Bank of America's Asinine Cashier's Check Security Policy
*begin sarcasm tag*
I seldom write negative posts or reviews, but I simply cannot help myself this time.
Several months ago, Bank of America adopted a new security procedure for customers requesting a cashier's check. Normally, I would applaud Bank of America for its attempt to keep their customers' accounts and deposits secure. However, this particular security procedure is laughable and borderline insulting.
After a customer requests a cashier's check, the teller reviews the customer's account looking for the last time the customer used a traditional check (what are those, right?). Of course, if you are anything like me, you have absolutely no idea when was the last time you wrote an actual check. I pay my rent with a cashier's check because I don't like waiting for a check to clear or waiting for the payment to be mailed if I were to use online banking.
So today I went to the Bank of America branch at the Valley Fair Mall in San Jose and endured the monthly gauntlet of third-degree questioning earning me the privilege to get a cashier's check drawn from my own money. (I wouldn't call out a particular branch on purpose or be that sarcastic, would I?) Apparently, it doesn't actually matter whether or not you remember when you wrote your last check; the teller merely has to ask the question as a formality to the screening process. Even though I didn't remember when I wrote my last check (causing the teller to give me a skeptical, accusatory look), I apparently passed the first round of screening.
After passing the first gauntlet ("When did you write your last check?"), the teller begins to process the cashier's check. Once you have signed the teller withdrawal slip, the teller must then compare your signature with your signature on file. Of course, you had better watch out if your signature doesn't match exactly. Since I was in a hurry, I signed my name with my first initial and last name, "Z. Fruhling" instead of "Zachary Fruhling." Of course, this deviance was unacceptable from the teller's standpoint, who promptly called the branch manager over to approve my cashier's check. (Can you picture my eyes rolling as you read this?)
What is ironic about this rigamarole is that, in an attempt to treat their customers accounts and security with respect, Bank of America tellers, in fact, do nothing but treat their customers in an insulting and accusatory manner. Aside from the fact that this new security process is insulting to the integrity and intelligence of the customer, it is laughable and ineffective. I passed the first round of screening without ever answering the security question asked, and (however annoying this is), I apparently just had to sign my name in the proper format to get my cashier's check. Mind you, this is already after I swiped my debit card and entered my secure pin number into the touch pad mounted at the teller's window.
The manager, for what it's worth, sensed my frustration at this nonsense and tried to apologize, reiterating the party line that this is all for the benefit of my own security. Of course, the very attempt to reiterate the value of this asinine security procedure did nothing but make my blood boil further. I basically replied, "Look, I know you have a job to do and a process that you MUST follow, but I am sick and tired of this third-degree every month when I come in for my innocuous and fraud-free cashier's check. I have been thinking about finding another bank for quite a while, and I may do just that in order to find another bank that treats me with better respect when I need a simple cashier's check." *stern, disapproving teacher voice*
To this, the branch manager tried to tell me that it is my choice to get a cashier's check and I could use online banking instead. Needless to say, I had to bite my tongue at that reply. Who is the branch manager to tell me what I need to do with my own money and how to handle my personal finances???
Well, to make a long story short, I did eventually receive my cashier's check, after the Bank of America gods apparently deemed me worthy to use my own money to pay my rent. Has anyone else had recent trouble getting a cashier's check from Bank of America? Someone really needs to sit down with the Bank of America executives and read them the riot act about how to treat customers with respect and trust. In case any of them end up reading this post, trust in your customers and your customers' security are not mutually exclusive. Process for its own sake is ineffective, insulting, and an enormous waste of your customers' time.
*end sarcasm tag*
