Dear PNC Bank,
I think we might need to break up. Today is the day I am
finally coming to my senses and realizing that you are no longer interested in
really serving me, a long-time customer.
Today I entered one of your small branches to make a coin
deposit. This coin deposit has become something of a ritual for me.
Approximately once per year I enter your branch with around $100 worth of coins
that I have accumulated and expect to be able to make a quick deposit that will
both lighten my physical load and slightly swell my account. Today, however,
this ritual was put to a swift halt.
Upon telling the young lady behind your counter that I had a
bag of coins to deposit, she informed me that they no longer have a coin
counter in the branch and cannot perform same-day coin deposits. Seeing as you
are a financial institution who deals with legal tender, I am pretty sure my
jaw dropped right down to the floor. Did I miss something? Are coins no longer
a form of legal currency? Or perhaps the problem is that you now find my coins
to be nothing more than a trifling annoyance, an insignificant blip amongst
your sea of “C-notes”.
To be fair, I was offered the option of leaving the coins
and a pre-printed deposit slip from the back of my checkbook (of which I am currently
out), with the teller who would then ship my coins off to, what sounded like, a
central coin sorting location. I was assured that after the counting process
took place, that a deposit would be made into my account for the amount of
coins. I would hope, of course, that
nothing would come of my coins from the time they left my hands and made it to
this facility, but how can I verify anything once they leave my hands (or the
branch into which I brought the coins)? I am expected to blindly trust that nearly
$100 in cash (change) will go through all of these motions unblemished when you
are unable to give me any documentation on the spot of the amount I am handing
over to you? Sorry….just no…not happening.
I was a bank teller once so, to a degree, I get it. Coins,
even with a machine counter, take a bit longer for each transaction, they are
heavy, and sometimes you need to cull through them slightly to remove a
stow-away paper-clip or two that have hidden themselves amongst the nickels.
However, these small services, in essence make a big impact on how customers
perceive you. For example: My thought after the “no more coins” debacle this
morning was “If I can’t trust PNC to graciously take care of the small things,
why should I allow them to profit off of the big things?”
This no coin deposit revelation came in a very timely manner
for me. I am currently vetting financial institutions for a new vehicle loan.
This will be the largest loan that I will have ever needed. You, as one of my
current financial institutions (who doesn’t have a little side-action in the
banking world these days?) is was on my list of institutions with whom I
have spoken and that have relatively decent rates to offer. However, I have now
determined that your arrogant can’t-be-bothered-with-coins stance makes you
unworthy of my hard earned cash. I will not allow you, who sees the little
things as too trivial for your time, to profit in the form of interest on my
loan. I have other options with smaller, friendlier institutions, all of which
still see little things (like my coins) as still being worth their time.
I can honestly say that this break-up has been looming on
the horizon for some time. The ridiculous paper statement fees, the
outrageously high minimum balances, and the monthly check writing maxims are
just a couple of the other infractions of which you have been guilty in recent
years… It is time to walk away from you and your too-big-to-fail, audacious
practices and find a healthier, more holistic banking relationship.
I wish I could say, “I’ll miss you,” but I’m sure I won’t.
Sincerely,
Your very-soon-to-be “ex” customer
