I had a very bad experience with Chase Bank and was wondering if anyone else was ripped off by them.

I took advantage of a 1.9% interest rate for a year. Upon paying my account in full in 11 months imagine my surprise when I got a final bill at 16.99% interest. Seems like they start the year when the promotion campaign starts NOT when you write the check.

Call Customer Service you say? I did and upon asking for the name of a supervisor I could discuss this with, over the phone, I was told I had to write a letter to the corporate office. Like that would get me anywhere.

User beware... stay away from Chase Bank

What you describe is pretty standard - they always say __ interest until __ 2006.

Apparently Chase sems to do the bait and switch quite a bit. And it has nothing to do with the until...catch. They seem to look for a reason to bump up your interest rate to 29.99% and then turn around and say that either "you are now a credit risk" or we saw something in your credit report that says that you have too much credit. What is interesting is that I was only using half of my credit available when that occured yet to them I was a credit risk. What it even more disturbing is that a month later somebody called me from chase to inquire as to why I have a high balance with them (My limit is 21,000 and I had a balance of 11,000). Not to mention that they called me at work to discuss something personal.

What is interesting is that they pulled the same trick on a business account which is under a corporate name and nothing to do with my name. It was on a Bank One account which they bought over and started the 29.99% rate tricks. These guys are very shady and I really do not know what separates Chase from a loan shark. How could this be legal (apparently the fine print on the amendments you receive in the mail allow them to change rules as they go)? What is surprising is that a class action lawsuit has yet to appear in the horizon. As the economy is slowing down and people miss payments or use more credit than usual, these guys will have a field day!

BTW, their customer service is for the birds...Basically they are live answering systems that read the appropriate script and then tell you that there is nothing for them to do.

I have made it one of my missions to take away at least a customer a week from them by either discouraging them to use Chase or recommend them a better place to get a card. These guys are bad news... STAY AWAY

I had two accounts with Citibank prior to the merger. I was never late and I paid ontime for more than 4 years. One day my APR jumped to 27+ percent. I couldn't believe it...I got the run around and paid the one account off. The day that I closed the account my second account jumped to 27+ percent.

I've reviewed my bureau report and there is nothing negative.

Chase can rip me off today but I'll never bank with them again. Even my mortage requires that it never be sold to Chase Bank or an affiliate of Chase Bank.

I don't have enough time or space to relate all of the egregious behavior on the part of this cabal of scoundrels. But here is an excerpt from a letter I'm about to post that may give you some idea:

"Regarding: Your Letter of 10/06 received 17 October 2006

Dear Chase,

You are without a doubt the most dysfunctional bank I have ever encountered or imagined could exist, unless functionality is defined as lying, cheating, stealing, and raising the blood pressure of your customers and former customers.

Almost a year ago, on this account 5490 XXXX XXXX XXXX, and despite an exemplary and lengthy payment history with Chase, you proposed to raise my rates and I instructed you to close the account (see the enclosed copy of the letter to you dated 17 November 2005 sent at that time). Since then I have faithfully made payments on the balance. Now I receive a letter stating that you are going to raise the rates---on a closed account! Of course I do not accept the changes! How dare you!! Who is the moron who manages these communications?

I am already seriously contemplating a series of legal actions, to which this latest missive adds momentum, based on the extraordinarily poor service given me in connection with three other accounts, all of which I have closed. For example, I still continue to be charged an excessive rate on another account I closed before the specified deadline, and three phone calls have produced no explanation as to why, despite your being able to note and abide by my instructions to close the account (as noted closed on the next statement) the exorbitantly higher rate (or something essentially the same as the proposed rate) went into effect anyway!---all I have been told is that it could take two or more months to revert to the prior rate. Your people also could not tell me whether or not the excess interest would eventually be credited back. It has now taken three months and no sign of change, and no letter explaining what is going on (which I was also told I was supposed to have received). One idiot told me that I should have called you, and that then the higher rate wouldn’t have gone into effect, despite the clear language in the initial letter from you stating that only a written communication would be recognized and effective!

You can, by the way, also rest assured that I am doing everything within my power to spread the word about you and your policies! I am relating my experiences to any and all with the patience to listen, and have described, factually and without any need for embellishment, your despicable performance and evident policies in many places already, including chatrooms and forums frequented by many. ..."

BEWARE OF THESE BASTARDS. They richly deserve to fail. Tell your friends.

I have to agree - Chase should fail. I had been a 40 year card holder and had a disagreement - you cannot get to talk to anyone who has any authority. Write a letter to corporate - where the hell do you get the address. The reps on the phone have no idea where that is. I canceled 2 accounts with them and they could have cared less even after I explained to a supervisor why. It was a matter of $25 fee that was in dispute. I did write a letter to customer service and received a form letter back with information that didn't pertain
It is very obvious that Chase does not care about its customers. It would be gratifying to see them topple

I had a credit card with Bank One for over 20 years. When they merged with Chase, Chase decided that my low interest rate card should go to 25% interest. I have been a good customer and pay on time. When I called Chase I was told it was due to a review of my credit report (there are no negatives on my credit report) but that I have too much outstanding debt. I pointed out that raising my interest rate and thereby the monthly minimum would not get that paid off faster. I was told that wasn't Chase's problem. I moved as much as I could off of that card and will never use it again once it is paid off. Oh, and the nasty young woman I talked to said some of my debt should be secured, that I should get a home mortgage with Chase..Um NEVER!!!!

