Wells Fargo, I don't understand
To the staff for Senator Warren and for Representative Perlmutter - I have tried to be concise in the description below. That said, I would expect you to become quickly bored. That said, I hope you will skip the reading and go to the next sentence.
What do I hope you will do? Please forward this to the appropriate government department or committee that might care what Wells Fargo does to a customer. Hopefully the people you send this to will have the fortitude to get through this document.
What do I hope you will do? Please forward this to the appropriate government department or committee that might care what Wells Fargo does to a customer. Hopefully the people you send this to will have the fortitude to get through this document.
I copy my concluding sentences here for the consideration of the Senator and the Congressman.
I do not believe these Wells Fargo statements succeed in providing their customer (me) anything close to a clear and total understanding of the financial transactions in this account. I have the very strong feeling that confusion must be the bank's intent.
And with regard to my remaining confusion as I study these statements:
I'm sure there is a paper I signed that says I understand all this, and that the signed statement overrides any verbal discussion. I'll stand by those signed papers although it never occurred to me that monthly finance charges would go up even as principal balance goes down. I've started a business with my son and this loan is necessary. But I'm not a fan of my bank. It feels too much like a payday loan. I thought I was pretty smart.
I do not believe these Wells Fargo statements succeed in providing their customer (me) anything close to a clear and total understanding of the financial transactions in this account. I have the very strong feeling that confusion must be the bank's intent.
And with regard to my remaining confusion as I study these statements:
I'm sure there is a paper I signed that says I understand all this, and that the signed statement overrides any verbal discussion. I'll stand by those signed papers although it never occurred to me that monthly finance charges would go up even as principal balance goes down. I've started a business with my son and this loan is necessary. But I'm not a fan of my bank. It feels too much like a payday loan. I thought I was pretty smart.
Dear Wells Fargo:
I have tried to discuss the matter with Wells Fargo to no avail. I now believe that Wells Fargo has a systemic problem that continues and goes far beyond just hanging their own employees out to dry for corporate misdeeds.
This communication will go to my congressman Ed Perlmutter who is known for getting things done; and to Senator Elizabeth Warren, who's stances on protecting citizens from big banks is legendary.
The problem: I have two statement from Wells Fargo regarding a new home equity loan. I find the statement not only confusing, but to my way of thinking, designed specifically to be beyond understanding. I add that I am a graduate accountant and a 50-year IT professional including substantial work in bank systems and customer service. Four people at Wells Fargo have each passed me on to someone else. I haven't been contacted by the promised fifth person.
Working with Wells Fargo: On December 1st I took the time to go to my branch and ask about these statements. My Personal Banker, Elizabeth Corrigan, asked the vice president ("Vice President, Sr. Regional Private Banker") that set up my loan if she could explain the statement. Ms. Corrigan was told to handle my situation herself. I had no problem with this.
I am compelled to say that these two individuals have been excellent in helping me, even when I asked them to immediately close a credit card which I apparently signed up for. They reversed the $50 annual fee which was the giveaway that I had made a mistake in opening the type of credit card I never would have opened. They took care of this immediately.
It turned out the Ms. Corrigan could not explain the statement so she connected me with a person in the loan servicing back room. I asked my questions and was advised that we needed to talk with a person from "Personal Lines and Loans". That person was Michelle Salsbury who told me she could not answer my questions and that I would be contacted by some higher up with the answers. I asked who was the ultimate person who might help me and Ms. Salsbury said it was a group call the "Executive Office" that was recently formed to look into the customer relationships in Wells Fargo. I asked for their number and was told they don't take calls from customers.
Ms. Salsbury told me that all of my discussions are recorded in my file under reference XQR336A170510. This is a file I am not permitted to see. Now after talking to four people in Wells Fargo on this matter, and waiting for the next, I write this letter.
- (On December 13, 2016 I tried one more time to talk to Wells Fargo. I spoke with Tachyiana Cummings, I believe of the "Executive Office", who told me that there was no way possible for Wells Fargo to look at this web page I created to document my problem. I'm familiar with such tight security, but there was always a way, particularly if it was needed by the senior customer service personnel. I was disappointed to here this, but now will turn to sending this to persons that can use the Internet.)
I have tried to discuss the matter with Wells Fargo to no avail. I now believe that Wells Fargo has a systemic problem that continues and goes far beyond just hanging their own employees out to dry for corporate misdeeds.
This communication will go to my congressman Ed Perlmutter who is known for getting things done; and to Senator Elizabeth Warren, who's stances on protecting citizens from big banks is legendary.
The problem: I have two statement from Wells Fargo regarding a new home equity loan. I find the statement not only confusing, but to my way of thinking, designed specifically to be beyond understanding. I add that I am a graduate accountant and a 50-year IT professional including substantial work in bank systems and customer service. Four people at Wells Fargo have each passed me on to someone else. I haven't been contacted by the promised fifth person.
Working with Wells Fargo: On December 1st I took the time to go to my branch and ask about these statements. My Personal Banker, Elizabeth Corrigan, asked the vice president ("Vice President, Sr. Regional Private Banker") that set up my loan if she could explain the statement. Ms. Corrigan was told to handle my situation herself. I had no problem with this.
I am compelled to say that these two individuals have been excellent in helping me, even when I asked them to immediately close a credit card which I apparently signed up for. They reversed the $50 annual fee which was the giveaway that I had made a mistake in opening the type of credit card I never would have opened. They took care of this immediately.
It turned out the Ms. Corrigan could not explain the statement so she connected me with a person in the loan servicing back room. I asked my questions and was advised that we needed to talk with a person from "Personal Lines and Loans". That person was Michelle Salsbury who told me she could not answer my questions and that I would be contacted by some higher up with the answers. I asked who was the ultimate person who might help me and Ms. Salsbury said it was a group call the "Executive Office" that was recently formed to look into the customer relationships in Wells Fargo. I asked for their number and was told they don't take calls from customers.
