Bank of American Gets Tough On Credit Card Payments

People who bank at Bank of America and who have credit cards through the same bank are having problems when they don’t pay credit card payments. Bank of America, more than most banks, is enforcing a provision in their credit card agreements which allows them to take money out of customers’ bank accounts to pay the credit card. They are taking money without any advance notice. No client has asked me to review their Bank of American credit card documents, so I am assuming the bank has a legal contractual basis for their practice.

If you bank at Bank of American and have their Visa or Mastercard cards, and if think you may fall behind on credit card payments, you should consider moving your checking account to another bank. Even if you leave open the BOA checking account, open an account somewhere else and move most of your money. I don’t know if other banks have the same rights in their customer agreements. If you bank somewhere else you should find out whether your bank can automatically deduct credit card payments from your accounts at the same bank.

A bank cannot invade your checking account once you file bankruptcy.

posted by Jonathan Alper, bankruptcy and asset protection attorney, Orlando, Florida

Comments

[DianeT]

Every bank that I know of has terms that include a right of setoff - so that if you have a loan or credit cards with that same bank, they have the right to dip into your checking/savings accounts to extract the payments you owe.

I make it a policy to NEVER have a loan or credit card with the same bank where I have my checking/savings accounts for exactly this reason. I bank with BofA, but I will never accept their credit cards or take a loan out from them. There are plenty of other financial institutions that are in the loan and credit card business.