Don't Bother Trying To Save Money Here - Key Bank
Written: May 09 '01 (Updated Oct 26 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Free E-Banking, strong customer service
Cons: Fees, Fees, Fees, and more fees, measly interest rates
The Bottom Line: It’s better to have money under the pillow than having Key Bank eat it up with all of their fees, plus you'll never make anything with their interest rates.
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| jps246's Full Review: KeyCorp |
I started with Key Bank 4 years ago when I was still living in New York. At the time I signed up for their savings and checking account, I found the bank good to work with and fair in the fee schedules. I was told that there were no fees associated with the savings account and that there was no minimum balance. With the checking I was told I would have unlimited checking and there would be a service fee each month. That worked for me and I began my banking experience at Key.
After I moved to Maine and started having more and more bills and financial responsibilities I found my Key accounts becoming more and more out of touch with what I wanted out of a bank. Their only strong point was I could do much of my banking on the computer and at the time I was living in Greenville, about 45 minutes from the nearest Key Bank.
However I soon found out that they suddenly had fees for just about everything. At one point I started getting charged on my savings account, which at a meager 1% interest annually barely made enough to do anything with the money, because my balance dropped below a certain point. I went in and they told me that they now had a $500 minimum balance and after that I would be charged. I got the balance back up and went back and looked at my original sign up material – no charges. I was never notified of this fee and that was the beginning on the end with Key Bank and me.
That interest on my savings account was also a pain in the neck for me. I had another bank account at a local bank in Vermont where I used to go to school. With a few hundred dollars in that account, I was making more per month in interest than I was making on over a thousand dollars in Key Bank. It was absolutely ridiculous how little they were paying on their accounts
The next fees to increase were ATM charges. When I first had the ATM card there were no extra fees for using a non-Key Bank ATM. Now Key Bank charges $1.50 every time you use a non-Key ATM and that’s in addition to whatever the ATM you are using charges. When I take money out at a non-Key ATM I am also guaranteed to spend about $3.00 on fees.
Checking was next to see the fee monster. Suddenly I could only write 15 checks a month and was being charged for checks over that. The monthly service charge went up to $3.50 a month and once again ATM fees were sucking half the money out of my account. In addition the charge for the credit protection on your checking account went up too.
I couldn’t take it anymore. I am in the process of taking all of my banking materials out of Key and putting them in the Credit Union for State Employees here in Maine. They might not have the polished offices and branches all across the country, but they have high interest rates, almost no fees and good all around customer service. Even though it means I will have to move banks when I eventually leave Maine, it’s better than having Key Bank where my money that I am trying to save ends up going to Key Bank and not to me.
Update 1/25/02 - I did get all of my money out of KeyBank - not until after they charged me to close the accounts, claiming that I had used approximately 50 cents or so of the credit line on my checking account and that it would cost 20 dollars to close it out.
I wasn't happy. Even with me complaining directly to the branch manager, nothing happened and I ended up losing the 20 dollars. Thus I will never again use KeyBank for any banking needs and will not even use their ATMs should I need to withdrawal money. They do not deserve any of my money.
While I was still in Maine, I used the Maine State Employees Credit Union (www.msecu.org). If you are a state employee, or family member of one, this is the bank in Maine to use. Their main branch is in Augusta, but they do have other branches in the state, and have an extensive mail-banking system, and offer telephone banking and online banking.
Now that I am in Massachusetts, I use Middlesex Savings Bank, one of the best banks I have had. You can see my review of that here - http://www.epinions.com/content_87685238404
Recommended:
No
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