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Fantastic Rant ...

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mahesh2k:
Is it just me or the link in first post is not working anymore ?

Carol Haynes:
Still works here ... if you can't read it here it is quoted in full:

ArticleSubject: Senior moment - A 98 year old woman in the UK wrote this to her bank.

The bank manager thought it amusing enough to have it published in the Times.
Dear Sir,

I am writing to thank you for bouncing my cheque with which I endeavoured to pay my plumber last month. By my calculations, three nanoseconds must have elapsed between his presenting the cheque and the arrival in my account of the funds needed to honour it. I refer, of course, to the automatic monthly deposit of my Pension, an arrangement, which, I admit, has been in place for only thirty eight years. You are to be commended for seizing that brief window of opportunity, and also for debiting my account £30 by way of penalty for the inconvenience caused to your bank.

My thankfulness springs from the manner in which this incident has caused me to rethink my errant financial ways. I noticed that whereas I personally attend to your telephone calls and letters, but when I try to contact you, I am confronted by the impersonal, overcharging, pre-recorded, faceless entity which your bank has become. From now on, I, like you, choose only to deal with a flesh-and-blood person. My mortgage and loan payments will therefore and hereafter no longer be automatic, but will arrive at your bank by cheque, addressed personally and confidentially to an employee at your bank whom you must nominate. Be aware that it is an offence under the Postal Act for any other person to open such an envelope.

Please find attached an Application Contact Status which I require your chosen employee to complete. I am sorry it runs to eight pages, but in order that I know as much about him or her as your bank knows about me, there is no alternative. Please note that all copies of his or her medical history must be countersigned by a Solicitor, and the mandatory details of his/her financial situation (income, debts, assets and liabilities) must be accompanied by documented proof. In due course, I will issue your employee with PIN number which he/she must quote in dealings with me. I regret that it cannot be shorter than 28 digits but, again, I have modelled it on the number of button presses required of me to access my account balance on your phone bank service. As they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Let me level the playing field even further. When you call me, press buttons as follows:

1. To make an appointment to see me.
2. To query a missing payment.
3. To transfer the call to my living room in case I am there.
4. To transfer the call to my bedroom in case I am sleeping.
5. To transfer the call to my toilet in case I am attending to nature.
6. To transfer the call to my mobile phone if I am not at home.
7. To leave a message on my computer (a password to access my computer is required.
A password will be communicated to you at a later date to the Authorized Contact.)
8. To return to the main menu and to listen to options 1 through to 8.
9. To make a general complaint or inquiry, the contact will then be put on hold, pending the attention of my automated answering service. While this may, on occasion, involve a lengthy wait, uplifting music will play for the duration of the call.

Regrettably, but again following your example, I must also levy an establishment fee to cover the setting up of this new arrangement.

May I wish you a happy, if ever so slightly less prosperous, New Year.

Your Humble Client

(Remember: This was written by a 98 year old woman; DOESN'T SHE MAKE YOU PROUD!)

cmpm:
hm, well I think snopes is wrong in their closing remarks.

http://www.snopes.com/business/bank/takethat.asp

Saying that should this situation present itself, it's more the customers fault.
I have to disagree, seeing that my bank used for 5 years of service (so far) will cover any checks with insufficient funds (I can't remember if there is a limit) for a period of 7 days before any rejection or penalties.

Stoic Joker:
hm, well I think snopes is wrong in their closing remarks.

http://www.snopes.com/business/bank/takethat.asp

Saying that should this situation present itself, it's more the customers fault.
I have to disagree, seeing that my bank used for 5 years of service (so far) will cover any checks with insufficient funds (I can't remember if there is a limit) for a period of 7 days before any rejection or penalties.-cmpm (January 09, 2011, 08:15 AM)
--- End quote ---

I was more than a bit irked by that rather unrealistic wise-crack also. The whole point of Electronic Deposit is it is supposed to be guaranteed and hassle free...Or at least that's what they tell you when you sign-up for it...

Back in the "Good Ol' Days"...There was also a courtesy practice of doing all the deposits first, and then the debits were done. Unfortunately that hampered their grubby fee collection claws too much so now they do it (backwards...) in what ever order they come to it in... (BS).

I had one shister credit card company that thought it would be a hoot to play games with the payment timing so they could jack my interest from 7% up to 30%. This was done under the rather foolish assumption that I would be a proper sheeple and just pay it... hehe ...Wrong. If they'd have just been a bit less gready...

Now I pay nothing, IMO they violated the spirit of the contract, and I have chosen to sever the relationship.  :D

40hz:
+1
I am so sick of people who can always find it in their hearts to blame the victim. (Shame!) :down:

Sad to see Snopes seems to be getting a little full of themselves too. I liked it more when they just reported the facts without feeling the need to make self-righteous editorial comments.

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