Over the past two days, I have tried to close 2 different accounts. One was a membership for my daughter to a rec center that was not even a full membership. It was so she could take swimming classes. Well, she is getting them at her camp and we haven't gone back to the rec center. So I called them to cancel. I could have given them any piece of information they wanted -- but nope, I had to have it writing and it takes effect 30 days afterward? Fine, it is only $20 - I hate it, and because of it I'll never join them again.
Today, today takes the cake and has me rethinking where I keep my money. I paid off my HELOC and over the last few weeks there were a few charges - a maintenance fee, a late fee, and something else. The late fee was reversed as was the other. But the maintenance fee was still there. I decided I wasn't going to keep the HELOC open to pay for an account as a safety net. I go to the local branch and they have to call their HELOC center to get clarifications. We work it out and there is a zero balance. Yes, a ZERO balance. I ask about the fee and it is $75 a year so I say, close the account. They can't do it. I have to call a DIFFERENT number (not even the one they bank agent was talking to). I call that number and the guy proceeds to tell me there is a $54 fee for removing the lien on the property. And then there is an outstanding fee of $125. And he has to transfer me over to another group to see what that is. WTF?!?! The person I talk to (after being on the phone for almost an hour) tells me it was missed annual fee payments. I call bullshit because I've paid every single one of them and there has never been any notification of penalty of a missed payment. Not to mention my balance was ZERO (now, I realize that could be principle and they might not roll fees in in order to not charge interest on the fees as that could be a tax nightmare).. But don't tell me my balance is zero when I owe supposedly $125. I was fuming at this point (and part of that I'll admit was because my wife have had an all out fight for the last two days and I'm pissed at her as well right now) and I say I am not paying it, and you can put a manager on. She goes on hold and comes back saying they will waive it as all the "supervisors" are busy. Hmmm? What makes me think that this is really not a true charge but a lets see if we can get more out of him? She couldn't tell me the dates of the service fees that were missed either. And supposedly it was "partial ones". I've never made a partial fee payment. And they wanted to charge me for the full year this year even though they already collected some now.
I still have to pay the lien removal fee (ummm, why isn't this collected up front? I'm closing a fucking line of credit account -- and I do know their is a lien on the property and I don't have an issue with paying the fee -- though I do happen to think it should be included in that yearly service fee somehow).
I get companies want to keep your busy. But this shady shit is really starting to piss me off to the point where i just don't want to deal with anyone. Insurance companies, cable companies, they all do the same crap.
