Watch out for WAMU Bank THEY WILL RUIN U
by harleyray (Subscribe)
Posted on: Jul 22, 2008 at 1:00 PM PDT
Channel: Local News
Location: WAMU harbor point branch
let me start by telling u i own my own concrete company called C.T.W Construction.....
my husband and i recieved a $5000.00 check from a contractor about 3 months ago. we deposited into our buisness account without taking any money out. we recieve a call a week later saying our account is going to be red-flagged as a resault of the CONTRACTOR stopping payment on his check. now we haven't taken any money from this check out of the bank, it is ALL sitting in our account. but for some reason the bank feels we need to suffer for an action done by the contractor and proceed to red-flag our account. after they figure out we had NOTHING to do with this, its now been 2 weeks that we couldn't access ANY of our accounts. we also have 2 kids, 5 and 22months that we couldn't buy food or diapers for. we couldn't run our buisness because we couldn't pay for gas or materials.
so fianally thats done right, everythings open, WRONG!!!
my hubandand i go in to WAMU to just double check that our secured credit card is open for real because we are going to deposit $1600 on it, we were told 'its open and ready to go!' so my husaband and i deposit the $1600. we go to use the card and the card says ITS BEEN CANCELLED!!! can u belive it! so we went back to the bank and were told someone ACCIDENTLY cancelled it, and the person that did it DOES NOT HAVE THE POWER TO RE-OPEN IT! the person who does however, wont respond to them. it has now been 2 months that we have been sitting here loosing money cause we can't work and are unable to provide for our family. we have gone into the bank and called EVERYDAY trying to get this resolved. most recently, today, i spoke with the bank manager Lori, (this has all happened in mukilteo at the harbor point branch) she was QUITE RUDE! told me that 'it was my fault' and hung up on me. the bank is refusing to pay for our time and money lost because of them.
SO STAY AWAY FROM THE HARBOR POINT WAMU! BAD CUSTOMER SERVICE ALONG WITH INCOMPATENT EMPLOYEES AND RUDE MANAGERS!!!!!!!
Contact Jessie at KOMO TV. He takes care of problems like this. I too have felt like a criminal at WAMU, so I just pulled out completely. After all the years and money I have deposited there every time I go in I am finger printed,
So your entire business depends on this one $5000 check from 3 months ago?! Do you not have any other checks coming in? No other accounts? No SAVINGS?! Spare us the "can't buy baby food and diapers" story. You R foolish to not be better prepared!
WA MU has screwed us over too!! Lake Stevens branch. File a complaint with federal thrift authorities! They deserve to go belly up!
i'd be calling a lawyer NOW.
Please take any critism with a grain of salt on any company. This is HER version of the story, you never know what the bank's story is.
Why can't you work because of this? Did they break your kneecaps? Open another account somewhere else, like BECU and you can deposit the checks there and have access to the money while you resolve this.
ok so if the accoutant is frozen where did 1,600 come from ?? and why would you put it in.... i dont think we are getting the entire story here ??????????????????????
why is there a picture of a pit bull eating a baby on this page?
This is becomeing all to common an occurance these day's.We haven' lost our customer service, we gave it up. We have become a scociety of mindless sheep to slaughter. We have decided that this is acceptable behavior, are we willing to do something ??
they are really feeling the pinch of the sub prime mess and a lot of people lost a lot of money on wamu. Im thinking one small run on the bank and "poof" they will be history.. over 7 billion in losses so far. they dont have the capital to go on
HMMM ...amanda sounds like maybe she works for wamu. any rudeness by a manager should be reported to some higher ups
WooHoo......... The slogan says it all. Surprise..... Ready to have your account screwd up by Washington Mutual? They just lost 3.3 Billion dollars. get out while you can!
Slight correction mike - that's TWO pit bulls vs. one infant....
I too have been screwed over by WAMU. Long time customer... plenty of $ in accounts. Deposit a work check from our place of employment and out of the blue... they put a 2 week hold on it. Same place I have deposited from for years. ODD!
