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I Fight Authority; Authority Always Wins (but NOT Today!)


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So, I go into the local bank branch at which I have been a customer for THIRTY-THREE YEARS and attempt to cash a check in order to pay my daughter some money we agreed upon AND to cash her paycheck. Two weeks ago, she merely signed her paycheck, I signed it, and it was cashed. Two minutes, out the door. This time, another teller demands all kinds of personal information and then asks for my Driver's License, which I hold up but do not hand her, allowing her to see that it IS me. She snatches it from my hand, and starts to key in the number!

 

I say, "Um, no. I do not want my driver's license number linked to my bank account; you have no need for that information. I can tell you forty things about my account I have had here for 33 years, and show you picture ID, which I have done. I cashed a check two weeks ago here and expect to do it again without extra hoops." She tells me that no, I did not, without this information, because that is "not bank policy." I say, "Oh YES, I DID...and with that guy there (next teller over, who is busy". She refuses to give me the money without my ID keyed in. I take the checks, tell my daughter I guess we will be opening her student account elsewhere and turn to leave. She is SO embarrassed, she tells me, after. No, embarrassing is when your clothes fall off, or you fall over on the ground, or you misspeak to a crowd, or you end up in Cleveland while driving to Orlando. Standing up for your privacy rights (and by extension, everyone else's) is your civic duty, not "embarrassing".

 

Yeah, I'm THAT woman...the one who would start beating up a guy with her purse who was harassing someone. I stand up for old people or disabled people, or anyone who is being mistreated and tell people to back off. Oh, she loves me....:tongue_smilie:

 

As I'm leaving, the bank manager at the counter stops me and asks me if he can help me. Rewind of above statements, with an audience of the Starbucks barista who works next door, who is dropping off some drinks. Manager agrees that I shouldn't have to jump through extra hoops after 33 years, but that "some of the tellers are new." New? There is complete turnover every six months at this branch, I tell him. That isn't my fault, that should require me to hand over unnecessary personal information every time I enter.

 

Long story short, he takes me to the teller, and tells her to give me my money, several hundred dollars, period. He apologizes, shakes my hand, and tells me to come back for that student account, though they don't have as good of terms as does the other small bank with whom I am comparing. Yeah. Right. I want worse terms and more hassle.

 

My daughter is mad, because I'm "so embarrassing." Whatever. She got her money, didn't she and I stood my ground? Well, yeah....

 

I told her that I am just doing what I should be doing, resisting the ridiculously invasive and that I hope she does it for me if I can no longer do it for myself, just like I protected my Mom. But I will be long offshore and maybe off the grid somewhere before that, I hope. (I can dream) ;)

 

She goes into the Starbucks to get me a Frap, and the barista guy remembers her and asks, "Did it work?" "Yeah, it did!" At least he wanted me to succeed! That reminds him it is possible to fight authority and win sometimes.

 

So THERE....:auto:

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Good for you!

 

(however, I like a bit of extra clarification, because my BIL and SIL both have impersonated my husband and myself)

 

Wow, really? That's awful!

 

These people see me every single month and have for 33 years, because there is one thing I pay off in person every month (whenever I run up anything on my single credit card). They've all seen me, including the guy that was standing right to the left of the teller, with whom I cashed a check two weeks ago!

 

The manager dude let me key in my bank account number, which of course, I have memorized, as I have had it 33 years! They did add two numbers to the front of it 20 years back or so, though, I reminded him. He looked at me uncomprehendingly.

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I am just envious...having spent the last 2 weeks having it out with my new (supposedly better) cell phone company and getting the runaround. Only iron persistence and repetition have had any effect, exacerbated by the "promise it, then kick it upstairs for disapproval" and "don't credit it until the next bill but demand payment" and "talk to a new person every. single. call." aggravations. I suggested they should be paying ME money for my time, but of course that got me nowhere.

 

You go!

Thanks. One word for you...."Consumerist.com"

 

This site is SO helpful. If you are having problems with the cell company, others probably are too, and someone has undoubtedly posted the email of someone in authority who can get things done.

 

I checked this site a couple of years ago, when, without warning or expectation, the bank changed my credit card interest rate from 4 to 14.9%, just because. I called customer service several times, only to be told, "NO ONE has the authority to change it back." Right. How dumb do I sound to you?

