First National Bank Branches Causing Distress for Our Soldiers

About a year ago, I started a job with a great mortgage company, willing to pay me base plus commission. I was excited since it had been a while since I'd seen a paycheck and so I decided I had better sign up with a local bank to be able to cash them. Now I am not a huge fan of banks personally having had a few problems with them in the past, but this was all about to be put to shame as I, the unaware victim, signed my name to the account that would accrue me, and countless others, a headache full of debt and anger.

The 1st National Bank of Texas (FNBT), is commonly located inside a good number of Wal-Mart's throughout the Texas region, as well as having walk-in branches. However since I like many others spend a good portion of my money at Wal-Mart, I decided that being able to cash my paychecks at one of their locations would be easy, and convenient for me.

At first I started my account by just taking the checks to the branch and having them change them for straight cash on the day that I was paid, however after a while the desire for direct deposit grew and grew, and I couldn't ignore the great, free ten dollars that I'd get if I signed up for it. After talking to the branch they told me that I would be required to apply for the banks debit card to be able to access my direct deposit easily, so for a one time fee of $12.95, I went for it, and this is where my trouble began.

After receiving my first direct deposited paycheck I waited and waited for the card in the mail, bi-weekly check after bi-weekly check, and finally began to wonder if perhaps someone had stolen it out of the mailbox. I went back to the branch and spoke with a different woman this time, when she informed me that my card wasn't actually being processed because the woman who had taken the card 'order' had forgotten to mention that she required my thumbprint, signature and photograph. The woman was nice enough to refund me the amount I initially paid for the card, although I did still have to wait another two weeks to receive it. Not that big of a deal.

I let it go.

Then, however, the more I started to use my card, the more complicated things became. On-line statements never matched what the bank had, causing me to overdraft more than a few times, and on one occasion a bank employee put my money into the wrong bank account all together, sending some lucky schmuck my hard earned three-hundred dollars and change. After receiving the card I was on the phone with the customer service department of the bank so often, that they knew my name and I had on specific person I talked to always to deal with my issues. Constantly I was being charged with overdraft fees for items that the bank didn't clear until two months after I had made the purchases, and sometimes, had double charged me for items as well. Then one afternoon after the sorry excuse for a teller gave my money to someone else, the bank refused to refund me the Non-Sufficient Funds fees, and the overdraft fees, claiming that, 'they had already returned me more money than they were allowed' even though it was their fault!

I removed my direct deposit that day, and even now them and their sister branches will not let me open an account because they are under the impression that I owe them four-hundred dollars.

At this point I'm sure your thinking, "She should have kept better track of her balance..." or "Well not all banks are perfect...", however, there is something to be said about FNBT and its sister branches.

First National Bank of Texas was the 66th largest banking organization in Texas and controlled almost $300 million dollars worth in deposits in 1998. This was the same year the Federal Reserve Board approved an acquisition of Nueces National Bank out of Corpus Christi, who at the time controlled near $35 million in deposits. Over the years they began to acquire more banks and financial institutions in the region including Southside Bancshares, Inc., which included financial corporations in Delaware as well as Texas and the Alamo Corporation of Texas and its collection of Alamo Bank's of Texas. FNBT now controls over 70,000 branches and currently provides the use of it and its sister branches, 1st Convenience Bank and various Fort (Hood, Riley, Sill, etc.) National Bank, to the military to assist with the military branches direct deposit payments for soldiers, as well as deployment accounts for soldiers overseas, mortgages and loans.

You would think, that dealing with the people who help procure our freedom, that a bank would be stellar in dealing with their customers, helping them deal with their paychecks, and deployments in a timely, professional manner. However, you would be wrong as it seems it isn't just us civilian folk having to deal with the shady dealings of FNBT and its branches. The account of one customer states that, "In April of 2007, my son joined the Army. During the process of joining, his recruiter took him a Kroger grocery store in Arlington, TX, and instructed my son to open an account with 1st Convenience Bank. He never received his banking card or his checks and had no way to access his funds." After being gone for basic and AIT (Advanced Individual Training) for 4 months, he returned home to try and collect his paycheck earnings. After trying to close the account, he was told it would cost $129 to transfer his money out of the account, and luckily the mother and son discovered a branch had opened at their local Wal-Mart. "We immediately went to the branch, my son tried to close his account, but could not. He was promptly issued an ATM/Debit Mastercard (with a charge of $12.95 plus $1.00 per month fee! -- on top of the $1.50 charge each time the card is used) , and checks were ordered." After receiving these, the soldier was able to release his funds, however it seemed to his mother that these banks are doing nothing but trying to be as crafty as possible with the soldiers earnings, "...hoping that my son would soon be deployed to Iraq, whereupon he would not have access to his funds for at least 15 months.", in which case the bank would gain interest on the account and collect more money.

Another account claims "If I had all of the NSF fees that I've paid over the course of my time with this bank, I would have been able to pay off my taxes, ($3500.00), pay off my van, ($1200), pay off my loans that I've made to cover for the money that I thought I had but didn't because 1st convenience bank took it for NSF fees, and so on." On top of being denied for secured loans to help cover the cost of the money she and her husband were losing, the only loans she was allowed to have were the banks 'Fresh Start' loans, which are designed to put the negative balance , back into a positive balance. For example if you were negative $800.00 , the 'Fresh Start' loan would put $800.00 in your account to give you just that, a fresh start. However most of the reason behind granting their customers these loans, is based on the fact that the loan payment comes directly out of any direct deposit accredited to the account, so the bank has no fear of not being paid for it. But even with the fresh start loan, many customers find it almost impossible to avoid the unsightly and unreasonable overdraft charges as one customer says, "Each time I would start paying on one of these loans, right before it would be paid off, they would charge me something else for whatever reason, causing my loan to default or causing more fines or fees ending me up in another loan."

This goes without saying for their customer service in trying to fix these problems. One woman from Arlington, Texas was treated abysmally when she used her debit card for 7 transactions at the beginning of the weekend, and although she only had a penny left in her positive account, the following Monday night she withdrew a hundred dollars, knowing that she would be paying the $33 in overdraft charges and the $100 which she withdrew. However, upon reviewing her account the next morning, she was $231.00 negative. The bank had decided to hold all the debits and withdraw the $100 from the ATM transaction first, causing her to bounce 7 transactions, granting the bank almost two-hundred and fifty dollars in overdraft charges.

"About Wednesday, I received a call from the District Manager, he told me that he would refund $66.00 as a courtesy, but he would not refund anything more. If they can't refund NSF fees unless it was a 'bank error' why was he so willing to refund $66.00? Well, that courtesy refund, it never happened, imagine that."

So what do you do when a bank that controls the money of the soldiers that fight for us, at home and afar, tries to squeeze them for every hard earned penny through shady dealing and just plain bad business? Unfortunately there isn't much we can do except stop using the company, make sure to file complaints through evaluation companies like the Better Business Bureau and attempt to find a decent bank or credit union that isn't trying to pull the wool over our eyes. And of course it doesn't help that almost every soldier who enlists who does not have a bank account is directed towards a branch of First National for his or her direct deposit. If your interested in finding out if the First National Branches in your area are allowing this to go on, check here. www.Ripoffreport.com From Florida to Ohio branches all over the country are providing the nations finest with horrid banking procedures and round-a-bout rules to pocket the rightfully deserved pay.

One of two things must happen, we need to start fighting back against the company who is trying to do us wrong while our soldiers fight for their rights, or we need to shut them down and it is my own personal suggestion that if you are carrying an account with this company and think you are alone with your issues, chances are you aren't. Close the account while you can, and let someone know.

Robert deV. Frierson "Press Release"
www.federalreserve.com

"Public Information Documents"
www.federalreserve.com

Soldier Mom "Report: 1st Convenience Bank, 1st National Bank of Texas."
www.ripoffreport.com

Mizbevie "Report:,First Convenience Bank"
www.ripoffreport.com

Lisa "Report: First Convenience Bank"
www.ripoffreport.com