Business Loans From Wells Fargo Not So Special

Franki and I have business lines of credit with Wells Fargo and with Bank of America.  Bank of America is a prime rate, a nice line of credit, and fits seamlessly into our current online banking.

Wells Fargo - we have yet to get into our online banking statement because they don't know our passcodes, and their system is so hopelessly complicated that they can't tell us which account number (we have 3) will allow us to access our account. 

Bank of America is a pleasure to work with.  We pay our bills on time, hold some money on the credit line, and have been more than satisfied with what they do.

Wells Fargo, well, let me share my last call with you.  This is the Wells Fargo Business Line, for the Wlls Fargo Business Banking Center.

Wells Fargo calls every six months or so and asks us if we want some money.  We don't need it, but it's never a bad idea to have multiple lines of credit, so we accept it, even though it's a rate 1% higher than our Bank of America loan.

We got one of those calls three weeks ago, and agreed to take out a sum of money at the Prime Rate.  Today, I get the statement in the mail, and they have us at a 15% rate, almost double what was promised.  When I call in, the 12 year old on the phone  tells me it's supposed to be at a prime plus 1% rate, but since I don't have the reference number of the person who originally put the information through, he can't do anything.  He has no notes on the matter in the system.

To make it worse - he now says that because we received the funds electronically instead of by check, we're going to be charged the 15%.  I told him his money was coming back to him that day, and hang up, sadly not taking the survey.  What really irritates me is I spoke with another representative of Wells Fargo last week and they had the notes in my system - they waived a fee for us (we don't pay like paying fees).  I was satisfied, and it seemed like we were on the right footing.  She even told me last week my new rate was going to be 7.75% because the Prime Rate had dropped.  So now - this guy tells me I'm eligible only for Prime +1, but it doesn't matter, because they had given me a rate of 15%, and unless I gave them the reference number, I was SOL.

After I cooled off, I called back, and now I'm waiting to see if they can fix it.  On hold for 10 minutes, I said to heck with it - and shot them off a check.

What bothers me is that they called us.  If they can so casually throw around a large sum of money like that, and not document any of it, how confident am I that they'll get anything right relating to my bill?

So I sent their money back to them.  It's costing me $77 in fees for the few days I had it, which will probably go to $100 before all is said and done, and I guess I should consider it a blessing it wasn't more.  At least I didn't spend the money, right?  I wonder if Wells Fargo monitors their brand online.  I tell you what - I won't be paying attention to the people calling anymore, and I'm going to tell them why.

Because I don't trust Wells Fargo business bankers.

Update:  This post is now on the first page of Google for "Wells Fargo Business Line of Credit".  If you're taking out a business loan, and you read this, please send me a note.  I'd love to contact Wells Fargo and let them know how many people are unhappy with either their service, or nervous about working with them.

Update

Comments

[Maurice Veldhuis]

Just got a call from a rep of Wells Fargo today offering me a line of credit for my business. They stated an interest rate of prime +1.75% which is what I get from my TD Canada Trust Bank. I declined and then found some reasons on line why declining was a good idea. Another key reason I declined is that the sales person had a strong southern accent and when I asked if Wells Fargo is an American or Canadian bank, I got the response that they have a headquarters in Toronto. (Not exactly an honest answer).

[David]

Great Post! Business loans are important for overall economic growth, given that 95% of the economy is run by small businesses. Nowadaysin the current credit environment, is more difficult to get loans especially if the entrepreneur has bad credit. Fortunatelly there are organizations helping borrowers get funding even in this environment

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