 

I checked Consumerist, found the (Big Bank name) CEO and his email, and emailed him a business type email laying out my case, stressing my 33 year loyalty and asking for the return of my interest rate and my extremely high credit limit, as I had earned it with my perfect payment record. He emailed me back and agreed! I thought it was a bot or something, so I emailed back and he responded again! Next day, someone called me from Big Bank Headquarters in NYC, agreeing to restore my 4% interest rate and my line which I wanted to maintain in order to keep my ratio of available credit to used credit (to pay low insurance rates, etc).

 

Done and done. Score! Fight authority!

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You rock, I would have done the same. Embarrassment isn't fatal. Even to a teenage girl. :D

 

Thank you (takes a bow...someone appreciates me! That never happens! :D)

 

Yeah, these are the days she will remember when she speaks of me when I'm gone, and they are playing Free Bird at my funeral...:tongue_smilie:

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I HATE banks! Recently I drove 3 hours to my mother's house because our house had a flood. I accidentally left my wallet, ATM card and driver's license at home. So I got into the bank that I opened my account in years ago, when I still lived in the same town as my mother. I can give them any security info they want. Nope, can't give me any money from my account without a driver's license. I have like 12 other kinds of ID but not the license. I have my credit card, also from the same bank, but just want to check that the payment I made on it went through before I go into the grocery store next door. She can't tell me if the payment went through. I tell her listen, I'm not asking how much is on the card, I'm not asking what the balance is. I can TELL you exactly how much the payment was for, and when it was made, and how, and just want to be sure that it cleared. nope...can't give me that info. I then replied...wait...if I call I can do this over a phone, and you don't need to see a photo ID then, right? She says "yes, that is right." So my snarky reply is, "Can you PRETEND we are on the phone talking?" That didn't impress her. I walk two feet to the right, call, and find out that yes, the payment cleared, plus get the balance, etc...all while standing staring at her. SO frustrating.

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My mother would embarrass me routinely as a child. I now attempt to channel her when I need to deal with a customer service issue.

 

I'm getting better. When they first started asking for thumbprints on cashing checks I might have offered my middle finger to one particular teller instead of a thumb.

 

Congratulations to you. I only have two places that raise my blood pressure, banks and doctors' offices. They make me twitchy.

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Standing up for your privacy rights (and by extension, everyone else's) is your civic duty, not "embarrassing".

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

I cannot tell you how many times I have said nearly the exact same thing. It usually does not work, but sometimes it does, and we have to keep fighting the good fight.

 

Terri

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Good for you!

 

I had to spend two hours on the phone once on vacation fighting with my credit card company because I did not want to give them a travel itinerary every time I left the house in order to avoid having my card deactivated. When it wouldn't work at a gas station, I called and they said they needed to know my intended destination and the dates I would be travelling. I told them if they were going to require that information I would simply close the account. There was a two hour run around with various customer service reps trying to convince me it was standard "policy," while I tried to close the account, only to be transferred again and again. In the end they finally caved and reactivated the card without the info, and I kept the account open but I haven't used it since and never will again. I only keep it open because it is one of my oldest accounts and so it helps my credit rating.

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My parents and I have done the same exact thing.

 

And, let me tell you what they are doing to business accounts-they are making the business sign a NO FAULT clause, meaning if they make a mistake you can't sue them to get your money back.

 

I despise banks.

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I HATE banks! Recently I drove 3 hours to my mother's house because our house had a flood. I accidentally left my wallet, ATM card and driver's license at home. So I got into the bank that I opened my account in years ago, when I still lived in the same town as my mother. I can give them any security info they want. Nope, can't give me any money from my account without a driver's license. I have like 12 other kinds of ID but not the license. I have my credit card, also from the same bank, but just want to check that the payment I made on it went through before I go into the grocery store next door. She can't tell me if the payment went through. I tell her listen, I'm not asking how much is on the card, I'm not asking what the balance is. I can TELL you exactly how much the payment was for, and when it was made, and how, and just want to be sure that it cleared. nope...can't give me that info. I then replied...wait...if I call I can do this over a phone, and you don't need to see a photo ID then, right? She says "yes, that is right." So my snarky reply is, "Can you PRETEND we are on the phone talking?" That didn't impress her. I walk two feet to the right, call, and find out that yes, the payment cleared, plus get the balance, etc...all while standing staring at her. SO frustrating.

