What would be some good reasons not to bank with Chase?

Did you have any negative experience with them?

I bank with them. Their interest rates suck. I make much more interest with PNC and Suntrust. I only have an account with them because I take care of my aunt’s money and that’s the closest bank to her. I don’t mind going in the Chase bank though. That probably depends on your particular branch.

They were great with handling my POA paperwork.

@imrainmaker

Not really. I just hate going in the bank, waiting and dealing with the tellers. That’s all.

We left BOA and Wells Fargo to go with a smaller local bank. I just felt like I was just a means to an end with the bigger banks and maybe I am just the same thing to the local bank but when I pull up to the drive thru they know who I am and ask me how I am doing by name. I also know the tellers by name because they don’t change every two weeks and if I need to go inside I am immediately taken to someone who will help me and they bring me coffee or a drink depending on what time of day it is. If I need a loan, they are the ones who jump through the hoops to make sure I get it, not me. It is just a different atmosphere.
And then there is the nagging doubt that I have that the big boys will survive the next catastrophic bank failure because they are neck deep in the doo-doo.

@rojo

Love it, thanks for explaining.

Chase and Bank of America are both way-too-enormous greedy banking corporations that exploit interest and fees and penalties and so on to squeeze desperate people and make more and more money for those who already own most of the wealth on the planet. While many individual employees may be nice and well-intended (and many are former employees of smaller nicer banks which were assimilated into the larger banks), the companies themselves are part of one of the major malfunctions of humanity as we snooze our way to disaster, while they milk the system and cause people needless suffering.

Reasons not to bank at Chase? How about… Top 2,636 Complaints and Reviews about Chase Bank ?

Also…

http://www.seattleweekly.com/news/activists-shut-down-more-than-a-dozen-chase-bank-branches-across-seattle/
http://nypost.com/2015/05/28/chase-to-lay-off-nearly-5k-tellers-by-the-end-of-2016/

http://adage.com/article/opinion/fight-chase-bank-robot-apocalypse/309568/

As for BoA:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/bank-of-america-too-crooked-to-fail-20120314

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-orders-bank-of-america-to-pay-727-million-in-consumer-relief-for-illegal-credit-card-practices/

https://www.change.org/p/tell-bank-of-america-no-5-debit-card-fees

If I had to pick, I’d pick BoA over Chase. I have used both. I’d also pick both over Wells Fargo .

But before any bank, I’d recommend looking for a good credit union. They tend to offer most of the services of a bank, without the all-for-profit greedbag manipulative aspects.

@Zaku Thank you!

I have small accounts with Chase and BoA but my main banking is with a small local bank I can walk to. The big banks are always trying to up sell me services I don’t need; my local tellers know me and we always have nice conversations.

@AloraCrimson, how often do you need to go into a branch? I go in if I need more cash than I can get from the ATM or to get something notarized. That’s about once every couple of years. Or to visit former coworkers, but that has nothing to do with needing to go into the branch.

Credit unions and smaller banks are generally better in terms of not having a revolving door for their employees. If you must go into the branch, one of those may be a better choice for you.

@tedibear I enjoy going into my local bank’s branch.

@janbb – Many people do. It sounded like the OP doesn’t.

@tedibear But the question would seem to be why – is it because Chase is unpleasant or that she doesn’t want to have to go into a bank? I don’t have a dog in this fight at all, just stating that my experience in my small local bank is different from when I go into Chase or BoA.

@janbb – No dog here either. I interpreted the question a little differently, but I do see what you mean about the OP not wanting to go into her Chase branch specifically. My hope was to help her to not have to go inside if she didn’t need to, if she was trying to not switch banks.

@janbb

I just don’t want to have to go into a bank, plus Chase is unpleasant. I hate waiting in line, it takes forever and there’s only usually 1 teller where my bank is. Just a headache. So I was wondering if there were different options- and it looks like a credit union is the way to go.

@tedibear

I go into the bank like once a week to deposit cash and checks.

I know I can do the checks online and that I can deposit cash through the atm.

Still,

As someone else pointed out, I kind of don’t like the feeling of a big corporation. It just feels weird to me. I’m thinking of switching over to credit unions.

Yes..there will be other options available based on where you live. You can check them out for sure if don’t wanna continue with Chase. Whatever interactions I had with them were fine which is why I’m little surprised when you say you feel unpleasant going there.

Nobody loves their bank. Pick one and if it doesn’t suck too much, stick with it.

@bob_ I suppose you want a sandwich now?