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The rest of my debit card story…
By Deb |
In a previous post I discussed an issue I had with a former satellite provider who would not allow me to “unauthorize” the use of my debit card. I filed a complaint with the Department of Consumer Affairs. Here’s what happened.
Today, I received a letter. Not only did the company remove my debit card information from their system, but they also found an error on their part. I didn’t mention this in my last post, but I confronted the customer service rep about over-charging me for the Early Cancellation Fee. I was quoted one fee when I initially disconnected the service; however, when they attempted to deduct it from my debit card, it was much higher.
Here’s the deal: They attempted to charge me $280.00 plus $16.80 in taxes. When I filed a complaint, they discovered that I only owed $145.22. Had I passively allowed them access to my bank account, I would have lost more than what I budget for my weekly grocery bill.
According to the letter from the company’s president, there was no record of them attempting to charge the fee against my debit card. That’s a discrepancy. I actually learned about the attempted debit when I reviewed my debit card statement and saw that an attempted debit was declined. Since I didn’t expect the debit, I didn’t have the funds in that particular account to cover it at that time.
While the company requires that you maintain a credit card on file, my debit card does not work on credit. It takes the cash directly out of my PayPal account (which is linked to my checking account), and I wasn’t about to allow it. Using the cash system means that I must budget my expenses, and an unexpected $300 debit was not in my budget at the time.
I am pleased with the outcome. I rarely complain to companies, but when I discovered that I had lost control of my debit card–according to “them”–I wasn’t about to take it sitting down.
Topics: Budget, Debit Cards, Personal Experiences |