Oh my goodness.

 

How STUPID is that? Arrgh. They are trying to drive us away, and into all online transactions.

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Good for you!

 

I had to spend two hours on the phone once on vacation fighting with my credit card company because I did not want to give them a travel itinerary every time I left the house in order to avoid having my card deactivated. When it wouldn't work at a gas station, I called and they said they needed to know my intended destination and the dates I would be travelling. I told them if they were going to require that information I would simply close the account. There was a two hour run around with various customer service reps trying to convince me it was standard "policy," while I tried to close the account, only to be transferred again and again. In the end they finally caved and reactivated the card without the info, and I kept the account open but I haven't used it since and never will again. I only keep it open because it is one of my oldest accounts and so it helps my credit rating.

How ridiculous.

 

I've never been asked this. Were you traveling internationally or long distances?

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Good going! Your daughter will appreciate it soon enough.

 

It's amazing how much information people want these days. Like when I try to buy a sweater at the mall and they want my phone number. Um, no... :glare:

 

No kidding! If I am standing there with CASH in my hand, don't ask me ANYTHING. Seriously.

 

I've heard Radio Shack is one of the worst offenders on the planet. But I don't shop there. They want name, address, phone, email, blood sample to buy a battery...:tongue_smilie:

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My mother would embarrass me routinely as a child. I now attempt to channel her when I need to deal with a customer service issue.

 

I'm getting better. When they first started asking for thumbprints on cashing checks I might have offered my middle finger to one particular teller instead of a thumb.

 

Congratulations to you. I only have two places that raise my blood pressure, banks and doctors' offices. They make me twitchy.

 

Ha ha. You should SEE me at the doctor's office. Like there is any freakin' way they are getting my SSN or any other personal information they do not need to know in order to treat whatever thing I am visiting for at the moment.

 

Need to know basis only. That's how I work.

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Ha ha. You should SEE me at the doctor's office. Like there is any freakin' way they are getting my SSN or any other personal information they do not need to know in order to treat whatever thing I am visiting for at the moment.

 

Need to know basis only. That's how I work.

 

When I took my son to the allergist, they wanted to know how difficult my labor was with him. Really? :001_huh:

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Ha. I closed my account with a bank last fall when they introduced fees after being a customer for 10 years. It required making a bunch of withdrawals every month, not having money in it. I thought it was idiotic. I closed my account and went to a credit union. Lo and behold, this weekend I saw a giant billboard advertising the bank's lack of fees. My husband even got this cheery email about how other banks have fees but they don't believe in them. It was so revolting.

 

I get the questions about birth with my kids. Did they require oxygen, what kind of birth, etc. nothing to do with the specialists involved. Bizarre.

 

Stores want your phone number so they can track you.

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So, I go into the local bank branch at which I have been a customer for THIRTY-THREE YEARS and attempt to cash a check in order to pay my daughter some money we agreed upon AND to cash her paycheck. Two weeks ago, she merely signed her paycheck, I signed it, and it was cashed. Two minutes, out the door. This time, another teller demands all kinds of personal information and then asks for my Driver's License, which I hold up but do not hand her, allowing her to see that it IS me. She snatches it from my hand, and starts to key in the number!

 

I say, "Um, no. I do not want my driver's license number linked to my bank account; you have no need for that information. I can tell you forty things about my account I have had here for 33 years, and show you picture ID, which I have done. I cashed a check two weeks ago here and expect to do it again without extra hoops." She tells me that no, I did not, without this information, because that is "not bank policy." I say, "Oh YES, I DID...and with that guy there (next teller over, who is busy". She refuses to give me the money without my ID keyed in. I take the checks, tell my daughter I guess we will be opening her student account elsewhere and turn to leave. She is SO embarrassed, she tells me, after. No, embarrassing is when your clothes fall off, or you fall over on the ground, or you misspeak to a crowd, or you end up in Cleveland while driving to Orlando. Standing up for your privacy rights (and by extension, everyone else's) is your civic duty, not "embarrassing".

