A Bank That ACTUALLY Cares About Their Customers

About a year and a half ago, I was looking to open a checking account because another bank had charged me way too much for simple things like calling in and talking to someone at their office ($10 fee). I went to 2 other banks and they refused to open an account for me because of me refusing to pay the ridiculous fees the other banks charged me.

Then I was in my local Walmart and saw a bank there with a sign "2nd Chance Checking" so I stopped in and asked a few questions about their fees and such and then successfully signed up for an account with absolutely no problem. The branch manager, Andrea, personally opened my account and was very kind and friendly.

As the months passed by the tellers at Woodforest got to know me and always were very kind and always called me by my first name when I dropped by to deposit or withdraw money. By the way almost every deposit is available IMMEDIATELY! At the other bank, even though I'm sure they knew me, it seemed like I was just a number to them, maybe because I kept a lower balance than other customers, maybe because I had no huge loans with them, who knows. Also if I made a deposit that wasn’t cash it would take 1-3 business day(s), or more, to be available to me. Not at Woodforesst! The tellers at WOODFOREST always treated me like I had a million bucks in my account.

After having an account there for a year, in good standing, they upgraded my account to a free account with FREE $500 in overdraft protection that they called "privilege pay." At the other banks they made you apply for a line of credit to get overdraft protection, which, of course, they never approved for the average person! Not at Woodforest! They upgraded my account one day I was in there, making a deposit, surprising me! Wow, again making me feel like a treasured client.

At one point in time I had an overdraft, it got paid (thank goodness) and I got charged a $34 fee. Now its worth mentioning that while Woodforest only charged me ONE overdraft fee, the other bank would have charged me about 11 FEES because at my other bank they charged overdraft fees on” pending items” too. Again, NOT AT WOODFOREST. I went in that day and corrected my account making the balance positive and making sure my “pending transactions” didn't get any overdraft fees when they cleared. I talked to the manager that day and she told me that they limit the amount of overdraft fees that someone can incure in one day. Then she told me she would REFUND the overdraft fee if I completed an online banking education class (which took about 10 minutes to do) which was well worth the $34.00 I was refunded.

Another great thing about Woodforest is their online banking. You can log in anytime and see EVERYTHING going on with your account. For example, if I just went to the store and spent $50, there it was right on the screen. If I just got gas, instead of showing $1 it showed the actual amount. This is very helpful, in case you make a mistake. If you overspent, as long as you can make it to the bank before the "pending items" change to "posted items" (about 1-3 days) you can save yourself on fees if you make a deposit and bring your account to a positive balance. My other bank hid the "pending transactions" and just told you a total of them. Like I said earlier in this review, if you make a mistake and over spend, you will be charged fees on EVERY “pending item” that could be as much as $300+. NOT WOODFORREST!

Fast forward about 6 months. I woke up and checked my account online as I always do and there was an ACH for $200 that I did not recognize. It turned out to be fraud. Now this is what impresses me the most about Woodforest National Bank, the Vice President of the entire company (not just my local bank manager or a regional manager) this was the real deal Vice President of the bank (on a NATIONAL executive level) calling me from HIS CELL PHONE! A few questions and he fixed the problem RIGHT AWAY and told me to call him ON HIS CELL PHONE if I ever needed his help again. Now you tell me of a bank where the VICE PRESIDENT personally helped you out when your account only had a balance of $112.00 and gave you his cell phone number for future help if needed! Again, ONE MORE REASON I felt like I had a million dollars in my account.

To summarize, I would highly recommend this bank to anyone who wants a bank that not only says “We care about our customers….” but they ABSOLUTLEY really 100% do care about their customers. Thank you Woodforest for your AMAZING service. It’s the little things your bank does that counts. I’ve had bank accounts with around 25-30 banks in my lifetime and NEVER got the great service from anyone like I have from you. I’m just your ordinary guy who keeps an average of $300-600 in my account with “not so good” credit.  Keep up the good work and everyone will have accounts with your bank! Thank You, from your customer for life!