Re: Hanscom Federal Credit Union is the pits

Anonymous · ‎05-19-2017

Just an fyi. I joined this CU based on comments by others on this site. Applied for a credit card and after initially speaking with a rep who pulled the credit, asked me a couple of questions about store cards, said everything looked good, good utilization nothing maxed out and the payment history was good, score etc. She told me final approval comes from another person and I would get a call in 24 hours. 48 hours later I called and left a message for the loan department. This morning almost 72 hours later, I receive a call from someone who just spent at least 10 minutes lecturing me about my inquiries over the last 2 years of which I pointed out a good portion of those are for our car loans and she said all of my inquiries but a couple are for "credit cards" which I know isn't true. Then she told me my score was 625 and I told her that is not correct, I can see what my score is and they must be using a different scoring model than most because I know for a fact, that is not correct. So then I got to listen to her tell me that they pull Experian like others and see the same score. She also went on about living off of credit. I DO NOT live off of credit. Just because I have more than a few cards does NOT mean I live off of credit. At this point I knew I wasn't getting the card so I reminded her that we make almost 300k a year and I don't need to live off of credit and she agreed. Ridiculous.

Needless to say I didn't get the card so I told her I wanted to close out all accounts I had opened and apparently to do that I have to send her a written letter. Again ridiculous. I'm not upset about not getting the card, I don't care for the customer service, I'm upset at being treated so rudely and without any regard whatsoever. I get that I have a lot of inquires. 1/3 of which are falling off over the next 2 months so they are not particularly recent but she said I should not have more than 10 in 2 years. But the score she gave me was way off. I looked at the score models and it appears they pull FICO score 2. I really resented the 10 minute lecture as well. If you want to deny the card, deny the card. If you want to provide information to help someone with why the card is being denied to make sure they understand, then do it in a kind, considerate, and professional manner not brow beating someone and making them feel worthless. And if your customer offers information back, they should try listening whether or not they agree.

I'm done with credit unions.

AverageJoesCredit · ‎05-19-2017

Sorry about that experience. Would have done the same thing. If your profile doesnt talk loud enough for you, just find someone with whom it does

Anonymous · ‎05-19-2017

Thanks AverageJoesCredit! I like your advice!

Anonymous · ‎05-19-2017

I'd be pretty ticked off too if I was in that conversation. Don't let this bad experience tarnish your outlook on all credit unions though. I personally deal with three. Fairwinds (local credit union where I live), PenFed and NFCU and they've all been nothing but professional and respectful. I have recently switched all banking to NFCU from Fairwinds as NFCU is local for me too and I've been extremely impressed with their customer service.

Sorry this happened to you! There are tons of lenders who value their customers. You make a fantastic annual wage so you'd make many institutions happy to have your business!!

Anonymous · ‎05-20-2017

Thanks CharlieFoxTrot! I'm writing a letter to the CEO, David Sprague, outlining exactly what happened and what was said from the moment I picked up the phone along with attachments of articles about FICO credit scoring models and how they work and explaining why different lenders can see different scores. And also a screen shot of my fico score from Experian (score 8) and a screen shot of my FICO score 2. In the letter I told the CEO he should pass this on to the branch manager that called me so she can learn something about her profession since she is not only giving out incorrect information but obviously has no interest in learning anything about her job. And that he should not allow someone who doesn't even know scoring models exist but believes all lenders for all products see the exact same score, she should not be making credit decisions. Hopefully he will get my point. I also suggested she get sensitivity training and job related financial training and a class on avoiding defamation might be a good idea too. I wonder how many members they have lost because of this woman. I also brought that up. How many people has she done this too that have walked away instead of notifying him. I guarantee you I'm not the first.

I called their main office and was told he reads all complaints. They gave me his fax number and I tried to send it last night only to find out it wasn't a fax number. Urrrr. I don't expect a change to the decision but I hope he addresses this with her and ensures his employees are properly trained so no one else is treated the way I was.

JoeLuvsHisCredit · ‎05-20-2017

So Sorry OP

But to be honest If I was you I would be happy since you found this out at the beginning instead of later on (meaning how they allow someone like her to run the business!

It's really their loss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous · ‎05-20-2017

Thnks JoeLuvsHisCredit, I agree with you. In my letter to the CEO I said that I am actually the one that dodged a bullet finding out early on how they treat their members and that they allow something as sensitive as a credit decision to come down to an employee that has little knowledge of credit as a whole and absolutely zero interpersonal skills and customer service skills.

Anonymous · ‎05-20-2017

Wow is all I have to say. I work in customer service. And believe me, that conversation was very unprofessional on her part.

I agree there is nothing wrong with giving suggestions on what is necessary to meet their requirements. But you should not have been belittled.

CRAZY!!!!

AverageJoesCredit · ‎05-20-2017

+1 joe #2 or #3 ,lol, or maybe im joe jr.

yeah i guess these things happen for the best. Cant wait to read about your next successful relationship , maybe PF or Navy if they are viable options. Sometimes i guess those frontline csr get Power hungry deciding a mans , or womans, fate with a click of a button. Shame, but as already stated their loss someone else's gain

joltdude · ‎05-20-2017

Really sorry this happened to the OP...

I actually do my primary banking though Hanscom... and in-branch... That said.. I haven't had quite the problems or the grilling except when they did a credit review on my request for an APR reduction... I got grilled for that.. but it turned out fine in the end... Really does sound like you just got a bum CSR... Perhaps it wasn't a good fit .. CUs are more of a relationship banking product and sometimes it just doesnt work out... Iv been party to some really bad CSR calls to/from NFCU as well.. but Chase and BOA can and do grill folks for credit cards as well.. That said.. you always have the right to walk if it doesnt work out ...

My point: The grass isnt always greener with the Major Banks.. you just have to find a CU that suits you and gives you the level of service you expect...

Your CSR experience sounds like the experiences i had with MIT FCU and not Hanscom....

Funny how that stuff works..

I would write Sprague or get in touch with him, before you send that letter to close everything... HFCU is slightly conservative, and not as lenient as say NFCU.

Wish you luck finding a perfect fit...

-J