AN AMERICAN who only had one Chase bank account because he trusted it so much has shared why he regrets that decision.
The Chase customer urged others to make sure they get a second bank account immediately.
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“My ‘checking’ or everyday account was held at Chase,” admitted immigration professional Josh Pugh in a blog for America Josh.
“And the money that paid for everything came from this account.”
Apparently his paychecks from work went into his Chase account, his credit cards were being paid with money from that account, and the Chase card is what he keeps in his wallet.
This was all until the bank unexpectedly closed his account.
Pugh expressed that she lived in Australia before moving to the US and used a bank account she had had since she was six years old.
“I never thought much about it,” he added.
“When I started a business, I opened a new account, and when I wanted to save some money to save, I did that too, but at no point did I think that that relationship would end without me ending it.”
He moved to New York in 2017 when he opened his trust bank account with Chase.
Before her account was closed, Pugh said she really loved the bank.
“I liked them so much that after personally maintaining a Total Checking and Freedom credit card when I started my first business, I opened a Chase Business Checking account with them,” he confessed.
“And then I opened a Chase Business credit card with them. When I started a second business (America Josh), I opened another account with them, and another credit card as well.”
He went so far as to open a joint account with his wife through Chase as well.
The couple even dressed up as Chase ATMs for Halloween last year.
In April of this year, that’s when everything went sour.
WHY BANKS CLOSE ACCOUNTS RANDOMLY
Several bank customers are having their bank accounts closed suddenly and what happened or what they may have done.
- Inactivity
- If you rarely use a bank account or leave it inactive for long periods of time, inactivity or low usage could be the reason the bank closes your account.
- Violation of Terms and Conditions
- Bank customers who violate account terms put their accounts at risk of closure.
- An example of this is not maintaining a minimum balance if this stipulation exists.
- Frequent discoveries
- A bank may close an account if there are frequent overdrafts.
- This is especially true if the account remains negative for a certain period of time.
- Suspicious activity
- In an August 2023 survey that interviewed 1,141 Americans, GOBankingRates found data that nearly 40% of Americans have been victims of financial fraud, scams, and identity theft.
- Bank fraud is just one form of suspicious activity that can result in an account being closed.
- Other types of illicit activities that can lead to account closure include suspected money laundering or transactions related to illegal activities.
- Risk management
- A bank customer who frequently makes large and unusual transactions may be assessed as high risk.
- Commercial reasons
- Sometimes, closing an account is not always done by the customer. It could be the bank’s side, especially if they are restructuring or discontinuing certain types of accounts or services.
SOURCE: GoBanking Fees
Pugh received an email notification from the bank about fraud, which he said wasn’t “too shocking” because it’s not the first time he’s received the warning.
In the past, he would simply call Chase and confirm that transactions made with his money were his.
“And everyone goes their own way,” Pugh said.
“However, this time when I called, after confirming my identity, I was told ‘Chase is ending his relationship with you, your account will be closed within 10 business days,
“‘This is a final notice, there are no further comments or notes on the bill.’
Pugh was completely confused after hearing this over the phone from his beloved bank.
“I sat there, a little dumbfounded,” he said.
“And I thought to myself this must be a mistake and I’m going to go in and check with my local branch to find out what’s going on.”
Even after sitting down and talking with a Chase team member, he didn’t receive any additional information about why the bank was closing his account.
They told him exactly the same thing he was told over the phone.
“The repetition gets a little crazy after the third or fourth time you hear it, but there was no way forward,” he expressed.
“The ‘back office’ closed the account and they don’t need to explain why, and their decisions are rarely, if ever, reversed.”
Determined to find out why Chase closed his account since no one would tell him, Pugh turned to the Internet for answers.
“Reading the articles and Reddit posts until I came to this New York Times article from early 2023: Banks are closing customer accounts, with little explanation,” he said.
“The article explains that this didn’t just happen to me and is actually becoming more common. Accounts are closed, no real reason is given and that’s it. Which is crazy!”
There has been an increase in the number of banks closing people’s accounts out of the blue, as “the security software that banks use to detect criminal activity scares easily,” according to The New York Times.
“This sets off millions of alarms across the industry every year, and most of them are false,” journalist Ron Lieber said in the article.
“They close checking and credit card accounts, in part to keep regulators, who are concerned about money laundering and other criminal activity, out of their reach.”
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
