Consumer complaint received 2018-07-26
Company: KEYCORP
State: AK
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Problem caused by your funds being low
Sub-issue: Non-sufficient funds and associated fees

Complaint:
I had several accounts with Keybank, Alaska starting back in, I believe, XX/XX/XXXX, and continuing until a few weeks ago, when there was only one account left with them, which was used exclusively by my XXXX XXXX XXXX son as a training bank account. 

Throughout this time, I also utilized their policy of allowing automatic transfers between 2 accounts to avoid monthly fees. ( If there were a certain amount of transfers into or out of the account each month, no monthly fees were assessed ). 

On XX/XX/XXXX, the balance was at {$32.00}, and after the first regularly scheduled {$25.00} auto transfer out, it fell to {$7.00}, which it had been on several occasions. For some reason, the {$25.00} auto transfer back into this account on XX/XX/XXXX ( same day of the month as all previous transfers ) did not happen. I asked Keybank why and they could not tell me. ( Checking the account that the transfer comes from every month indicated that there were adequate funds available on the XX/XX/XXXX for the transfer to occur. ) Consequently, they charged a {$12.00} maintenance fee. This threw the account into a negative {$4.00}. 

My auto transfers then resumed in XX/XX/XXXX for some reason, with a {$25.00} debit on XX/XX/XXXX, and a {$25.00} credit onXX/XX/XXXX. However, Keybank then assessed an overdraft charge of {$28.00} on XX/XX/XXXX, since as far as my balance was concerned, the auto transfers simply cancelled each other out and the account was still in a negative {$4.00}. 

They then charged another overdraft fee of {$28.00} as a recurring OD charge on XX/XX/XXXX. 

In total, they charged {$68.00} for a negative balance that was caused by their maintenance fee and the unexplained failure of a regularly scheduled auto transfer credit. 

I didn't know about any of this until I received a chargeoff letter from them saying the account has been closed and sent to collections. I called and talked to their collections rep and he said there was nothing he could do since the account was closed. He said I would have to talk to the local branch to see if they could reverse fees or help in any way. 

I went to the local branch in XXXX, Alaska the next day. They first told me I would have to call Collections. When I told the teller that Collections told me to come here, she brought in the branch manager. He said they could not do anything because the account had been charged off. He also started asking intimidating and irrelevant questions such as Why did you have this account anyway, since you were hardly using it?. And, why didn't you call us within 60 days after XX/XX/XXXX? 

In reading up a bit, my understanding of Regulation E and the intent behind the updated ruling by the Fed Reserve 2009-10 was to stop abuses and questionable tactics by banks to charge and piggyback excessive fees like these. I believe the Reserve specifically targeted multiple fees being assessed by banks for essentially one error, or in one month. 

Again, in this case, the negative balance developed because of their maintenance fee. 

Thank you for your help in this matter. 

P.S. Please note that in one of the attachments ( XXXX ), the note at the top, apparently for the teller, states that I did not consent to Standard Overdraft Services. I don't know if that applies to transfers, but it does seems to imply that Keybank did not have the right to automatically overdraft my account and then charge me OD fees.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation