UNIFY Financial Credit Union

Pretty terrible credit Union. I opened an account several years ago. Found I didn’t use it enough and switched banks to a branch near by where I live.

Today and now, I get phone calls from Unify, sometimes as early as 2am saying that someone is trying to hack/access my account, and it’s likely some overseas hacker. The bank also emails me to say I need to upgrade Microsoft Internet Explorer; I own a Mac.

So, when I call to speak with someone at Unify Bank in account security, they re-route my call to collections.

I got my final statement from a branch bank and apparently, Unify charged a total of $360 in fees the last month it was open, and then the account was administratively closed for being $220 negative. The branch manager who I opened the account with is no longer with Unify. They apologized and agreed I shouldn’t have been charged, but there’s nothing they can do.

So the month I switched banks, I had several $1.29 iTunes purchases come through the account. Apple and iTunes customer service refunded the purchases, (I changed payment methods, paid with my new bank- Chase), however, Unify still charged fees on those refunds. DirecTV was also setup for auto-pay. DirecTV also refunded the charge to Unify, and charged my new bank as well. Unify also continued to charge the fee.

The bank must have serious financial trouble to apply fees this way. I refuse to pay bank fees on items refunded, and transactions that shouldn’t have occurred.

My primary savings/investment account is with Goldman Sachs. I also have CapitalOne accounts. However, Goldman has rates for savings that beat all banks, and no fees. If I need to transfer funds, Goldman will wire-transfer funds into an account within a few hours, as long as it’s before 5pm Eastern time. However, and for some reason, Unify doesn’t immediately deposit those transactions. The funds are held for 72 hours like a EFT transaction before available for account use.

Point is, I’m happy with both Chase and CapitalOne. Their systems will provide a customer one full banking business day to deposit funds into a negative account without being charged a fee. Perfect for my high-yield interest Goldman account. With the nearest branch of Unify 55 mile drive away, (CapitalOne is at Target Stores), it’s super easy to maintain.

Unify’s App is also unreliable. I often saw “ghost charges” and no banker or customer service rep could re-play the ledger to tell me what posted. I’ve never had this trouble with Chase and had zero overdrafts (or even needed overdraft service) because Chase Bank’s app is reliable and true.

Unify seems to provide service to the account, Chase and CapitalOne provide customer service. While the two seem similar, but customer service is why people have a banking relationship.

Also, CapitalOne 360 account included a free book of checks, something that’s extra with most banks, including Unify. Counter checks at Unify are charged an extra fee.

Unify also took 3 weeks to refund a application for a line of credit. CapitalOne just sent a credit card with no app fee.

I’d recommend Unify only to an ex-wife or bad neighbor.

Unify should change their name to “Bank of Fees” and if you love paying for fees, this is the place for you.

About 4 times a month, I still receive calls from Unify’s security system between 1am and 3am about someone hacking the account I originally requested closed and is apparently in collections... Can’t get any customer service.

I have been with Unify since before it was Unify. Their services have always been excellent. This credit union helped me establish credit via credit card, personal loans, and auto loan. My experience with customer service has been great. I live in Los Angeles CA and for the most part I have had great care from the people who work in the different branches like HB and Torrance. I didn't have a stellar credit score (lower 600s) then but they still helped me out. Now my score is in the 700+ because of them.

Very disappointed with them. I've had a car loan paid off, a small personal loan half paid, never late on any payment t. I attempted to get another loan and they dragged process. They asked for proof of income I submitted it, they asked for check stubs, I submitted them, they kept asking for more and more. They asked for bank statements, I submitted, they proceeded to ask for tax returns and for me to explain income on bank statements. They gave me the run around. I asked for a small loan not a mortgage loan. Will take my business elsewhere.

My account was hacked, and I was the one penalized they would not help me to fix the problem.. This bank catered to white ppl. If you're white this bank is for you. Took all my money out. They can kiss my Puerto Rican butt.

if the option of zero stars was available I would have given that rating.

You pay them 40000.00 to pay off a loan. Takes them 1 month to process. then you never receive the lien release.

Oh, no can't help you from that point. You must now go to "My Title Support" pay another 36.00 dollars and then you will get the documents you need after going through more hoops. Lien releases are mailed by regular mail by a 3rd party so no tracking.

Sounds like they are in bed with my title support probably get a commission out of the money you pay them.

I have been a customer at this credit union since 1991 when it was Western Federal Credit Union. It had always been an excellent bank in every way. Once Western became Unify, it was not the same and I have had ongoing problems. Each year, for the past 5 years, there are several months that I make a regular deposit of $2,800 into my savings account. The deposits are in the form of a check, U.S. Funds, written from a Canadian bank. And every year, at least once a year, Unify makes mistakes on the deposits. Once they converted US Funds to Canadian funds, then back to US funds and deducted a conversion rate of $1,000. It took many long phone calls and messages to straighten out their mistake. On February 28, I made the deposit as usual and it still has not posted to my account 6 weeks later. Normally the transaction takes about 2 weeks to post. I have spoken to the bank every day for the last 4 days. On day 1, I was told someone would call me the next day once they had located the deposit. No one called. I called the second day and was told they were processing it and would contact me with an update. No contact. I called the third day and was told they located the deposit, had requested it to be expedited and it would post to my account by 6:00 PM that night. It did not post. I called the next day and was told they found the deposit and were sending it to Torrance to process and it would post in a few weeks. I said that was unacceptable. They had the check for 6 weeks and let it sit at the bottom of someone's pile without processing. This was the Barranca Branch of Unify and the Branch Supervisor is Fabiola, and the Branch Manager is Shawnette. They both failed at doing their jobs and clearly manage that branch very poorly. The bank has never apologized nor has one of the supervisors or managers accepted responsibility for the reprehensible neglect. I was told someone would call me yesterday before noon to give me an update. Needless to say no one called. It is now day 5 from the day I started searching for my money and still no word from the bank and no genuine confirmation they have actually found the money they lost. Each time I make these deposits, I hold my breath because the tellers are never familiar with how to do the deposit correctly and I am acutely aware of the possibility of a mistake. This is a problem they continue to repeat.

I can't express how disappointed I am in this bank. I will never recommend it to anyone. They don't deserve to be in business. And as an aside, I am amazed at their low ratings and how many bad reviews they have received.

Unify is NOT all about you. They deactivated my business debit card and after 12 request to get a new one, even walking into the branch and a year later. I still dont have one. They come up with fees for no reason making unexplained or identifiable withdrawals from my account. This ia not a bank, this is robbery. Ive already closed 5 accounts with them. Looks like this last 1 will be closed as well very soon. Terrible customer service.

Disorganized doesn't even come close to describing how incompetent this establishment is at keeping track of payments made. I routinely ask that two payments be made upon my visits: "one for this month, one for next month's" and then receive notification the month after that my payment was never made and they threaten delinquency. I then need to take time off of work, drive down to West Seneca (i now live in Amherst), and show them the receipts that I have in fact made the payment in question.

I have had two different loans (one car, one personal) and this has happened around 3 times in the duration I was paying off the car (5 years) and so i told myself "hey, maybe they'll get better?" But within the past 9-or-so months with the personal loan, this has happened twice, once they even called to tell me my car loan was delinquent (which had been payed off two months prior), to which they were corrected and to this they said "oh, i see that now..."

I'm not sure if they do not have the functionality to track a payment made ahead of time (which is extremely basic computer functionality that existed in the 90's) or their employees are of the lowest quality; either way i will never do business with this credit union again and will never recommend that anyone does until they make a serious effort to clean up their act.

I have been a customer of WFCU since 1986. It has been a rocky, up one year, down 3 years and so on. I have paid off at least a dozen personal loans; 3 car loans; one home loan; and one equity line credit. My husband and I have been through some rough stretches, but we have always pulled through, paying our debts, with a 90% on-time ratio. WFU denied us; then one year ago; we were denied again for a car loan. We are done with WFU.

I've been a Western FCU member for about 4 years now and overall I'm satisfied with their services as a financial institution. I had been a Bank of America customer and my mom had been a long-time customer of Wells Fargo when both "too big to fail" banks piled on that last straw and led me fleeing into the arms of a credit union. After doing some research on CUs, I ended up choosing Western and haven't looked back. Currently, I hold eChecking, eSavings, and Money Market accounts. / /

They've very fair in terms of fees and are receptive to disputes, and I usually find them to be quite friendly and personable. However, I feel that their standard APYs have decreased over the years to the point that it's no longer worth keeping a separate Money Market account with them; in fact, I haven't used mine much in a while. I do appreciate that they don't charge fees just to keep accounts open, even with very low or zero balances. / /

Favorite feature: Their website and mobile app are uber-secure and make me feel comfortable when banking online or through my smartphone. The flip side to that is that third-party services (such as Mint) are almost entirely blocked from accessing my account information even with the proper permissions, and Western doesn't offer Mint-type infographics, so until they change their security settings or until I switch CUs I have no access to such automated information.