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Sounds like a good case for class action (oops--I forgot--you guys are all for tort reform) Sounds like a good case for a law--(oops you guys are all libertarians, AKA Corporate Power advocates, and any regulation is bad bad bad)
hmmmm....Sounds like Jim got what he deserved.
Jim's experience, to me, points out two fundamental "flaws" with Libertarian economics.
First, I never hear from Libertarians that corporations, such as Bank of America, be honest in their dealings with the consumers. The Libertarians consistently advocate that it is the consumer who is responsible for protecting their self interest. Nothing wrong with that, but there should also be a recognition that if a corporation does something misleading or dishonest that Libertarians (in mass) make visible PUBLIC demands for a return to honesty, not remain silent.
Second, economics (as with any science) consistently evolves. Libertarian economic thought is "stuck" on the concept that one persons economic power can affect the policy of a corporation, such as Bank of America. One person in the 18th century could affect how the local butcher does business, but the sad reality today is that one average person has virtually no economic power to modify the behavior of a large nationwide and/or international corporation. Additionally, corporations today deal with many products. A debate that emerged during the Sony root-kit debate was: "Do we boycott all Sony products or just the music products?"
I also have an editorial take on the Libertarian call for "no regulation". Based on my prior comment that there are no calls for corporations to act ethically, the mantra of "no regulation" degenerates into a license to steal as Jim is finding out. I might as well also throw-in our financial crises which was caused by the lack of ethical conduct by those who freely choose to "steal" even if it meant the destruction of our financial system.
The right to freedom from regulation means having the ethical standards not to abuse the consumer. If a company does not have those ethical standards, regulate them. Jim I wish you well.
(EF, your comments aren't terribly relevant because you obviously don't know where I stand on litigation, mistaking me for a Republican. But you do push your ideological enemies together, which is generally poor strategy.)
@EF and Joe, my recitation of the facts may have been poor, so I'll clarify: BofA hasn't gotten a dime from me, and they're not going to. I've had to jump through more hoops than I should to get out of these payments, and I took a little time beyond that to level my criticisms about the company publicly. (It's a good rule of thumb: if a business burns up your time, burn a little more to let your community know about it.)
And Joe, my dissatisfaction here doesn't deceive me into thinking that I would be less dissatisfied under a more heavily regulated regime. The dream of regulation bringing businesses to heel is a popular one, but it's always going to be consumer oversight that does the best job of that.
Nezumi, I have accounts with a credit union, and have been happy there - so far. Well said.
Steve R. - thanks for your fair comment and kind words. I don't think the balance has changed as much as you say. Organizations have gotten larger, but so have the tools that consumers have, and their organizational capacities. There are all kinds of media that one can use to affect corporate behavior, including blogs like this one. The consumer is not alone. It's only upon becoming a flaccid beggar for government help that a consumer grows weak.
I've seen you say before that libertarians should call for companies to act ethically - I think it's implicit in my criticism of BofA that I expect them to act ethically. So I don't disagree with you - I'm just more interested in direct, straightforward honesty, where the term "ethical" tends to import lots of interests I might not care so much about, like whether they have a program for recycling used aglets or other Corporate Social Responsibility fads.
Good times.
When I Googled the insurance to read up on it, I found that it is not even available in the state of Florida. So.....my question is: 1, how can they charge for insurance when it is not available in my state and 2, how could they have placed a policy on someone that was not employed at the time the mortgage was taken out?? I am thinking I need to talk to an attorney.......anyone have any input for me??
Banking companies that may need more capital include Citigroup Inc, Wells Fargo & Co, Fifth Third Bancorp, GMAC LLC, KeyCorp, Regions Financial Corp and SunTrust Banks Inc.
Perhaps nationalisation is a dirty word for Americans, but what other alternatives exist?
My first year of the free "protection plan" expires next month. Before I signed up, I was assured that I would be able to cancel with no problems. Furthermore, I was also told that after the first year that I could take out all the things that I don't need such as disability and just leave the unemployment insurance.
I'm curious as to why you had difficulty cancelling? I've read the contracts over and over again and nowhere does it say that you are obligated to continue paying once you cancel.
and a promise is a promise, but they are a fraud. I have tried for 8 month to get them to honor there buyers protection plan, but I dont think they have any intention of doing so. They must of picked their emkployees, protection plan dept.,from the unemployement lines.
It is a scam. Iam at the end of my free one year and they sent me a notice that they will be taking out $68.00 the lst of Nov. I called and cancelled. Today in the mail I received a confirmation of
cancellation. I also have been fighting with them for the last eight months on a disability claim and
Iam not winning so far. Each time and every time I talk to them they say they need something
else to complete the claim. They will not call you, they will not e-mail you, or they will not use the
postale service. I have even talked to a V.P. of the dept. and he said it looked like my claim should pass, but still more info that is need that was given on the original application.
I would be willing to join in on a class action law suit. And if I can I will file for the blance owing on
my mortgage. Give them my tax money and then they rip me off.
If you want to visit my site www.nfcu-org.com.
One thing I am wondering is if BPP will continue to pay my mortgage if I take a lower-paying temp job while I'm looking for a permanent position.
that is honest and you can count on.
United Breaks Guitars
So.... I've been paying into the BPP for about 18 months now. My job is in the commercial construction industry and there has been a massive slowdown as most everyone knows. My last day of work was July 28th but the prospect of work with my employer was continually on the horizon. "We might be starting a new job on Tuesday.. Now a week and a half, now the job has fallen through because the banks wouldn't release funds" A common story. Up to this point, my wife and I had decided to just live off of savings because we'd been there before and work always came through.
Now we need to use my state disability and apply mid-September and get approved September 20th. I then get the ball rolling on the BPP for involuntary unemployment and call BofA with a question on the application. They ask whether or not I applied for unemployment within 30 days of my last working day. The answer was, "No, more like 45 days" and the woman went on to tell me that my request for benefits would be probably be denied. What?? I went on to explain the absurdity of the situation to the woman and she actually agreed but couldn't do much. I sent in my forms anyway and I'm waiting to hear back.
Why would this even matter? How does it affect Bank of America? Why would they punish someone for paying into their program and trying their best to not have to use it? I dug up our signing papers and see the 30 day stipulation in the fine print so they have "legal backing."
We'll see what they do but they might have to find new customers to replace my family which has 2 checking accounts, 2 savings accounts, 2 credit cards, a mortgage and a line of credit through their glorious establishment.
Now is the time to step it up BofA. Sigh...
When I Googled the insurance to read up on it, I found that it is not even available in the state of Florida. So.....my question is: 1, how can they charge for insurance when it is not available in my state and 2, how could they have placed a policy on someone that was not employed at the time the mortgage was taken out?? I am thinking I need to talk to an attorney.......anyone have any input for me??