Eastern Bank
Very Bad Customer ServiceI wish I came before I financed a car through eastern Bank, I definitely would have gone elsewhere because they certainly live up to their 1.5 star average review regardless of the fun, happy commercials they run.
What happened here? Well… I had a car loan through Eastern that I paid off earlier this month.
They actually sent me a check for the amount that I had overpaid, seems good right? I thought so as well until today when they pulled another payment out of my bank account even though the loan was closed.
They confirmed it was closed in a letter with a snazzy little $8 check attached thanking me for my business, then they pulled another payment. After the loan was closed.
What? Why? Please explain?
Long story short, apparently (per the customer service rep *AND* their manager) it was my fault. My. Fault.
Yep, I was supposed to know that even though I confirmed payoff with another customer service rep, *AND* received a letter acknowledging the loan was paid (did I mention they thanked me for my business?) that I then needed to cancel my direct debit which I have never had to do with other financial institutions.
I feel shame for not possessing intimate knowledge of their internal banking systems.
So… I now need to wait 10 business days to get my money back. Oh, wait, they did offer a couple “great” solutions.
The first was to call my bank and put a stop payment on the loan. But wait, that incurs fees, will I be reimbursed? No, sorry, not in our protocol.
Second was to get some kind of a letter from my bank and they would “consider” sending my money back sooner. Consider. Not send mind you, “consider” sending.
And here we sit. I’m sure I’ll get a response from one of their reps feigning shock and dismay, looking to resolve this plight, like they did with the other negative reviewers.
Although I suspect that after calling them out just now that it won’t happen.
What did we learn on the show today? Avoid Eastern Bank. Repeat after me, avoid Eastern Bank.