Chase is a greedy organization.

After speaking with a friend who has been suing the local Bar Association and another attorney, I decided to shy away a bit from language that, if things go to suit, might be considered profane or inflammatory (he's been called down in court for using the word "h*ll" in one communication!). I also realized that with their potentially very limited attention span they might claim to have missed my explicit instructions, namely that I was NOT accepting the raise in rate on a closed account. Here is an excerpt of the slightly cooler-headed letter to be mailed today:

"...Almost a year ago, on account 5490 XXYZ XXYZ XXYZ, and despite an exemplary and lengthy payment history with Chase, you proposed to raise my rates and I instructed you to close the account (see the enclosed copy of the letter to you dated 17 November 2005 sent at that time). This was done immediately, and the interest rate in effect stayed the same, also immediately (something you now seem incapable of doing on other accounts I have closed). Since then I have faithfully made payments on the balance.

Now I receive a letter stating that you are going to raise the rates---on a closed account! Of course I do not accept the changes!

How dare you!! Who is the moron who manages these communications? Or is this fully conscious and intentional? Are you actually going to attempt to raise rates on accounts that have been closed and on which payments have been made faithfully since? This has to be illegal!!


I trust you can straighten out this latest affront. I can hardly be the only person affected by this latest blunder (or worse, intentional policy). ..."

I was tempted to include, after "This has to be illegal" the words "no matter how many members of Congress you've bought", but discretion prevailed.

Of course these people realize they are in trouble. Their profits soared recently, but it was due to investment banking wheeling and dealing---the fact is their mortgage and unsecured lending is said to be the worst in the industry, and as the house of cards is teetering on collapse they are scrambling to do damage control. The defaults and foreclosures are rising and this is likely to accelerate, barring some truly miraculous developments.

I have read all of the posts in regard to CHASE BANK. I too have had all of the above...increased APR for no reason, customer service that is a JOKE, written long letters only to receive a canned response that did not even address what I wrote! I had actually shed tears over what they had done to me and my credit status. I was such a good customer though that I had a $34,000 credit limit!!!! Not that I was anywhere near that, it just amazes me that they can put people in that high of debt. I have NEVER in my life dealt with a company like this. I researched the intermet looking for help. I came across a website for a federal agency, Comptroller of the Currency Administrator of National Banks. Seach for that website and choose Consumer Complaints and Assistance. They have a complaint form that you can download. I wrote them, attached all of my letters and responses, copies of statements etc..I faxed everything in and within 48 hours I received a call from the "CHASE EXECUTIVE OFFICES". Well, now...don't you know that they fixed everything as a result of my complaint. I was told that they would correct my APR'S, reinstate my promotional APR'S, gave me credit back for all of the RIDICULOUS finance charges they had charged me. At one point they had me owing a monthly payment of $800.00; unbelievable. Mind you, it took 3 complaints to the OCC to have it done correctly. Seems even with special treatment, they still managed to mess up my account.
If you are in the same bind, write the above agency. That is the only place short of going to a consumer reporter on TV where you can get help!!! My account is also closed...and I can't wait for the day when I can pay them off once and for all!!!!!

There is a class action suit against Chase www.braunlawgroup.com

I would like to echo the need for a class action suit against Chase Bank for their business practices. I ordered a low interest card with a cash back option but now they seem to have no recollection that it was a cash back card. I changed from another Chase card with a $20K spending limit to a new Chase card with only a $7K limit based on their 0% transfer which was not honored because it involved transfer from one Chase Bank card to another. Then they failed to cancel my $20K credit limit card after being requested to do so. When I ran my other credit card up to $7K, mostly for work-related items, I requested a $1K increase in the limit after finally getting them to cancel my $20K card. Chase refused because they could charge me an over-limit fee and responded my credit debt was too high. In their response they accidently left internal memo information indicating I was not considered a client of high importance. I immediately recieved another $7.5K limit credit card from another bank in minutes over the internet and got a copy of my credit and found it to be in good standing. Chase makes their money by screwing over multitudes of small "unimportant clients" with fees using false offers to lure them in.

CHASE is a scavenger who preys on the common man. I had been a long time customer of Bank One with an interest rate of 8.99% on a credit card with a very high limit. Those bastards raised my rate over night to a whopping 21.99%. I immediately paid them off in full -I guess their computer model didn't see that coming-and cancelled the card. I did however get another card via my credit union and they for some reason gave me an 9.9 percent interest rate right off the bat I guess they didn't see what CHASE saw-$$ signs!. I have only one credit card no car payments and have one mortgage which I have never been late on. To make matters worst in the 60 day period Chase takes to close to close my card out completely they raised my limit again and sent me checks -because I am a valued customer. Hey Chase, value this!..God hates greedy

I had a mortgage with Bank One.. all was well. Then I was changed... I started sending 1/4 of my monthly payment to Chase every week. After about 3 months I realized they were sending back 3 of the 4 payments every month. Obvioulsy you cant make more than one payment a month. ?!?!?! What kind of policy is that??!!??! And why wasnt it explained to me?! Well turns out, they decided to start foreclosure proceedings because of the past due amounts. So in addition to oweing 3 months mortgage payments (which I had because they were just returned to my account) they added an additional 1700$ in Lawyer fees. When I called to explain myself, they werent interested in making arrangement to bring the account current, they wanted the ENTIRE amount (Lawyer fees included) immediately to stop foreclosure proceedings. I admit a certain amount of ignorance in not paying attention to the fact the money was being sent back to my account. But this account was strickly for paying this mortgage and my car note. I never look into it, because it it pays the bills for me, and I only keep what I need to pay the bills in it! Needless to say, I'm shopping for another bank to hold my Mortgage.

I had a Chase Visa card that I canceled because I did not trust a car dealer who got the card number in a transaction.

You know when you return merchandise sometimes to a store like Target or an online store, the merchant simply credited the charge back to the credit card number that was used to purchase the merchandise. Well, two credits went to the canceled card number that NEVER appeared anywhere on my statements. That was a $40 ripoff from Chase Bank, even after all the phone calls and written postal mails from me.

In another case of ripoff by Chase, in March 2006, I moved my IRA money from Chase to Fidelity as a trustee to trustee transfer, i.e. a direct transfer from Chase to Fidelity, and guess what, Chase charged me a $50 FEE to withdraw my IRA money!!! Of course when you open an IRA with Chase, nowhere on their Web page says anything about a fifty dollar fee to withdraw your IRA money later.

I now avoid Chase Bank like a plague.

bump

Hello,
Thank you for your information.One thing I'm not clear about: you refer to the Comptroller of the Currency Administrator of National Banks and also to the OCC. What is the OCC?

I just fell victim to this apr raise as well. Talked to customer servers rep on phone yesterday, nothing they could do. Went into CHASE tonight to talk to personal banker who called someone - nothing they could do. Called again when I got home - they insist I got this letter in the mail. I NEVER got this letter. It wasn't certified? What if the post office lost it? I had no chance to cancel. Why would I not cancel if I new about it??!?

Now I have to go back into Chase tomorrow to talk to the personal banker and take out all of my money and cancel all of my accounts AND setup all my direct deposits and withdrawals with someone else. NIGHTMARE!!!!

I just thought this would be an isolated case. Very surprised to see I found this Epinion so quickly.

Since June, Chase Bank has charged my checking account $150 for "insufficient funds" although I had plenty of money in the bank; a monthly "software maintenance fee" of $9.95 although I never signed up for the service; and a $22 fee when the bank closed my accounts because I complained too much about the other illicit fees.

In July, I sued the bank and now I have added a racketeering claim under Wisconsin statutes.

If you have been ripped off by Chase Bank, please contact me at geoff@shorewoodvillage.com

I've had an on-going experience with Chase. I've been a Chase customer for 19 years. That sort of thing means nothing to Chase as others have noted. My credit limit is pretty high with Chase, as well. I've always found it a bit confounding how Chase finds you credit worthy to keep raising your credit limit, but then tags you a risk in order to raise your apr. This company is a contradiction in so many ways. ANYWAY, my specific caseS started to occur after making large payments to Chase. I find this fairly unpalatable. Why would someone - a credit risk - make thousands of dollars worth of payments over a few months? If he/she were going to claim bankruptcy or something. I would stop paying Chase altogether. I mean, I could keep my money AND stop paying them anything. Why would legitimate credit risks give Chase money - let alone large chunks of it? You're a credit risk for paying off your card faster than they want you to? Why are customers penalized for making payments? Of course, we know the answer. They fear losing interest money, so they want to get as much from you as they can before you get out. The credit risk crud is just a smoke-screen (legal loophole?) to steal money from you while they still have you to steal from. My question is WHY is this practice not illegal? It's fraudulent at best. I'll be saying goodbye to Chase shortly.

THESE ARE THE SNEAKY ANNOUNCEMENTS. They are sometimes folded in with the special offer for a rhinestone ring for 4 easy payments of $19.99. Or worse, they come in a shiny folder that looks like another offer for something or other. This thing is so underhanded that you can look at it for five minutes and you can't find the word CHASE. It has a return address in Delaware. That's vampire paradise. One of the few states that allows usury. It has the last four numbers of your card but it appears to be part of a mailing that is not complete. It's purposely confusing so that you will not act and just get a bill with the higher rate and then it's sealed in stone. Why there is no action on them yet? I think we are all aware of what is going on. Just too scared to think it can really be happening.
Remember, they never get nailed for luring people into the web and entrapping them. Why don't they do a show on this instead of debt reduction? Maybe Oprah needs to take this one on.
It's awful. PS The person who is answering your call is a miserable meanie.