Banks have to deal with thousands of customers. They have to survive on thin margins in a highly competitive marketplace. Can you expect gracious, efficient, knowledgeable service? Well, in fact, you can. According to area consumers, a number of banks in the area give superior service.

Read our article and findings (available exclusively to CHECKBOOK subscribers)

Back to Puget Sound Consumers' CHECKBOOK Table of Contents.

Sample Subscriber Comments/Reviews About Banks

CHECKBOOK provides subscriber comments on their experiences with the firms they use. Please remember that individual subscriber comments are informal. Subscriber comments may give you insight into the types of features and problems that exist in a service field, but are not the best basis for selecting or rejecting a specific firm. To assess the quality of a firm's performance, we recommend that you give more weight to the percentages of favorable ratings. Those percentages are generally based on much larger numbers of consumers' ratings (the number of consumer ratings is noted above).

As You Can See Below, Some Banks Get High Praise from Their Customers. Some Others Don't. So Choose Carefully.
Here Are a Few Samples of the Thousands of Comments CHECKBOOK Has Collected on Hundreds of Different Banks.

• Subscriber from RENTON, WA wrote Another Bank: Difficulty in transferring Beneficiary IRA when it matured resulted in bank not making distribution as..........
• Subscriber from KIRKLAND, WA wrote Another Bank: Big national bank with mediocre service for small business........
• Subscriber from LAKE FOREST PARK, WA wrote Another Bank: Our business account is here, we love the service. We deal with real people not..........
• Subscriber from WOODINVILLE, WA wrote Another Bank: Local BofA staff are pleasant, professional, & knowledgeable. Central staff, though often polite, were neither..........
• Subscriber from BELLEVUE, WA wrote Another Bank: I'm actually totally shocked at how good my experience was with B of A. In..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: I really like the folks at the Queen Anne branch...nice and helpful........
• Subscriber from EVERETT, WA wrote Another Bank: WALKING INTO A US BANK JUST DON'T GIVE ME THE IMPRESSION OF A BANK. IT..........
• Subscriber from FEDERAL WAY, WA wrote Another Bank: It's a bank, distant and aloof........
• Subscriber from UNIVERSITY PL, WA wrote Another Bank: Changed to Harborstone from another bank based on their service and offers........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: My dealings with US Bank are through my VISA account. I had an occasion to..........
• Subscriber from KENT, WA wrote Another Bank: My only beef is with my BECU VISA accumulated air miles. Their policy is to..........
• Subscriber from BELLEVUE, WA wrote Another Bank: Seems like they're always training new tellers. This slows things up. Computer system recently changed..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: My rating is for The University Village branch.......
• Subscriber from PUYALLUP, WA wrote Another Bank: We've banked here for 14 years........
• Subscriber from MILL CREEK, WA wrote Another Bank: Ratings pertain to Bank of America on 185th and Firlands Way in Shoreline........
• Subscriber from BOTHELL, WA wrote Another Bank: Service has gone to hell since becoming Chase. A phone teller says one thing, fine..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: (Now Chase Bank).......
• Subscriber from BRIER, WA wrote Another Bank: BECU is the world record holder in my book for banking. I've been with various..........
• Subscriber from LACEY, WA wrote Another Bank: Very pleasant staff and answered any questions I had........
• Subscriber from LK FOREST PK, WA wrote Another Bank: When I needed a Medallion certification and knew nothing about it, they not only supplied..........
• Subscriber from KENT, WA wrote Another Bank: I'm only rating online communication with Bank of America relative to the problems I encountered..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: I really like the service, but the interest rates have lagged BECU........
• Subscriber from FEDERAL WAY, WA wrote Another Bank: BECU staff in Federal Way at the Crossings are very knowledgeable about all areas of..........
• Subscriber from ENUMCLAW, WA wrote Another Bank: Tellers don't handle money so cashing checks or withdrawing cash is cumbersome. No special orders..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: Can't talk to any one on the phone via their customer service number........
• Subscriber from AUBURN, WA wrote Another Bank: I have had Superior service with Columbia. They watch my accounts and if there is..........
• Subscriber from KEYPORT, WA wrote Another Bank: Staff is not very friendly and the interior of the bank itself is rather dark..........
• Subscriber from EASTSOUND, WA wrote Another Bank: Closed my account with them 8 years ago, so this may not be accurate at..........
• Subscriber from REDMOND, WA wrote Another Bank: We had some ID theft issues and the staff at the Redmond WAMU went out..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: Renton Branch Tukwila Branch is better.......
• Subscriber from LAKE FOREST PARK, WA wrote Another Bank: Too big, impersonal service.......
• Subscriber from BOTHELL, WA wrote Another Bank: I left my wallet at work and was out of gas. They would not cash..........
• Subscriber from HOQUIAM, WA wrote Another Bank: BECU is a great organization........
• Subscriber from SILVERDALE, WA wrote Another Bank: Very bad experience.......
• Subscriber from BELLEVUE, WA wrote Another Bank: I needed copies of cancelled checks from several years back. The rep I spoke to..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: Very friendly and helpful about CD choices.......
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: I've been with Sterling for over 10 years. I have checking, savings, home equity loan..........
• Subscriber from FEDERAL WAY, WA wrote Another Bank: In addition to the usual savings and checking accounts, have two mortgage loans with them...........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: The fees for some things are to high in my opinion and they raise them..........
• Subscriber from SEATTLE, WA wrote Another Bank: We deal with the 38th st branch in Tacoma. The service is terrible. And staffing..........
• Subscriber from BELLEVUE, WA wrote Another Bank: took 20 working days for an emergency replacement of a lost debit card.......
• Subscriber from EDMONDS, WA wrote Another Bank: Depending on the branch and the seniority of the staff will determine the service received...........
• Subscriber from FOX ISLAND, WA wrote Another Bank: One personal banker failed to follow my instructions with regard to a CD, necessitating a..........
• Subscriber from KENMORE, WA wrote Another Bank: We have had excellent service from the staffs at the Des Moines and Kenmore branches...........
• Subscriber from EVERETT, WA wrote Another Bank: Staff to overly friendly.After 20 years I have returned to B of A. Compare to..........
• Subscriber from WOODINVILLE, WA wrote Another Bank: The staff in our small Woodinville branch were open, friendly, and focused on service. No..........
• Subscriber from BELLEVUE, WA wrote Another Bank: Bank of America Lake Hills Branch--Great staff and service........
• Subscriber from EVERETT, WA wrote Another Bank: It took over an hour, and three tellers, to purchase $900 worth of traveler checks........
• Subscriber from REDMOND, WA wrote Another Bank: Always willing to go the extra mile to make things right. Friendly staff gives personalized..........
• Subscriber from EVERETT, WA wrote Another Bank: I TRANSFERED A LARGE SHARE OF MY MONEY TO BEAU TWO YEARS AGO. BUT NOW..........