Bank Of America Has Lost My Business

I’m through with Bank of America.

The really sad thing about it is that it is not because of repeated instances of bad customer service — unlike many others whom B of A has lost through the years, mine was based on a solitary incident that exposed my financial information to would-be thieves, and while I can’t place blame on any one person, the person I interfaced with that potentially set the error into motion was a B of A teller here in Springfield.

Here’s the Reader’s Digest version of the Reader’s Digest version of what happened:

I needed to change my banking address from my folks’ house in Republic to the address in which I currently live. I traipsed on over to the downtown Springfield branch of the B of A to do this, and I received prompt service in which my address was changed to reflect where I currently live. I also ordered checks with my new address on them, and asked for them to be shipped to my current address. I then confirmed twice with the teller (in person, I might add; I did not go through the drive thru), and was on my way after being told my checks would arrive in seven to ten business days. Simple enough, right?

Well, last night during choir practice of all times, I get a call from my ex-girlfriend. We stopped speaking after the breakup so I knew it must be serious. I didn’t answer the phone (of course I didn’t answer it) so she left a message, in which she said some checks bearing my name had been mailed to her parents’ address in which I had previously lived. She said her dad simply threw them away.

Now in the first place, it’s bad enough that checks bearing my personal information were sent to the wrong address. It’s QUADRUPLE BAD that they were sent to my ex-girlfriend’s family’s address — an address I changed as soon as I moved to Hillsboro last March. That was three address changes ago. There is no excuse for that.

Anyone who has concerns about their personal information being secure knows the potential ramifications of what could occur because of this stupid error on the part of a B of A employee, who in my opinion needs to take a vacation, be severely reprimanded, and I wouldn’t mind if they were fired. This is someone’s money they have just put at risk.

As a result of this, I am ending all business with Bank of America. My account security has now been breached, I placed a fraud alert on it and have switched my assets over to a local bank.

All unnecessary because of one person’s gross error that breached the security of my entire bank account. I’m abandoning B of A and I will no longer encourage any of my friends or family to do business with them.

Stay away from B of A!