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PNC SHUT MY ACCOUNT OF 7 YEARS WHICH I HAVE BEEN USING CONSISTENTLY WITHOUT ANY EMAIL OR PHONE CALL. UNACCEPTABLE.
I have been with PNC bank for about 7 years, and until last week, would have given them a rating of "A", 5 out of 5 stars, in spite of having heard complaints about them without even looking for complaints. Earlier this year, I suddenly started getting a $7 monthly charge on what had been a free checking account since I joined 7 years ago. I inquired, they refunded the one month charge, and explained that they have no more standard free checking, but that I could avoid the charge by switching to virtual wallet. I took time out of my schedule during their business hours, personally visited one of their branches, and signed up for virtual wallet. They were quite helpful. This was a couple of months ago. Last week, checking my account online, as I have several times a week for 7 years now, I saw that my balance was zero, my account transaction history was gone, and also my messages to and from PNC in the "secure message center" had been erased. When I called, a helpful sounding phone rep asked me to hold while he looked into it. When he returned, he told me that PNC had decided to shut the one of my 3 accounts (all virtual wallets have 3 accounts as far as I know) which I was using, very obviously using, because they had sent a letter to me for verification and I had not returned their verification letter within 30 days.
NOT ACCEPTABLE FROM ANY BANK:
They did not send me any message about this in the "secure message center" online where I check on my account several times a week. They did not send me any email about this to my email address, which they happily send many advertising emails to each and every week. They did not call me about this, at my phone number which they have on file. Also, to my email address, they sent an email just last week that "my online statement is available for viewing" referencing the account which they had just shut down without contacting me in any way other than one paper letter via snail mail with a 30 day "respond with our verification as requested or we shut your account with no other contact attempted" policy?? TOTALLY INEPT AND UNACCEPTABLE. Since I have contacted them about this, they have shut a 2nd one of my 3 virtual wallet accounts, and seem to be blocking my adding funds to the one remaining account.
THIS IS HOW A BANK GOES FROM AN "A" RATING TO AN "F" RATING INSTANTLY WITH CUSTOMERS. Period.
Bottom line, don't use PNC Bank, not for anything. If you do use them, don't trust them. Don't fall for their advertising gimmicks about virtual wallet. One of the very clearly specified ways to qualify for "free virtual wallet" is to only deposit or withdraw money online or by ATMs. I followed this to the letter. What did I get, in addition to "free virtual wallet" ?? I got "shut~down of your bank accounts, with no contact other than a paper letter which is basically a 30 day time~bomb."
People TRAVEL... HELLO??? ANY such verification should have a 60 day time window before any such troubles, at the very least, even better, make it 90 days. Shutting down customer accounts with NO OTHER CONTACT ATTEMPTED beyond the paper letter 30-day time-bomb is RIDICULOUS, PATHETIC, and TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE for any "BANK." A "BANK" should keep a customer's money IN the customer's account, and make EVERY ATTEMPT TO CONTACT the customer IN EVERY WAY before making ANY CHANGES at all, that is OBVIOUS AND CLEAR.
For these reasons, I have changed my rating of PNC Bank from "A" to "F" with no stops in between, and warn EVERYONE AGAINST PNC BANK and their gimmick "virtual wallet."