Bank of the West

I would give NO STARS but Unilocal makes me give at least one. So, in fact, I would give it a –5 star rating.
My daughter and I just went to the branch with some concerns over her debit card. They insist on issuing a card with a chip — which we requested not to have because she doesn’t feel it is as secure as they claim (and it is not). They also insist on just putting the first initial of her first name and full last name on the card rather than her actual name. We have a very common last name and it is unsafe to have it the way they did the card if someone were to take her wallet or somehow gain access to her card. The woman at the branch (a very rude woman named Jyoti) said that they can’t allow the name to be more than 30 characters. However, my daughter’s name has only 15 characters which includes a space between first and last name. The woman still said that was too long! Since when is 15 greater than 30!!!
We also asked if she could please order a new card, minus the chip (it would be ATM only and that is fine with her) and at first she said that wasn’t possible but then we informed her that 2 other people in the bank said it would be OK. Then Jyoti took our cards (yes, we have 2 accounts) and cut them up — without asking us if that’s what we wanted!!!
We had initially spoken with a teller who was very nice and suggested we speak with the branch manager. We did this but even he was clueless and was not listening to our concerns but rather had us speak to Jhoti, who knew even less!!! The branch manager even told Jhoti to call someone to see what they could do for us but she didn’t even follow his directive!
They have a sign in the bank that states that they want feedback and to please go to their website to voice any concerns or questions. However, it’s bogus! If you go to the site, it asks if you opened a new account today. If you answer, «no», you get a message saying that unfortunately, you do not qualify for their survey. Really!!!
Trying to call and get their corporate offices is a joke, too. The number they list is just another branch. They were nice but they said the only way to voice a concern or complaint is to write a letter to their corporate offices in San Ramon, CA.

As banks go they are OK. I wish they had more branches because there’s none in Evergreen where I live. Luckily, because of my job I am traveling around the South Bay all the time. This has allowed me go to just about every location. The service varies widely with tellers. They are all pleasant but some can be just slow as molasses in making my business deposits.
My real issue is with credit. I like so many people came out of the last recession with a few dings on my credit. However, the last 4 years I have been a model account holder. So when I applied for a «secure» credit card I thought there would not be a problem. Wrong! First, I was declined and it 2 weeks to find out the reason why. I come to find out it was because my FICO credit score was too low. Of course this is a catch 22 because I am trying to get credit so I can increase my credit score. Second, when I applied they immediately took out $ 700 to back the secure credit card but it took 2 weeks to have it placed back in my account and 2 more weeks before it was available to me.
I plan to stay with this bank another year or so and then move to a credit union. They are supposed to be great with credit.

Nice bank service. The teller address you by your first name!

nice friendly staff, with less wait time.

My wife and I have been banking in this branch for years. They’re great! From the manager to each clerk-​everybody is nice and helpful. Especially Grace, she was the one who opened our first account. She told us she had been working for this branch for many, many years. She is always so enthusiastic, energetics, and motivated. Every time she sees us she always gives us a big smile and says «hello». It makes us feel very welcome. She always tries her best to find something to help us with our finances. I think she is such an asset of this bank.

What a great manager!

this place is horrible. Their overdraft fees are a killer, the lines are always long, service is slow, and i still havent received my password for online banking after 3weeks now. Their online site is confusing as hell i mean c’mon theres nothing in there that says «service page»!believe me ive searched high and
when i called yesterday the first lady i spoke with said my account was up and running and that i should reset my password or call customer service number if anything. i couldnt log in without my username and i couldnt even retrieve that online because of the many unessesary limitations so i call customer services and they tell me they have nothing on record and i should reapply personally

I don’t have a problem with this location specifically, but BANK OF THE WEST in general is terrible. The main issue here is that every check is kept on hold for totally unreasonable amounts of time. For example, a $ 300 check was held for 10 days! even though it was cleared and cashed from the other account. Also, everytime you ask for help inside the branch, they just tell you they can’t do anything about it and you have to call the customer service number which requires long wait times. I would NEVER recommend this bank to anyone. If I could give zero stars I would.