WARNING, Chase bank!!!

[BlackNinja]

I thought I would share some information I heard on talk radio, about Chace bank!
Accoriding to Clarck Howard (and every other media outlet. Even Chace bank admits it.), a predominant news host in the area, Chace bank has been sending out $20 dollar checks, that when endorsed and cashed, you are automatically singed up for their buyer protection, whatever B/S plan. Not a big deal except for it costs well over $500 to be a part of the plan, and once you've signed and cashed your check, that's it, no refunds. Accoriding to Clarck Howard, whom has a check, said that these terms were written in a very fine, light grey writing on the back of the check, barely legible! Kind of like that, only smaller. He offered a Chase rep. to call in and explain, they said, NO!
This is a bank that makes profits in the billions, and they are still trying to rip off the average Joe! Another reason to stear clear of Chase would be, they just had to pay ENRON 2.4 billion dollars in that debacle. I don't think that ENRON really cared about it's employees, and Chase bank obviously doesn't care about it's customers.

[Joe Talmadge]

With all due respect, that all sounds more than a little bit fishy. I did a search and couldn't find anything about this on Clark Howard's site or anywhere else. Is this documented anywhere? The only think I saw from Clark Howard was a warning that a Chase Bank credit card APR offer was confusing, but that was from 2005. Maybe it's too fresh to be up yet

[BlackNinja]

Jul 15, 2005 -- California state attorney sues Chase Bank
The Attorney General in California is suing Chase Bank for sending people reward checks that eventually tied those people into paying a $70 to $120 annual membership fee. Chase was specifically looking for foreigners and older people, according to the AG's office. And, an estimated $28 million was taken from victims, according to the L.A. Times. Chase has yet to comment about the lawsuit. But Clark wants to warn you! When you get a check for a couple dollars in the mail, DO NOT CASH IT! More often than not, cashing the check will rope you into some kind of contract. Companies are not going to send you free money for no reason. There is always a catch.
Here ya go, http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2 ... giant.html &

http://clarkhoward.com/shownotes/2005/07/15/

[minnshooter]

Even more reasons to pay for things in CASH and not use a credit card. If you need something like a credit card get a debit card attached to your checking account much safer. Check out http://www.daveramsey.com for more info on why the credit card companies are scum!!

[Joe Talmadge]

My apologies, you're right, scumbaggery at its worst.

[rcbalt2]

Jul 15, 2005 -- California state attorney sues Chase Bank
The Attorney General in California is suing Chase Bank for sending people reward checks that eventually tied those people into paying a $70 to $120 annual membership fee. Chase was specifically looking for foreigners and older people, according to the AG's office. And, an estimated $28 million was taken from victims, according to the L.A. Times. Chase has yet to comment about the lawsuit. But Clark wants to warn you! When you get a check for a couple dollars in the mail, DO NOT CASH IT! More often than not, cashing the check will rope you into some kind of contract. Companies are not going to send you free money for no reason. There is always a catch.
Here ya go, http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2 ... giant.html &

http://clarkhoward.com/shownotes/2005/07/15/

I got one a while back and filed it under trash.

[DamnYank!]

i am pretty sure that Chase is not the only credit issuing bank that has done this. i have gotten NUMEROUS checks in the mail, normally in the $10-$20 range, from most of the credit card companies i have dealt with.

if someone thinks that their credit card company is giving them free money, and doesn't read the included documentation (as fine as it may be), it would seem to me they are at fault for their own carelessness.

[chinook]

It is great to take responsibilty for your own actions and evaluate all offers and read all the fine print and legalese and warnings that if you don't take advatage of this service that you will be leaving yourself open to identidy theft and credit card fraud. My 85 year old mother who recently lost my dad whom always took care of their meager finances finds it harder to sense that her own financial institution might be trying to sell her unneeded services. I try to scan her offers butt I am 1000 miles away and can't always be available before her anxiety over an implied threat to her little nestegg causes her to fall for one of these scams. I have cancelled two of these in the past butt I still fear she can be scammed again if they appeal to her insecurities. I applaud any legal measures to stop these sleazy comeons that are targeted toward elderly or non-english speaking people.

[HoB]

I have a Chase credit card and yep, I have gotten several of those. Never for a plan that was as expensive as $500, but for plans that were around $150 a year. Yup, I agree that this is a really mean and nasty trick. I never really use my Chase credit card because I just don't like them. Mostly little things just like this: They never increased my credit line despite flawless credit history (my Providian card has gone up by about $10000 since), their website to pay your bill online is (or was, as I said I stopped using the card) a total PITA, they were doing phone advertisements for their "services" till I yelled at them, etc.

