Complaint Review: Bank Atlantic - Port Richey Florida

I've banked in several different states accross the east coast, as well as used different banks in places I've lived. Each bank's individual style has varied from outdated, to newly integrated live banking. My mother is a banker in Maryland, my Aunt an accountant. I've worked with numbers my whole life, from assistant accountant at my childhood church to small business owner.

I opened my bank atlantic account in port richey at the begning of 2008, not too long after they opened that location. We opened a personal checking account, a personal savings account, and a buisness account. Needless to say, a lot of our money goes through this particular bank. When the accounts were opened, I asked several very specific questions, mostly regarding deposit availibility and fees, and I read all of the literature I was given. This is something I always do when I open an account, because I've found that some banks aren't exactly 'open' about how much of your money they'll end up with. Bank Atlantic has blown my mind.

Reg D is a banking term.. it's basically a law that states banks are not allowed to hold government checks. They are as good as gold, and availible immediately, just like cold hard cash. I recieve child support checks, which are state government checks, and supported by reg d. My first few deposits caused a rippling effect for the next month, because it took two days to clear, rather than the immediate result I was expecting. It cost my personal account a few hundred dollars.

When I asked a banking representative from bank atlantic why this happened, she told me it was my fault beacuse I didn't tell the teller that they were government checks. "They don't look like government checks to me." she said. Well, I used a same day deposit slip, and the left upper corner of the checks clearly state "Florida Department of... "

Okay, so they're idiots... I let them have the few hundred dollars (which as a family of five and counting, is kind of a small hit)

In any bank atlantic business account, in state checks are availible next day, out of state checks take two days. Okay, so why do my in state checks take three or four days sometimes, and my out of state can take up to a week?

When banking representitives are asked; "oh, but it didn't take three days, that deposit didn't post until .. bla bla bla"

Okay, so they're not nice... a few more hundred from the business. Go ahead, have it.

Bank Atlantic is 'leaniant' according to them. If your bank account has a negative balance... no problem. Just deposit the cash that day, you won't incur fees because they don't post until the following day.

So my buisness account was negative from the over 600 dollars in 'rolling' fees they had gotten me with for purchases ranging from under two dollars to, I donno, twenty bucks.... It was negative about 80 dollars on Saturday.. not Friday, I was to the bank three times on Friday... I went to the bank on Saturday and spoke to the tellar. I deposited 100 dollars cash along with my checks. She assured me that even though it was Saturday (they're open Saturday and Sunday, but any banking you do doesn't actually ' happen ' until Monday)... Even though it was Saturday because I had deposited cash, the cash would be immediately availible and I would NOT see fees on Monday.

F o u r M o r e F e e s.

That makes over twenty. In two weeks.

I make errors, and banking mistakes. Things happen. But over two grand later... I'm switching banks.

The rude customer service when you call... the excuses....

Good luck to those of you who chose to use Bank Atlantic, I wouldn't recomend it.

Every single time I've been to the bank, there has been some dissatisfied individual in there griping... Every single time.

I had to replace my debit card because they were losing thousand of dollars in fraud because of the sweet bay issue... I guess they're making their money back off people like me and you.

So angry

Port Richey, Florida

U.S.A.