Wells Fargo Versus Bank of the West

So you have finally made the decision to open up a checking and savings account, or maybe you would like to change accounts. Wells Fargo and Bank of the West are among the leading competitors in the banking industry. I currently have accounts with both of these banking institutions.

I currently have been a member of Bank of the West for about 5 years now. I have been a member of Wells Fargo for a little under a year now.

About Wells Fargo:

• Offered us free checks, and debit cards, and no annual fee.
• Customer service is outstanding. They were always willing to work with you no matter what problem you might have.
• Can transfer to different customer accounts online.
• If you were over-drafted you would receive an e-mail ahead of time to let you know your mistake. This way you might be able to take care of the problem before you get an overdraft fee.
• There are not enough single branches out there yet. You might have to drive a little further to get to the
  bank.
  

About Bank of the West:

• Had to pay for checks and debit card, plus an annual fee.
• Sometimes it would take a half an hour to get a hold of a live person, and then I would cross my fingers and pray that they knew what they were doing.
• Can only transfer to different accounts over the phone, plus the hold time would take forever.
• If you are over-drafted no e-mail is sent. Hopefully you are just the type of person that checks their account balance everyday. This is the only way you can prevent any fees.
• It seems like there is a Bank of the West on every corner.
  

When I was about 8 ½ months pregnant I did not watch my Bank of the West account very well. I ended up bouncing off of my debit card. Unaware of this, within 2 days I had fees that were over $500.00. Some of them were as simple as a cup of coffee my Husband purchased for $1.61. I have never been over-drafted before so I called the bank to talk to them about this. They have a new policy, of coarse, where they are unable to refund any late fees. After 3 days of haggling I was finally able to $200.00 knocked off. I had to argue and fight my way with this bank for a simple mistake on my part. They were rude though the whole process, even to a pregnant woman. I have transferred everything except one bill to Wells Fargo I will never go back to Bank of the West again.