Baton Rouge Telco Federal Credit Union
Baton Rouge Telco Federal Credit Union is headquartered in Baton Rouge and is the 12th largest credit union in the state of Louisiana. It is also the 816th largest credit union in the nation. It was established in 1936 and as of December of 2022, it had grown to 77 employees and 32,681 members at 4 locations. Baton Rouge Telco Federal Credit Union's CD rates are 4X the national average, and it boasts an A+ health rating.
Field of Membership Restrictions
Baton Rouge Telco Federal Credit Union offers membership to individuals who live, work, or attend school in the Louisiana parishes of Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, Saint Helena, Tangipahoa, West Baton Rouge, or West Feliciana. Immediate family is also eligible to join
See current membership details
Genuinely Nice People! 10/10
The people at BRTelco, specifically Sonya and Synetra, were super helpful in figuring out my money situation. They helped me open an account to consolidate my debt at half the interest rate Chase/Regions had me at, and went out of their way to answer all of my questions and make me feel comfortable. The employees on the Wooddale location were really nice as well when I went in to get my card.
I don’t know what the deal is with the other user, but the only issue that came up was that their website was acting a little screwy at the time of sign up (which Sonya took upon herself to take care of for me).
A lovely place to do business!
HORRIBLE CREDIT UNION
This is a horrible credit union. I am a person who conducts research prior to making decisions and my credit union choice was no different. TELCO has a lot of features that I liked: Free Checking, Mobile Banking, Immediate Visa Bank Card, etc. I was extremely excited to begin banking with them earlier this year, but my excitement soon turned to frustration and after 5 months I knew that it was time to call it quits.
Unlike most people out there, I am not fortunate enough to have my monthly paycheck direct deposited into my account. I actually receive paper checks. So once a month, I travel to TELCO to deposit my payroll check into my checking and savings accounts.
The first month TELCO placed a "hold" on my check because they stated that they were not familiar with the Payor. I obliged, even though my check was issued by a governmental entity. The "hold" lasted 7 business days.
Month 2, TELCO placed another "hold" on my check for 2-3 days. When questioned, the Teller informed me that this would be the last time because my check would be recognized as "safe." "Ok", I thought. "2 times isn't bad."
Month 3, TELCO placed a "hold" on my check for 7 business days and I was told that an error had occurred. The Teller assured me that he'd placed a "No Hold" note in my account. So this should never happen again. Yeah, right!
Month 4, TELCO placed a 10 business day (14 day) "hold" on my check! But they provided me with notice that stated that the "hold" would only lasts for 2 days. Nope, it was definitely a 2 week hold which caused me to endure NSF fees and returned checks. For whatever reason, the TELCO failed to transfer money out of my savings to cover the check--they returned it-- which caused me to endure a fee from both banking institutions. A few days later, the credit union realized that I had "overdraft" protection and sufficient funds to satisfy the overages because they transferred money 6 times into my checking account. Hmph! A day late and a dollar short! And guess what...their transfers caused me to exceed the number of transfers for the month...so, I had an issue taking money out of my savings account. When I contacted the branch, I was once again apologized to and told that from now on I should provide them with my pay stub to show that my monthly governmental check was a payroll check. I thought that I'd done that a few months earlier. At this point, I am furious but I am not wanting to go through the task of finding a new bank. I should have followed my gut and the advice of my husband, mother, etc. and left them then!
Unfortunately, I decided to give TELCO one more try. I guess I am a gluten for punishment because this time there was not one but two straws that broke the back of this camel! First, several days before the money was taken out of my account, I cancelled a scheduled "bill pay" payment. Of course, they took the money out any way and caused me again to have a small but ridiculous negative balance. The following day, I visited the bank to speak with someone about this issue and to deposit my Month 5 check. Never happened because...SURPRISE! They placed another "hold" on my check. At this point, I'd had enough. I informed the TELCO Tellers on duty about my experiences. I told them that they were causing me to lose money and preventing me from paying my bills. They could care less. They informed me that my pay stub was not sufficient and despite being told earlier that a "No Hold" notation had been placed on my account--it was not. They could not...would not help me. Aggravated and close to tears, I decided to withdraw all of the money from my savings to ensure that I could pay my future bills. Unfortunately, TELCO'S lead teller, with the nasty attitude, informed me that I could not remove all of my money unless I closed the account. So, let's close the account, I said to her! No. She informed me that I could not close the account until Monday and that she would not give me all of my savings money. After a few heated exchanges, TELCO'S lead teller, with the nasty attitude, decided that she'd had enough of me. She decided to provide me will all of my savings money minus the $4.00 NSF fee. Then...she decided to "cash" my payroll check and give me all of the money from my checking account. So, I guess she fired me from TELCO. lol. Well, she really showed me. She gave me MY money. But in the midst of her being smart she made a dumb move. And I wanted to ask her about it!
"Ms. Lady Teller With the Nasty Attitude--You can't deposit my check without a hold but you can provide me with several thousand dollars in cash, immediately?"
"Ms. Lady Teller With the Nasty Attitude, if I was a criminal, which I am not, wouldn't it behoove you to deposit the my pay roll check and allow yourself some time to ensure validity rather than allowing me to walk away with cash in hand?"
But, I didn't ask her a thing. I let her think she was showing me. I just took my money and drove off.
At the end of the day, I would rather have several thousand dollars in my hand and have the opportunity to find a real bank/credit union. I do not want to deal with TELCO and their ridiculous "rules that change with Teller" for one more day. This, folks, is a testament to the type of people that TELCO, specifically, the Airline Hwy. branch has working in their credit union.
I can assure you that I have learned, that despite good intentions and a desire to work/bank with local businesses, that sometimes local is not always better. I will never bank with this credit union again!
Data as of Q4 2022
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| NCUA # | 1726 |
| Year Chartered | 1936 |
| Employees | 77 |
| Primary Regulator | |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.18% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 9.9% |
| Annual Interest Income | $15.1MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $411.6MM$385.2MM |
| Loans | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $368.7MM$320.3MM |
| Deposits | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $356.6MM$339.0MM |
| Equity Capital | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $48.8MM$44.0MM |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $530.00K$925.00K |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $652.00K$294.00K |
| Real Estate Owned | Q4 2022vs Q4 2021 | $0$0 |