But, hey, anybody who is cashing a check for money that isn't expected without reading and re-reading every fine print in sight, needs to have his/her head examined. Nothing is for free....ever! I think way to few people keep track of where their money goes and what is comming in from what sources. I write down all expenses and any income (whatever little I have) in an independen spreadsheet. I use my bank or credit card statement only as a double-check. Yes that is a pain and very anal of me but it keeps me out of trouble and makes it rather easy to detect scams like this. If I get a check for what ever amount that I don't expect to come in, I get immediately suspicious.

Yes, I can see how elderly people have a difficult time with mass mailings and dubious offers, but really the sad part is just how many young and perfectly capable people get cought up in those schemes. By the way, these scams aren't exactly new, "Extraordinary Popular Delusion and Madness of Crowds" is a very entertaining read for those who are interested in the history of financial scams. They are about 300-400 years old.

[fret]

:) I got one. I read the fine print. When the print got too fine , I threw it away. No one gives away money. :)

[severedthumbs]

Even more reasons to pay for things in CASH and not use a credit card. If you need something like a credit card get a debit card attached to your checking account much safer. Check out http://www.daveramsey.com for more info on why the credit card companies are scum!!

Well I tend to use a credit card when purchasing certain things for the securiity reasons. You are not protected when paying cash or with the debit.

[Irish_Bob]

I've had a Chase bank credit card for years; no problems ever.

My credit is almost perfect so Chase regularly ups my credit line.

I also pay in full every month......for me it's almost like cash.

I'm not convinced Chase is all that bad, I'm just lucky I guess

[BlackNinja]

[quote="Irish_Bob"].

I'm not convinced Chase is all that bad, I'm just lucky I guess ]
Apparently, you must work for Chase to make a statement like that! Did you read what they did! This is a multi - million dolar company taking advantage of it's customers. :o What about seeking out elderly and non English fluent people, to pull their 28 million dollar scandal! :o
Yeah' you don't get much lower! :o
:o :o :o :o :o

[HoB]

Even more reasons to pay for things in CASH and not use a credit card. If you need something like a credit card get a debit card attached to your checking account much safer. Check out http://www.daveramsey.com for more info on why the credit card companies are scum!!

Well, that's what I used to think, but as a young person you need to build up a credit history, which is pretty much impossible without a credit card (well school loans are actually probably the best way of doing it, but I don't have any). The sad thing is, a bad credit history is better than no credit history at all. No one is willing to give you any money if you don't appear in the system at all......for me that was a petty hard earned lesson. But you can use it to your advantage as well. If you have a couple of credit cards and use them moderatly and make your payments in full and on time, you can build up a pretty decent credit history, which really helps you when the time comes to buy a house or simply to finance a car.

[zenheretic]

[quote="Irish_Bob"]I've had a Chase bank credit card for years]
Although the above may very likely be true, I find extremely odd that a lurker would bother to join a knife forum to make his very first entry in the off topic section defending some corporation atttempting to do what corporations have always attempted to do. :confused:
I mean really, "Oh I like knives, particularily Spyderco. Oh they have a forum, I like Spyderco knives so I will read the forum. Oh they have an off topic area, hmmmm what have we here? Some one is disparaging a Bank and can back up his words? Well I better join this knife forum and defend the bank I do business with." :rolleyes:

By the way, welcome to the forums, I hope we have a lot to discuss regarding Spyderco knives.

[dsvirsky]

Not a big deal except for it costs well over $500 to be a part of the plan, and once you've signed and cashed your check, that's it, no refunds.

I get these offers all the time and they give you 30 days to cancel. They don't even hide that part; people just don't read the material because they think they're getting something for nothing.

Of course it's a rip-off, but Chase is hardly the only bank that does it. Actually, there are really only a few big companies behind all the major credit cards these days (JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, American Express).

[The Deacon]

From Shakespeare's time at least (remember Shylock) bankers and money lenders have had a reputation for being predatory. Since the earliest silent films, they've been portrayed on the screen cold heartedly preying on widows and orphans. So Chase's behavior comes as no surprise. The good news is that the suit mentioned by Mr. Lockyer is not only being brought in California, but is a joint action by the AGs of a number of states, including New York. So the issue is being addressed, and the advertising is so blatantly deceptive that the States will almost certainly win.