Consumer complaint received 2021-10-20 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account — Money was taken from your account on the wrong day or for the wrong amount
Company: M&T BANK CORPORATION
State: WV

Complaint narrative:
M & t Bank arbitrarily pulled {$1200.00} out of our account for no reason they refunded fees the last time we had to file a complaint from them charging exorbitant fees that were unwarranted they refunded part of those fees not the entire amount but we accepted it as it were and just made do. Now they have taken that money back out of our account without warning and without permission causing our account to overdraft and piling up these that are absolutely absurd. We were not made aware of any type of action like this nor have heard of anything of this sort ever happening we've never had anything like this happen and had we known we would have fought it tooth and nail from the beginning because it's unjust and not right. We are going to lose our house as my wife lost her job from covid and got back to work we got back on our feet and M & t just pulls the rug out from under us again because apparently being up 31 % in revenue up 90 % in income and up 44 % profit is more important to M & t than their customers financial health. M & t has enriched themselves upon the backs of the people that can least afford it they are actively driving people into poverty they have done this repeatedly to us we have been account holders for 20 years we make regular deposits into the account every other week we've never done anything nefarious or underhanded aside from just try to get by and at every turn M & t has taking it upon themselves to illegally in a morally charges fees when none were warranted. I can't count the times that I've made a deposit only to incur fees the next day from things that were presented that M & t had one excuse or another as to why my deposits did not post it is ongoing it is unfair and it is unjust. Because of this immoral and unscrupulous behavior we are in the brink of losing our USDA backed home. We have a XXXX  XXXX son and a daughter and we are literally going to be living in our XXXX  because of M & t Bank. There was no need for them to do this there was no call for it there was no justification in fact we have the account set up so that nothing can come out if the money is not in there so why is it acceptable for M & t to pull {$1200.00} from our account without our permission without warning us without saying anything there was no justification had they mentioned it I would have fought it tooth and nail because it's not right and it's not anything that is warranted. I've never asked them for anything besides the fees that they charge back because their fees cause us to overdraft again and those fees cause additional fees and it's not right as they can just arbitrarily charge fees on top of fees taking thousands of dollars out of our account without any recourse. In the 20 years we've been with them we have paid literally thousands and thousands of dollars in Bank fees from M & t they have never done anything for us as customers besides charges at every turn no matter what it has been there's never been any offer of assistance in any way. We have applied for overdraft protection multiple times to be turned down we have applied for loans we have been turned down for those we have loans through other banks that M & t would not underwrite because they only want us there to take money out of our account to pad their bottom line. This needs to be reversed immediately we have our direct deposits coming from both of our employers this weekend and we will still be in a negative balance without the ability to pay our electric bill our water bill or our mortgage because of m & t 's agreed and despicable business practices. I would have never believed a company would treat a customer this way but here we are with M & t it is over and over and over again. There is no reason for any of this to happen aside from M & t wanting to maximize profits without any care for the number of lives they affect they are actively willfully and knowingly driving working class people into poverty and there's no recourse what do we do when the bank refuses to give you your money back they have fought us at every turn this is just been a complete and utter nightmare with everything going on in covid and having to face unemployment as we did we still thought we would get by. Have we been with any other bank I think we would have been fine but because it was M & t they intentionally post things in an order so as to him customers will directly incur fees I've seen it multiple times they were taken to court about it there was a class action lawsuit which didn't change their business practices. It is not just the fact that they post things incorrectly it's not just the fact that they have charged me fees when the money has been in my account and they just chalk it up to a mistake those are what I've caught there's been multiple times I haven't even bothered calling because it wasn't worth it this money that they've taken out of our account should not have come out it was not authorized if we did not approve it we did not agree to it they basically pulled {$1200.00} from our account for no other reason than to force us to pay hundreds and hundreds of dollars in fees because we will have a deposit hitting. I take it they saw study deposits coming in and decided they could make a bunch of fees if they just tried to charge back money that they had refunded to begin with because of their nefarious practices. If it weren't for the fact that we had tried to get the overdraft protections multiple times if it weren't for the fact that the fees that they charge or exorbitant and they charge fees that drain the account and those fees ultimately cause additional fees and they cause additional fees it just snowballs every time they begin doing this and they continue to do it unfettered without any type of accountability it is unjust and unfair and I can not abide it I can not allow my home to be foreclosed on because of our bank that we have done nothing but show loyalty to for two decades yet the only thanks we get is them causing our financial devastation. The bank should not be able to withdraw money causing additional overdrafts on the account and we are left on the literal brink of homelessness. All the while m & t 's margins increase and their stock price rises seemingly solely because of they're seeming efforts to actively drive working class customers into poverty I understand that it is beneficial for the masses to have as little as possible that way the corporations and the people profiting off of misery can keep a stronger hold. But this is not just it is immoral it is directly contrary to everything that America stands for. I know that my family didn't serve their country and sacrifice all that has been sacrificed so that corporations are protected in causing irreparable harm to American citizens. In fact I asked my younger brother who's a XXXX XXXX XXXX in the XXXX if that's what he had given up the majority of his adult life for he was incense over the fact that an American company could treat a loyal customer that way. A brand new customer shouldn't get that sort of treatment let alone somebody that has been with your company for 20 years this is absolutely ridiculous and I don't like people knowing our business but this needs to change and stop we should not be tasked with increasing your profit margins with no recourse. These business practices would not be acceptable in XXXX or XXXX let alone in the United States of America yet M & t continues to actively and knowingly harm people for no reason aside from their own corporate greed.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation