I am retired by SSA and have used a CHASE debit card to receive my pension in the past 8 years. According to our original contract, they charge me $6.00 a month on maintenance fees and I have 02 FREE ATM withdrawals a month (they charge me 3% from the 3rd on) and 04 FREE consultations with agents over the phone in Des Moines-Illinois. In the past 3 mos, I noticed a difference between what the local ATM charged my account in US$ and the CHASE account statements. I checked it up and found a hidden 3%. I called CHASE by phone, talked to a supervisor and, yes, he told me, the bank made a mistake and the money would be back in my account in 48 hours, and so it was. Next month, same thing, same supervisor, money back in my account. He was supposed to check what went wrong with "the system" in the previous months and report to me by regular mail.
This month, same "mistake" but a new supervisor, who did not identify himself, gave me some lousy explanation: because I live abroad (I have for the past 8 years), different exchange rates (my ATM receipt specifies the exchange rate used in the transaction as well as the total amount charged to my account in US$, including ATM fee) and charged US$1.00 for the consultation, the first this month that was supposed to be free. My questions are: 1) Can they add/raise fees without previous notice? 2) Can they carry hidden fees? 3) Is there a consumer protection agency, such as BBB or BR PROCON in the US, that may help solve this problem? Thanks in advance for any inputs, comments and thoughts on this issue.
This month, same "mistake" but a new supervisor, who did not identify himself, gave me some lousy explanation: because I live abroad (I have for the past 8 years), different exchange rates (my ATM receipt specifies the exchange rate used in the transaction as well as the total amount charged to my account in US$, including ATM fee) and charged US$1.00 for the consultation, the first this month that was supposed to be free. My questions are: 1) Can they add/raise fees without previous notice? 2) Can they carry hidden fees? 3) Is there a consumer protection agency, such as BBB or BR PROCON in the US, that may help solve this problem? Thanks in advance for any inputs, comments and thoughts on this issue.
