accounts, I was super annoyed. But I knew why they did it.

usamaro 3y ago

Hi ArabicBaklava. truly saddened to read that. I would love to interview you and give a platform to your story that resonated a lot with me. I've been unbanked for a while due to paperwork issues in France but thankfully didn't have any life-changing consequences like you. I would love to present to the world your story. Can you e-mail me at lepenguin.stableunit@gmail.com Thank you.