M&T Bank Bank Account Or Service Complaint

M&T Bank Bank account or service department,

Checking account Using a debit or ATM card Maryland

I am a - - resident who works in - -. I have had both checkings and savings accounts with M & T Bank for several years. For the past several weeks, I have been experiencing issues using my checking account. I - noticed this problem when attempting to purchase groceries at my local - supermarket about a month or so ago. When I chose the credit option, my card was declined. I knew my account had more than enough money to cover my groceries, so I instinctively used the debit option, and the transaction approved. Every week since then, I have experienced the same issue, despite purchasing groceries every Friday at the same supermarket, around the same time of day for the past year. Last week, I went to purchase crabs for $100.00 and once again, my card was declined under credit although I had the funds. I instead used another credit card. I called M & T Customer service who informed me that due to high fraud activity in the area, M & T would not allow credit transactions, and that I have to use debit because entering my PIN verifies my identity. The customer service agent could


I used a different card. As you can probably imagine, this was extremely embarrassing. Once again, I resorted to using another credit card. Knowing I had the funds in my account to more than cover the bill for the meal, I called M & T Customer Service after leaving the restaurant. - - employee ID - ) informed me that my card was declined due to fraud in the area. Once again, - could not inform me where the fraud was occurring - please note my transactions fail in both - and - - - and he could not confirm for how long or the monetary amount these transactions would be stopped for. - also informed me that the next time I go out to eat, I should call M & T Bank and ask them to allow the transaction to go through. I informed - that this is unacceptable and also asked him what I should do if my transactions fail when customer service is closed. He then suggested I take out cash or ask the company to do smaller transactions that cover the whole bill. I informed - that this is ludicrous and that I do n't feel comfortable going to the ATM late at night or walking around with large amounts of cash. I asked - if there is anything that could be done and he told me no. We ended the call. I then called my sister and mother, who stated they have been experiencing the same issues with M & T Bank. My sister suggested I contact the Attorney General. When I called M & T back and informed - that I would be contacting the Attorney General, he no longer decided nothing could be done. He transferred me to his supervisor, who informed me she would place a fraud exclusion '' on my account, which would now allow me to make purchases on my card without problems. I highly suspect that these issues are not truly fraud related or preventative. M & T never sent me notification that fraud was a concern and that I would only be able to use debit. Additionally, M & T used to allow my transactions to go through, and would email me about potential fraud relating to the completed transaction. I was fine with this approach. I do not agree with M & T stopping me from being able to use MY money that I work hard for in the manner that I please. M & T was recently in the news for charging erroneous overdraft fees to their consumers. It appears M & T is continuing unethical business practices towards consumers.