Anybody who follows me on Twitter, likely knows that I’ve had some recent issues with Bank of America. Through a combination of new policies and the BoA website, I ended up getting an avalanche of overdraft fees resulting from one transaction.  The situation was resolved, but in the end it really exemplifies why I have a love/hate relationship with Bank of America. Hopefully, this post sets the record straight.

Let me note that this post was not solicited by Bank of America in anyway.

I’ve been with Bank of America since they bought Fleet Bank back in 2004.Bank of America has always seemed to have some arcane formula for generating and assessing fees like many other banks, but their staff has made up for it. I’ve had many issues, but not one of them has gone unresolved. In short, their branch staff are better than most of the banks I’ve dealt with.

Over the past few years, I’ve been relying more on online banking. While this is more convenient, it removes the human element and can often lead to confusion and unresolved issues.  The current issue arose from mistakes in transactions online not matching up with transactions in real life. I couldn’t tell what fees went with what transactions. The online balance sheet made it look like I was in the black, but I was getting overdraft fees left and right. At the branch, there are people to help sort out the mess, online I’ve got some obnoxious little live chat thing.

After getting nowhere with the previously mentioned live chat, I hopped on my Twitter account and unleashed the full angsty fury that I have a habit of unleashing.  Within a few minutes, I was contacted by contacted BofA_help. After resolving some communication issues, I was connected with people that could help. This may not seem like a big deal, but it’s really a pretty revolutionary thing.

Bank of America managed to bring the experience I expect at the branch to the web. I wasn’t talking to chat participant 18943, I was talking with David from Phoenix. David took the time to research what happened and called me to go over it. He then put in contact with another representative, Matt,  who helped me figure out how to avoid it happening again. This isn’t the first time I’ve had a problem with a bank, but this is the first time I’ve gotten this level of customer service online.

In summary, thanks to David and Matt for stepping up and fixing this. While I really don’t agree with the fees, at least I know I have people to talk to when things go bad.