Wow- if the check had a stop payment on it, what kind of money do they think they are getting back? Hm, I think there is a lot more to the story than these whinners are saying. Also, if they have a secured credit card that tells me their credit sucks
It sounds like these folks don't know how to run a business and they want to blame someone for it. Maybe WAMU is smarter than we think, maybe they don't want to continue taking losses from loosers like these folks. There are 2 sides to every story!
When someone ads a story like this, does the system prevent the use of paragraphs? It reads like a meth head wrote this.
Seems like this family makes bad choices all around - mixes their personal account with their business account, unable to manage their finances and letting pit bulls snack on their infant.
I think the bank story is your focus but, you will be more successful, in the long run, if you shift the focus to why the contractor stopped payment, focus on doing your best work and finishing. Setup payroll to pay yourself in another account.
wow you folks must be very irresponsible.. you know contractors have liceneses... and if their license gets flagged guess what...you no get no cement with building materials in demand no one gives contractors with bad marks on their license anything!
you guys are too fast to point out you usually have history of bounced checks and Overdraft fees... I get my money same day available through teller never had any issues at various branches... must be something with your financial habits! *cough RIMS
Wamu has screwed me too. Raised my interest rate on a long good standing acct. Their trying to make up for their losses from good people. I transfer my balance elsewhere.
I also bank at wamu with my business account. I've been told they only fingerprint someone that doesn't have an account there, so Anonymous unless that changed you didn't have an account there.
This story SO does NOT add up! I agree with the poster(s) above who wonders not only WHERE did $1600.00 come from if they cant work, but also WHY ON EARTH would they put that money is a WAMU acct? Oh by the way..Jesse works for KING NOT KOMO!
"INCOMPATENT"!!...HAHA!! What a loser!!
Hopefully the nasty critics of this post will experience thier own banking nightmare so they can relate to this person. Banks have become too powerful and need more regulation. In the last 20 years banking has become a joke. No service, just lies.
transfered your balance? so you did not pay your full bill off, you get whats coming to you when your irresponsible with money if your responsible payback everything No Problems!..WaMu is a good bank for responsible people with common sense to budget
As I read between the lines, probably the contractor had an issue with whatever work was done, thus stop payment. They have probably bounced checks in their acct--have secured cc's because they are not fiscally responsible.
Pitt bulls near a baby who is defenseless = trouble. Reconsider your priorities before too late.
I used to work for the bank and it sounds like there are other issues you haven't mentioned. That is not normal practice. If you were unhappy with the first incident then why didn't you leave then? Blaming a bank for your failing business is ridic
My god. Did this person go to school at all? Lady, have you tried to read what you wrote?
I was doing online banking. When my step-daughter downloaded something onto my computer it contained a virus where keystrokes are copied someone stole the last $500. Even with proof they made me pay back the $. They don't give a rip about customers.
Why can't people spell anymore?? Use a dictionary!! Make friends with books...it will make you seem so much more credible if you can get through just ONE sentence without a spelling error!!
They stopped the check due to poor craftsmanship people! I've seen the work and there is more to the story!
Thought I'd let Patty know, when something like that happens they close all your accounts not just the one.... I've been there too when my purse got stolen, they wouldn't do anything but keep letting the balance go down. 3 day's 12,000...
Its a shame, I had a similar problem with wamu and ended up callling the treasury department to have it resolved. They wouldn't honor a check from Chase Manhattan bank because it was out of state and held it for over three weeks.
Business profiles should be separate from personal profiles. Therefore this issue doesn't happen. Sounds like these two types of accounts are mixed, which sounds like a user error not a WaMu error.
Why anybody is defending WaMu amazes me. They screwed up and screwed over this family and this business. If it happened to you I'm sure you wouldn't be too happy. WaMu is a JOKE. I would never bank there.
to geeze, for your info I have outstanding credit and have had for 30 years! Last year when I needed surg for breast cancer, I did not have the out of pocket expense for my insur, so put it on a wamu card. $1200 on a $10,000 credit limit. 0 bal due
If the contractor never made a "stop payment" you wouldn't be in this situation. Why did they stop the payment anyways? Dare to give an honest answer? You own a business yet you need a secured card? None of this makes sense.
