Consumer complaint received 2022-10-19
Company: PNC Bank N.A.
State: IL
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Other banking product or service
Issue: Opening an account
Sub-issue: Confusing or missing disclosures

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX Opening and account was the closest thing I could find to not allowing a change to an account. 
Discrimination based on XXXX and origin, female, XXXX, Honduran. Removing my husband 's name ( white male ) of the checking account. I have a line of credit ( only under my social and my name ) that stands on its own but is attached to my checking account. I was told to first I had to be primary and they changed me to primary ( not sure why I was not primary, deposits only came from me ), and then they could remove him. Both my husband and I were present at this two transactions and he signed to remove his name from the checking. The representative from PNC said she needed authorization. She told me, I had to pay the total of my line of credit in full to remove his name. I asked to be shown in writing where it states that, she stated that it may have not made it into the find print, and it did not have to be in writing. So I had to purchase my account by paying my line in credit to be removed before his name is removed. She said this was to protect my husband, who signed to remove himself from the account and is not on the line of credit. I explained the line of credit is under my name, I am assuming liability. Today XX/XX/XXXX, I talked with customer executive service representative XXXX XXXX, who I explained the whole experience. I explained the representative was not able to provide in writing that I in essence had to buy off the removal of my husbands name by paying my line of credit in full. I received a statement today for my line of credit my payment is {$25.00}. XXXX dismissed this as, we will investigate later but we are denying the removal of his name as there is other wording in the fine print that we " PNC '' reserve the right to deny a name removal. I asked how can you deny if my husband is wanting to be removed? She said I had to open a new account. I asked if there was incentives with new accounts openings. She stated she felt bad for my treatment as I felt I was being discriminated against. stated it was not guaranteed to remove a name from an account. She stated that in contract it says it is not guaranteed and this request was being denied. However, we had already started the process to the point where my husband signed to approve his removal. I explained that the language she is quoting was not the reason I was told I was the name removal was being denied, but she just kept stating the language that PNC holds that right. I explained that it seemed illegal and she should talk with her legal department before making this determination. XXXX asked me what law and only then she would talk with her legal department. I explained there were several FDIC laws or violations that potential are being broken. I am also not a PNC employee and would file this complaint. I filed a complaint with the Federal Reserve, they provided me your information. Concerns I voice to XXXX within the executive team : -Discrimination based on race and gender. 
-Potentially being forced to open a new account for a quota -Requesting me to pay for an account in full before doing a transaction of removal of my husbands name. I explained this felt like it was illegal and I have not been provided the language where it states this is binding. 
-PNC representative at branch, telling me that what the past in the contract of my bank account did not matter that it was only the here and now. 
-PNC representative telling me that it does not have to be in writing for them to force me to pay the full sum of my line of credit before removing my husband. 
-PNC representative stating that the language she was voicing was in a document of over 40 pages and she could not find it right away. 
-PNC representative saying there was default, when asked if there was, she admitted there had not been. 
-PNC representative directing questions of my line of credit and checking account to my husband to it seemed, to find a reason for denial. 
-PNC representative, when I requested it for it to be in writing, explaining my consumer rights, stating, she did not want to argue about it. 
-PNC manager stating they do not do this process often and that is the reason the representative at the branch said those things.

-PNC manager stating he was not or the representative, neither were direct representatives of the bank. 
-Executive Representative stating I could open a new account. I asked her to close account. Which stated it could not be done without my and my husbands approval. How is that different than a name change? 

Above PNC representative in my view, tried to falsify a reason to why my husbands name could not be removed from the account. Executive customer service used different language than previously stated for the reason not to allow name removal. Executive representative stated she felt bad on how I was treated but they are denying the name removal. 

I also explained it seems illegal for me to have to " purchase '' my husbands name removal by paying my line of credit off when I have not been provided this as part of my contract. She just quoted that they can deny a name removal. I explained after she asked me about the laws the bank had broken, that I was not a PNC employee and it was not my duty, though I had given them a chance to rectify the above to protect PNC, but it is my job to protect myself the consumer. 

Bank Complaint number XXXX.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief