Safe 1 Credit Union is headquartered in Bakersfield and is the 64th largest credit union in the state of California. It is also the 444th largest credit union in the nation. It was established in 1952 and as of June of 2023, it had grown to 129 employees and 80,409 members at 9 locations. Safe 1 Credit Union's CD rates are 5X the national average, and it has an A health rating.
Field of Membership Restrictions
Membership is open to those who live or work in Kings, Kern, Fresno, or Tulare Counties in California.
See current membership details
Safe 1 Credit Union
I've been a member of this bank for years. Recently my phone got hacked and they got access to my debit card from Safe 1.The hackers stole money from me and bought crypto currency. Safe 1 said they would investigate and they refunded my money while they were investigating. I know they didn't investigate at all. They took the money back. I got robbed by hackers, and then again by Unsafe 1. They were rude and dismissive on the phone. Do not put your money in this bank. They are not on your side.
Safe 1 WORST CREDIT UNION
Safe 1 should truly focus on customer service. Primarily at your Mill Rock location. Ms. Lety & Ms. Maria (manager) lack professionalism and they don't know how to empathize with your members. I assist my elderly uncle who doesn't speak English, has vision problems, and he's 74 yrs old. We have always called 661-327-3818 for assistance and with my uncle's verbal permission and security questions (Usually 3), we speak to someone, and they handle his issue. However, speaking with Ms. Maria was unfortunate. She refused to speak to my uncle or to me and simply said it goes against company policy and whomever else I spoke with did not follow protocol. I wasn't happy and asked why, when and how, etc. Instead of an explanation, Ms. Maria (a manager) hung up on me.
I work with clients all day long. I primarily deal with immigrants who can't speak English, can't read or write, or who are elderly. I empathize with them. I am patient with them, and I aim to help, not hinder. When they have a family member assisting them, I understand. I get the logic behind that.
I always get permission from the client due to legal liability but I'm never rude nor do I hang up on a client who is frustrated or upset.
I find a person any client/customer who is frustrated to be a challenge. I look to calm them down, and kindly, and in a soft tone, explain the reason for such a change in policy. Most clients calm down and are apologetic.
Ms. Maria shouldn't be a manager if she has thin skin and can't handle an upset caller.
I hope you discuss this matter with your employees. I called back and spoke to Lety. She was just following Ms. Maria's lead. She made it more complicated than necessary for my uncle by asking about 7 security questions. Name, address, phone #, SSN, Safe 1 account #, account balance and lastly his DL #. Security screening should be no more than 3 questions.
Be kind. You know good and well that people such as my uncle exist and are simply trying to handle their business. Shame on you.
I've emailed, left VM, and posted on their social media and not 1 person has had the decency to call me back or reply. Customer Service is a rarity. Be careful who you trust your money with. & They're DINOSAUR when it comes to the up to date technology. A simple address change is agonizing.
Condescending & Gleefully Dismissive
This credit union is the only bank in my neighborhood, within walking distance of my new home. I went in today to open a simple checking account. I was dressed humbly and casually--jeans and shirt, all clean, holding my briefcase with documents and cash to open the account. The sole woman behind the "new accounts" desk performed the best "May I help you, Sir?" sneer I've heard over the past decade, at least. As I politely asked her about how to open an account, she listed off, perfunctorily, all the ways I could be denied an account--most having to do with the banking credit check system. Knowing my credit and armed with a copy of my local lease, my valid US passport, two local CA utility bills, my CA auto registration and insurance, as well as checks and cash for the deposit, I handed her the documents in exchange for a clipboard to fill out the information the bank needed. She took one look at my out-of-state ID and in her most disgusted and taunting tone exuded pure joy in informing me I was not eligible for an account with the august Safe 1 Credit Union.
In the 25+ years that I've opened and maintained bank accounts across the USA, never a single time with a problem, I've never before been treated like I'm a criminal. It would have been an easy matter for Safe 1 to inform me up front that I'd need, specifically, a CA state ID (I just relocated here two weeks ago). That this woman took such pleasure in first listing the many ways I could be rejected from admission, then, once she had the evidence of my ineligibility, drawing out the formal rejection, told me everything I needed to know about this bank. People "like me" aren't welcome there, despite the fact the branch is in the midst of a chiefly working class minority neighborhood.
Why do business in a neighborhood you don't want to work in and whose residents you can't bring yourself to treat with even a modicum of dignity? Already a long-time member of two credit unions on either US Coast, and principally an online banker (BECU offers the country's best online banking features, including POP-money payments directly to other people), I'll forego the humiliation and acrid attitudes of any more financial institutions' admissions committees and do all of my banking online with my current credit unions.
Gone are the days when US citizens were obliged to bank at local, in-state facilities. It's a global world, and haughty, demeaning banks would do well to remember that.
Data as of Q2 2023
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| NCUA # | 61598 |
| Year Chartered | 1952 |
| Employees | 129 |
| Primary Regulator | |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.26% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 9.58% |
| Annual Interest Income | $15.8MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $963.6MM$912.7MM |
| Loans | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $712.5MM$662.8MM |
| Deposits | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $775.3MM$785.5MM |
| Equity Capital | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $126.3MM$114.5MM |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $0$5.9MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $2.3MM$3.0MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q2 2023vs Q2 2022 | $0$0 |