Ms. Salsbury told me that all of my discussions are recorded in my file under reference XQR336A170510. This is a file I am not permitted to see. Now after talking to four people in Wells Fargo on this matter, and waiting for the next, I write this letter.
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The spreadsheet depiction on the right is a faithful reproduction of the portion of the statement that I have in question. I have added the line numbers for discussion purposes. The original statement can be found below.
The nature of my relationship is that I have an approved equity line of credit on my house for in excess of $300,000. I can draw on that line at any time, and up to twice a year, I get a one year very favorable rate. Lines 10 through 14 seem to represent my depositing a check from the equity line of $60,000. This was done at the teller window on 9/15. Simple enough in my mind. But what is the 9/16 transaction and what is the 10/7 charge of $6.76 in interest on the main account? This is one of my questions. Lines 21 through 28, a recap of Principal balance, is the portion of this statement that struck me as peculiar. As an accountant and a designer of customer statements for banks, I expect a ledger which has two columns to make sense: the list of "Transactions" should balance to the beginning and end "Principal Balance" plus the "NEW fixed Rate Advance". OK, but why have lines 26 and 27 listed in the transactions that start with a "Previous Balance" and end with "Ending Balance". That is unless this intended to be confusing.
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The numbers don't add up. The transactions that do apply are lines 23-25 which are marked "Principal". Lines 27 and 28 have nothing to do with principal. It is interesting that lines 25 and 26 add up to $230.64 which is the fixed payment amount for my special deal.
The magic line 27 is the one that made Wells Fargo people say I needed to talk to someone higher up. What is the $91.73? The first two people I talked to had no clue. Ms Salsbury said is was an estimate of the interest for the next month. But wait a minute, $91.73 appears lower as the finance charge for my Fixed Rate Advance. I also hope to get a understandable definition of (26) "Finance Charge/Interest Payment" and (27) "Periodic Finance/Interest Charge". I do not believe it is reasonable for Wells Fargo to have these transactions without definitions that a graduate accountant and senior IT person can easily understand.
The magic line 27 is the one that made Wells Fargo people say I needed to talk to someone higher up. What is the $91.73? The first two people I talked to had no clue. Ms Salsbury said is was an estimate of the interest for the next month. But wait a minute, $91.73 appears lower as the finance charge for my Fixed Rate Advance. I also hope to get a understandable definition of (26) "Finance Charge/Interest Payment" and (27) "Periodic Finance/Interest Charge". I do not believe it is reasonable for Wells Fargo to have these transactions without definitions that a graduate accountant and senior IT person can easily understand.
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On the right is the next statement, November 07, 2016. I had hoped the second statement would clear everything up.
I don't know what lines 46-50 are about, but just maybe, Wells is mystically returning the $6.76 they pulled in the prior month. The "Principal Payment" and "Principal Adj Debit" net to zero, but now we have new terms, "Adj" and "Debit". The back room surely knows. As for line 58, we see my principal payment. No mention is made of the portion of that payment that went to interest. How can I make a payment and have it all go to principal? In the prior month we saw undefined terms for "Interest Payments" and "interest Charges". What is a "Principal Reversal" that doesn't affect principal? OK, let's say that the interest is in a separate set of books. I don't like that. It's not revealed as every other bank I have word with or for does as "Interest year-to-date". The $102,44 is as mysterious as the $91.73 in the prior month. It is called a "Finance Charge for Fixed Rate Advance 1001", but it does not seem to track with the interest actually deducted from my payment. |
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Now comes the December statement. I will not go through the same confusion as earlier months. However, there are two new elements that strike me.
What is the 12/01 principal payment we see in line 89. Who did that? What is this about? Should I not know what's going on here? And then while I'm not clear about the "Finance Charge for Fixed Rate Advance 1001" numbers of $991.73, $102.44, $109.33 for October through December respectively. I thought interest payment always go down when payments are made on time. Am I compounding my debt??? I recall being told, "The payments during the special rate period are not actually intended to pay off the loan in any reasonable period of time." It never occurred to me that there was some hole I was digging. When the special rate is in effect, and the bank is determining my payment amount, I believe I was logical in assuming that the payments would at least stay even with interest. |
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So with regard to the statements:
I do not believe these Wells Fargo statements succeed in providing their customer (me) anything close to a clear and total understanding of the financial transactions in this account. I have the very strong feeling that confusion must be the bank's intent.
And with regard to my remaining confusion as I study these statements:
I'm sure there is a paper I signed that says I understand all this, and that the signed statement overrides any verbal discussion. I'll stand by those signed papers although it never occurred to me that monthly finance charges would go up even as principal balance goes down. I've started a business with my son and this loan is necessary. But I'm not a fan of my bank. It feels too much like a trick payday loan. And I thought I was pretty smart.
I do not believe these Wells Fargo statements succeed in providing their customer (me) anything close to a clear and total understanding of the financial transactions in this account. I have the very strong feeling that confusion must be the bank's intent.
And with regard to my remaining confusion as I study these statements:
I'm sure there is a paper I signed that says I understand all this, and that the signed statement overrides any verbal discussion. I'll stand by those signed papers although it never occurred to me that monthly finance charges would go up even as principal balance goes down. I've started a business with my son and this loan is necessary. But I'm not a fan of my bank. It feels too much like a trick payday loan. And I thought I was pretty smart.
Original Document Images:
October 07, 2016 Statement (Page 2)
November 07, 2016 Statement (Page 2)
December 07, 2016 Statement (Page 2)