 

Yeah, I'm THAT woman...the one who would start beating up a guy with her purse who was harassing someone. I stand up for old people or disabled people, or anyone who is being mistreated and tell people to back off. Oh, she loves me....:tongue_smilie:

 

As I'm leaving, the bank manager at the counter stops me and asks me if he can help me. Rewind of above statements, with an audience of the Starbucks barista who works next door, who is dropping off some drinks. Manager agrees that I shouldn't have to jump through extra hoops after 33 years, but that "some of the tellers are new." New? There is complete turnover every six months at this branch, I tell him. That isn't my fault, that should require me to hand over unnecessary personal information every time I enter.

 

Long story short, he takes me to the teller, and tells her to give me my money, several hundred dollars, period. He apologizes, shakes my hand, and tells me to come back for that student account, though they don't have as good of terms as does the other small bank with whom I am comparing. Yeah. Right. I want worse terms and more hassle.

 

My daughter is mad, because I'm "so embarrassing." Whatever. She got her money, didn't she and I stood my ground? Well, yeah....

 

I told her that I am just doing what I should be doing, resisting the ridiculously invasive and that I hope she does it for me if I can no longer do it for myself, just like I protected my Mom. But I will be long offshore and maybe off the grid somewhere before that, I hope. (I can dream) ;)

 

She goes into the Starbucks to get me a Frap, and the barista guy remembers her and asks, "Did it work?" "Yeah, it did!" At least he wanted me to succeed! That reminds him it is possible to fight authority and win sometimes.

 

So THERE....:auto:

 

 

WOOT! You remind me of my mom! Kick tush and take names! I didn't get embarrassed though :D I loved it when my mom did things like that!

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:iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

I cannot tell you how many times I have said nearly the exact same thing. It usually does not work, but sometimes it does, and we have to keep fighting the good fight.

 

Terri

 

Amen! I needed this post because I've been fighting authority with ebay and Paypal lately. :banghead:

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I'd have liked to see the teller's face when you came back with the

manager:D.

 

I'd just like to interject that in all likelihood not only was the teller told to put in the DL number as proof that she looked at the ID, it was probably also stressed to her that if she does not and something goes wrong, she could lose her job. The banks are terrible to customers, but the lower level employees are put in a bad position as well. They are told "policy" over and over and told what will happen if they don't follow it to the letter, but then the manager will give the customers what they want and allow the teller to be the bad guy. I was a teller when I got out of college, and I remember going to the restroom and crying after certain customers were so rude to me when I was just doing my job. I didn't make the rules. I even thought they were stupid, but I didn't want to get fired. I'm not saying don't fight the system- I don't give out personal info if I can help it- just don't be mean to people who have no control over the system.

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I'd just like to interject that in all likelihood not only was the teller told to put in the DL number as proof that she looked at the ID, it was probably also stressed to her that if she does not and something goes wrong, she could lose her job. The banks are terrible to customers, but the lower level employees are put in a bad position as well. They are told "policy" over and over and told what will happen if they don't follow it to the letter, but then the manager will give the customers what they want and allow the teller to be the bad guy. I was a teller when I got out of college, and I remember going to the restroom and crying after certain customers were so rude to me when I was just doing my job. I didn't make the rules. I even thought they were stupid, but I didn't want to get fired. I'm not saying don't fight the system- I don't give out personal info if I can help it- just don't be mean to people who have no control over the system.

 

Oh, I wasn't mean to her. In fact, I mentioned that I realize that she just worked there and was following SOP, but that I was following my SOP as well, and it was about the principle of the thing for me.

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How ridiculous.

 

I've never been asked this. Were you traveling internationally or long distances?

 

I was only 200 miles from my home, and I was at the beginning of a cross country trek to visit family. I was literally driving from one end of the country to the other. Of course they said it was deactivated to protect me from fraud, but it was really to protect themselves from having to cover fraudulent charges.

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:iagree::lol:

Yeah, I'm THAT woman...the one who would start beating up a guy with her purse who was harassing someone. I stand up for old people or disabled people, or anyone who is being mistreated and tell people to back off.

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:iagree:Just the other day someone at Half.com was trying to get me to give then my : full name, address, phone #, and b-day over the phone. I stopped her at the b-day, and said"NO". She was baffled, and took about a half minute to compose herself LOL

You go! I'm like you and fight authority. ;)
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