So we have the companies who are Too Big to Fail. Meet the customers who are Too Stupid to Leave. 🙂

With all the talk about Bank of America (BofA) these days, I’m wondering why people are sticking around. It’s not like this week’s news with the $5 debit card fees is the first time BofA has tried to stick it to customers. BofA has been screwing me over ever since I opened an account with them in NC in 2006/2007.

So why didn’t I close my account right away? I have no freakin’ idea. Stupidity? Laziness? Really, no good reason for me to stick around.

I don’t know… maybe I still remember the golden days, going on two decades ago when Seafirst/BofA treated me like they cared. That’s all changed though.

You know when you think about the stupid chick who stays with her boyfriend after he dotted her eye? You shake your head and might even think if she’s going to stick around for it, she doesn’t deserve better. Yeah… I know. Harsh. But really, why in the hell is she sticking with him? You know it’s only going to get worse.

It might start with a shove, then a slap, next thing she knows he’s pounding his fists into her while she curls in a fetal ball in the corner. When it’s all over, he’s saying, “I’m sorry… I love you. If only you had done X instead of Y, I wouldn’t have had to punish you.”

If you ever confront her, you’ll likely get something like, “I can’t leave him. I’ve been with him since I left high school. What will I do without him?”

Hey! Speaking of apologies, does this look familiar?

I apologize for your experience. You may access Online Banking by clicking “continue to online banking” after logging in. ^bm

I apologize for your experience. Please DM name/zip/phone and we’ll give you a call to see how we can help. ^bm

BofA_Help has been tweeting apologies like that at least since yesterday. I have to hand it to BofA, they do hire some pleasant reps. Unfortunately, the reps seem to have their hands tied. Policies. Just following protocol they didn’t create. Sweet as can be, but don’t seem to have much ability to help at all.

Think about it: When was the last time you called BofA about a problem, and they were flexible enough to work with you? Or did they say something like, you should have known, we sent out a notice in the mail with the new changes; if you don’t read the fine print, there’s nothing we can do about it; the policies restrict me from doing anything at this time?

Personally, I don’t like their micro print or their policies which manipulate transactions to push customers so far in the hole, they question if they’ll ever find the way out. Who cares if their website is down for two days, and now you can’t pay your bills? Who cares that you’ll have to pay late charges to your creditors, landlord? Who cares if you want to avoid going into debt and pay only with the money you have. It’s not BofA problem, right? They’ve got your business; they’ve got your money.

No. It’s your problem. If you continue to let a company screw you over, knowing you don’t like what they’re doing, knowing there are other options (and YES! There are options), then that’s YOUR problem.

It seems like BofA has been testing the limits for years. It’s always something new with them. What can they get away with? Quite a lot apparently. After all, customers are still loyal to them. Push. Slap. Punch!

I don’t want to hear customers can’t spare 15-20 minutes out of their lives to save $60 a year in debt fees, or the mass of other fees they’ve been hit with over the years and WILL be hit with in the future years to come. Do the math. Isn’t it worth the time to drive to a branch/make the phone call/close your account online to avoid getting jacked?

$5 a month/$60 a year. Hmmm…. isn’t that what a lot of the crappy credit card companies charge as annual fees for the borrowers they don’t trust? That’s crazy.

People! BofA was rated #2 worst company in America, just behind BP. Doesn’t that put them at the top of the chart for banks? Is that the kind of #1 you want for your bank? Surely you can do better than the worst of the worse.

Let BofA beat you like the boyfriend who beats the stupid chick down the street. Eventually customers will get tired of it.

Then again, maybe they won’t. After all, the boyfriend is still beating that dumb gal. On the other hand, even the stupid girl down the street doesn’t pay her boyfriend to beat her.

So I ask you… are you too stupid to leave?