If they had such a problem with the first check, why on these green acres would they ever go back to WAMU to deposit the second check? If you really feel that this bank has done you wrong, take your biz somewhere else. Simple.
The only reason for KOMO to run this article was that they were laughing so hard at the stupidity that they wanted to share the humor with the rest of the world. Thank you KOMO for giving me someone to laugh at!
I agree with other posters - there must be more to the story. And for WaMU - they are a good bank. People: What do you not understand about FDIC. Unless you have more than $100K, all your $$ is protected. If you have more, you can still protect it.
Wamu is the next Indy Mac. I don't expect it to be around much longer, why? Because the idiots on their payroll who approved loans for people who shouldn't have money loaned to them in the first place. I will be all to happy to see them go belly up.
bleeding heart here... seriously why are you complaining about a interest rate...why in the heck did you use a bank line of credit!?! You knwo hospitals have finance departments for that and are very helpful.. no excuse to get screwed over with that
to MAGGIE AND MIKE..the infant is PLAYING with the pitbulls THEY ARE NOT EATING HER! its ppl like you that give pitbulls a bad name...this is a pic of how LOVING THEY CAN BE! and WAMU screwed me and my family over too! and i was only 17 at the time
All I can say is people are right you should have had your personal money set aside from your business money, You have to be dumb to keep everything in one account, and there are ways around getting money and working without accessing your main acct.
umm, maybe you should read her post again. She claims that tehy blocked ALL of her accounts. Sure, maybe some of it is a stretch. I do believe there is some truth to this story. Has anyone taken a look at Wamu's stock price lately?
A business account is not connected to a personal account at WaMu, or at any other bank, unless you are a soleprop and not using a real business configuration. This story happened before the stock went down.
i delt with wamu years ago about 21 i think and havent been back since,i hope their stock tanks even more and they fold.nothing could make me happier.i also tell everyone i know not to deal with them.this story about the contractor doesnt surprise me
probably the issue is the customer service is now in India and 'they' operate 'by the book'. there is no personal contact, therefore if it isn't written specifically in their 'script/guide book', it doesn't happen. it's all in the interpretation.
jessie works at KING not KOMO
This reads like a Jerry Springer show.The amount of stupid people here is amazing!Downloading malware and blaming the bank because you don't have anti-virus running?Banks have too much power?People that can't pay loans have too much power not WAMU.
1) All financial industry stocks are down because the entire country's mortgage market is in trouble, not just WaMu. 2) None of the mortgage companies (not just banks) are turning a profit because they loaned money to people who didn't deserve it.
3) I have never understood why people bash a company instead of just working through the problem. "Why is my deposited check still on hold after 3 weeks?" "Why did my interest rate go up"? "What do I have to do to get it back down?" Be smart, people.
Too bad so sad......it is always the fault of someone esle. Payment was stopped for some other reason........not the fault of the bank. Get real/.........get smart. You don't sound like you or your husband have a clue how business works.
Mike: You must have not gone to the same school that Harleyray didn't go to.
Thanks for letting me know to NEVER use C.T.W Construction. If you can't manage your finances then I surely wouldn't hire you to do a job for me. GREAT promotion for the company, does your husband know you posted here?
If we can judge harleyray by her writing and use it as an example of her communication skills...? Really makes one wonder where the problem really lies!
It sounds to me that rather than paying to advertise the business they own, they say on here how they dont have work, money, etc., to try to get customers who feel bad for their predicament and will employ them.
After reading your story with so many mistakes in the writing and spelling. I think their is more to this story than you are telling. I think you have the problem. Why did the contractor stop payment? You didn't tell us that part.
you should never keep your business and personal accts. together, ever! I 've only had minor issues with WAMU and they have always been resolved right away. Tacoma Branches. I think those so called contractors are just shady.
