Gesa Credit Union

Warning: This Credit Union may retaliate if you discontinue an application for Savings (or anything else?)

Opened an application for a Certificate of Deposit. Did not complete the application because I found better rates at another Credit Union.

GESA struck back at me by filing a false Notice of "Adverse Action" which they filed under the heading of "Statement of Denial, Termination or Change.

They described the action taken as "Refusal to Grant Loan"! No loan was ever requested nor applied for. In fact I had started an application for a Savings Certificate, which is the Opposite of a loan.

THIS is how they respond when you change your mind on the purchase of a CD - they RETALIATE. I can't believe this, I still can't believe it, no financial institution anywhere ever ever ever strikes back at account holders like this.

It sounds too bad to be true, but it's true, it happened. I have the letter, I am willing to provide this as proof of what they did.

The words "ADVERSE ACTION NOTICE" were in all caps in Bold type. They also claimed to have based their Adverse Action upon information from an Outside Source. If this is not true, they are lying. If this is true, they are trying to inflict damage to my Credit Rating.

I have since cancelled my checking account. I do have one Certificate of Deposit with them, which I will (of course) cancel & withdraw at maturity.

GESA Credit Union became known to me several years ago through a very good offer on a Visa card with a great rate. During that process, the Customer Support over the phone and email was outstanding. Sadly, I will be terminating that Card as well when my current CD matures as I intend to completely sever all ties with this institution. STILL can't believe they did this.

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Beware! If you pay multiple months in advance, you need to speak directly with the payment center; otherwise, the overage beyond the current month’s required payment gets applied to the total principal. The app could be better designed.

This review is for both checking and savings I've had the same bank account since I was six (so I shouldn't have been hard to keep in my opinion as I'm almost 40 now)
0.01% interest until very recently I didn't have money so I didn't pay attention but now that I'm further in my career I'm shocked I had such a low interest rate! $30 penalty for insufficient funds (they "loan" you the money so you aren't a day late on your Hulu subscription, which I'm shocked is worth $30 to anyone) it felt like a penalty for being poor and disorganized. Lastly the app is so terrible it was worth changing to BECU for that alone!

RE: Vault Security

Absolutely, the worst security I have ever seen at the Spokane branch, when it comes to handling safe deposit boxes. They leave the bank's keys in the customer's safe deposit box and also allow customers to have their keys while they are in the vault alone.

This practice opens the door to the potential for photographing and duplicating keys, as well as tampering with or opening other people's safe deposit boxes using locksmithing tools that are easily obtainable on the internet, all while in the vault unaccompanied, in addition to accessing other banking documents inside the vault.

As someone who has experienced the theft of their safe deposit box key at home during a burglary and has had their safe deposit box burglarized (at a WaFd bank), I could never recommend GESA based on my experiences observing this lack of security in their vault.

This so-called "security protocol" at a bank or credit union is absolutely unacceptable.

I used to overlook a lot when it came to Gesa, but today was the last straw with them. Not to mention that my card seems to get hacked almost every two weeks. The only pro is I can walk into our local service in Yakima on Triple Crown Way, and they'll issue me a new card right there. But then, it's not very comforting when the teller tells me the reason I'm getting calls from the fraud department is because we're getting hacked a lot. If a bank is getting hacked that much, you'd think they would take security seriously.

Not only that, I've had the same checking and savings account for 6 years. I walked in there at the end of January to get my cashier's check, which is another pro, as they give free cashier's checks. The teller started pressuring me to open a new account. I'm like, "Why? I've had the same checking account and savings account for 6 years." She said, "Well, this is a Smart Plus checking. If you open this, you get $200 back after 90 days if you do a $200 deposit every month and make 15 card transactions." I thought, "Well, that's going to be a bit hard because I already have my direct deposit set up, and my cards that I use." She kept talking to me, and she's like, "Okay, it won't take that long to set it up." So I give in—okay, I'll take it—free $200 in this day and age.

The 90 days pass, and I call today to ask about my $200, which I never received. On the phone, she sees right there that I have an active Visa account but still pushes because she got credit for it. She got a bonus for however many new member accounts she opened. So that tells me that the $200 was a gimmick. She got her bonus, and I got cheated out of $200 after I had to sit and listen to her spiel.

I ask them, "Why didn't your employee know this?" The woman then tells me on the phone, "Well, do you have a good number to call your branch at? Because you may want to reach out to them and ask them." So now, I have to reach out to them after taking time out of my day to make this call to find out where my $200 is. Their customer service is terrible, their bank is always getting hacked, and the only reason I keep them is that I don't want to close another account. As I said, free cashier's checks are a bonus, and the fact that when I need a new card, I can walk right in there and get it without having to have one mailed to me.

Overall, I wouldn't suggest anyone go to Gesa and open any account or even listen to their customer service because they're all dishonest when it comes to promotions. The customer service puts me on hold, comes back, and tells me, "Oh, you didn't qualify for the promotion because you had an active checking and savings account already; you are an active member." So I tell them, "Why did your employee tell me that I would get the $200 cash back?" When I argued about not opening the account because I already had two accounts—a checking and a savings I've had for 6 years—she was just trying to get me to open a new one.

Zero stars, actually. Why is that not an option? Worst experience with a bank ever, and as some of you may know, that's saying a lot. Glass half full: I would say about half of the people who work here are equipped to be working in customer service, let alone taking payments over the phone. Unfortunately, many of them don't seem like they've been trained for the job, or have lived more than about a week on Earth. Most of them cannot answer basic questions or help you with standard account/information changes like updating your phone number or address. However, that does not stop them from confidently giving you a wrong answer, or better yet, just repeating the same verbiage that warranted the question, back to you. It's like talking to an empty vessel in some post-apocalyptic Twilight Zone universe. I wish I could say this was an isolated incident, but in reality, it seems to be the culture at Gesa. All drama aside, I recommend (first and foremost, not banking with this entity) holding on to that Member ID and password for your online payments because trying to get someone to help you recover that will be extremely bureaucratic and talking to people at this company is usually not a good experience.

Worst credit union ever! I can't pay the bill except by mailing a check. I am trying to call in to pay by phone, but the phone numbers listed on the bill don't service the card! As a result, I actually have no way to cancel this card. I will have to send a letter to cancel the card. It's like going back to before there were phones, to the 1800s. I thought Wells Fargo or Bank of America were bad, but they are a dream compared to this. Do not use this institution!

They have terrible service, and they are also untruthful. I contacted multiple people to refinance my car, and they all informed me that they do it at a 4.74% rate. I visited their Tukwila location in person and spoke to Saif, the senior personal financial representative. He assured me that by opening a checking and savings account, I could refinance with a 4.74% rate. We proceeded with the accounts, but then I received a call from the lender. I answered and requested that she call back in 30 minutes. She agreed but never returned the call. It turns out she made a note in the system indicating that I never answered, so they decided not to reach out again. When I managed to contact a lender in the financial department, they told me the rate was now over 5% and that I needed to open a credit account. Upon visiting Saif again, he falsely claimed he had advised me to open a credit card and that the rate was not 4.74%. He also stated that he attempted to call and left a voicemail, which he never did. The customer service is appalling, and it seems they're just after your money.

This credit union is a joke. There is no overdraft protection, and customer service is useless unless you speak Spanish or Chinese. Branch managers and tellers are impolite and will not go the extra mile for their "members". Take your hard-earned money to a better credit union.

Zero overdraft protection.
This bank does not care how many times you overdraft; they will charge the fee. There will not be any moment when your card declines as it should. Gesa just wants their money. They are inconsiderate.

Very disappointed with the transfer for consolidation. They used snail mail, which takes 3 weeks. I'm being charged interest by Gesa and on the card I'm paying off, over 30%, and a percentage of the amount transferred. Time to get a new bank.

Just got a notification that my card was used by someone on the DoorDash app in California. I am located in Kennewick and tried to dispute it by calling the customer service line, but I wasn't able to access my account even though I gave them all the correct information before they asked. Customer service agent Melvin told me, after I answered his question, "This doesn't make any sense," when I told him that I have a different app than the one used for the purchase in another state. His supervisor Paula just followed the steps of her worker and told me they are not going to allow me to get into my account. This bank is becoming a joke, but for real!

Terrible customer service and outright deceptive advertising. They offer 5% interest on the first $500 of savings only, so that they can appear in search results showing them paying an above-market rate. But beyond that modest initial amount, they pay almost nothing. Of course, they keep this fact well-hidden; indeed, they are the only financial institution I've ever seen that doesn't post a savings account interest rate chart anywhere on their website.

Interest rates on savings, money market accounts, and certificates are insulting, compounded by a poorly designed website and abysmal phone service. What's not to dislike? Ironically, a credit union, which supposedly serves its members, performs worse by almost every metric than the most money-hungry bank.

I give Gesa Credit Union the worst rating ever. They are horrible. We've had insurance this whole time, and we keep running into glitches. They keep trying to charge us for insurance. Companies, and especially this credit union, have no integrity. Do not use them; they are the absolute worst. I would give them negative stars, but I had to choose a rating in order to post this. Beware, stay away from Gesa Credit Union!

One of the worst CUs in WA. Supposedly a CU but operates worse than a bank. They usually won't release your direct deposit paycheck on the day it was transmitted to them because they use your money for their "FLOAT."
Fast cash is also a burden as they will charge you up to 35% interest.
Move your money out of this CU!