Maybe if you wrote this article in a news article style, instead of a complaint letter style, and in a more neutral and balanced tone, your audience might find the story to be more credible. Proofreading, editing and spell checking helps too.
I am wondering why they have posted this info in what should have been pictures from viewers. Find your own forum to complain. Can't work? Why? If the bank screwed you once, or you were red flagged, why did you deposit money in the account again?
Will there be a follow-up story on this matter?
i'm so old i remember when you didn't have to analyze a bank's balance sheet before opening a passbook savings account. i'm not old enough to remember the bank runs in the 30's but i'm young enough to remember them happening now.
A lot of you have jumped all over this poor woman who probably wrote her story in a hurry and under stress. I too bank at WAMU and have had no problems. My advice to this person is: WHEN YOU HAVE A PROBLEM GO TO THE BANK IN PERSON.
Lookup CTW Construction on lni.wa.gov There are definitely some issues here. Look at previous or related companies and the summons and complaints. There is definitely more to the story. There is even an LNI infraction that not settled for $1000.
Wow tough crowd. I bank at BofA but I have learned something today. Currently, my small business account is linked to my personal account. I did for easy transferring back and forth. After reading all these post it sounds like I should change this.
Your account wouldn't be frozen from one occurrence. Maybe you should post your account history so we see the full story. If you're receiving such awful service than you should go up the food chain and contact the regional office.
If you do good work your buisness thrives... if you do bad crappy work you lose buisness that said I count on my contractors doin what they say on time they set per contract no contract bad license record I dont care how cheap ur i wont deal with you
Oh Yeah.. lets have a show of disgruntled contractors punching each other out... YEAH!!!... JERRY......JERRY.....JERRY
To Dave - It is "there" not "their".
This is to Amanda, what branch do you work with? To freaked out Pitt haters, they protect their families. If you get bit the dog wasn't loved and made to feel like family. Maggie, Try a personal acct.at Anchor, I've never been treated so well.
Amber, you shouldn't be transferring between your pers & biz accounts. You should set up a basic payroll - Costco has a good payroll processing option and then you pay yourself a check to deposit in personal account.
Sick of cold blooded, snide, brainless, co-inhabitants of this bankrupt nation. Anyone who would side with a bank, or anything like it should launched directly at the sun. Yes, they need a lawyer, but probably can't afford one.
Sheesh. I just looked closely at the picture. Two pit bulls and a little baby that is bugging them. Nice...
I had a mis hap too with WAMU, I have deposited numerous high dollar checks in to my account, never had a stop pay or any problems, all of a sudden i go in there with checks worth only 4,000.00 and they want to only give me credit for 100.00.
Some of you guys are real jerks! The lady said that WAMU froze ALL their accounts (not just one). My husband and I run our own business also and know it takes money to make money. In their case (a concrete business) the expenses are great.
As a WaMu employee, I can pretty much tell you that your story absolutely does not add up. If a secured card is closed, you can have one overnighted to you. Also, why not go to the contractor and have them give you a cashiers check for the $5000?
Tried BBB.org lookup on both WAMU Harbour Pointe Financial Center and C T W Construction. The bank branch and construction company apparently are not listed on BBB.org.
jellyfish doesnt know what he's saying. Wamu connects all accounts that you have together. i signed on my minor sons savings, so Wamu cashed a 3000.00 check for him based on my account! My son was scammed and I lost 3000.00
Consumers need to read the brochures banks hands them all the information needed is provided. "check holds" every bank holds funds, by law 100 is available.
It's a bad time for all, banks closing etc. so why not make a little finger error to earn some interest from customers funds, oh wow what a good idea. come on people everyones hurting today, how do you think they get there, ya your money!
I can't judge the people in this article, but I can pretty much judge which responders passed their English classes. Please make it a bit easier for others to read your posts by at least checking your spelling. How about grammar and usage?
Pattie says ...
On Tuesday, Jul 22 at 1:28 PM
I am sorry for all your issues but the fact your saying that your losing work and can't buy food for your kids. well 1 you should have a personal account for family things. It sucks but their R ways to keep working through this.