WaMu Rewards: Earn Cash Back on Purchases*
Everyone has heard of credit cards that earn rewards. Now Washington Mutual is introducing a debit card that earns cash rewards with every purchase.But exactly how much do you get back?
*MOUSE PRINT: “Free Gold Debit MasterCard® with Rewards—get a $.03 reward for each debit purchase transaction up to $250 per year** **Applies to purchases made by phone, online, in person or by mail. If your account is open and in good standing on your anniversary date, you’ll receive a $.03 reward for each Debit MasterCard purchase transaction made within the last year up to a $250 reward.” [Washington Mutual website, May 16, 2006]
Thinking it must have been a typo, I read the disclosure to mean that you got back three percent (not three cents) for every purchase using their debit card. How generous! To double-check, I called WaMu’s customer service department. They explained that with every purchase you indeed would get back three cents.
MrConsumer asked: “Now let me get this straight, if I buy a $1000 refrigerator, you are going to give me back three cents?”
Customer service representative: “Yes.”
How generous, and what a great incentive to switch to WaMu. In order to receive the advertised maximum rebate of $250 per year, one would have to make 8333 separate purchases. A snap.
So are we all going to switch to WaMu??? Hurry! Hurry! They should be ashamed to even think they are provide such a benefit.
Comment by BILL — May 22, 2006 @ 7:22 amWell, in WaMu’s defence, keep in mind that these are DEBIT cards, not credit cards. Theydo not make nearly as much money in debit transactons as with Credit. And also, keep in mind that there are very VERY few banks out there offering anything in rewards for debit cards. Just a thought.
Comment by Greg I — May 22, 2006 @ 10:31 amI noticed that when I signed up. Actually, I already had an account with them, but with the change, I get checks printed for free. I turned the debit card down.
The other thing that they don’t mention is that even though they now waive one overdraft fee a year, they took away my overdraft line of credit at some point in the process and never mentioned it. So now I have an “overdraft limit” printed on my statement, which turns out to be the amount they will let me overdraw by (with a hefty fee for each transaction) before they start bouncing my checks. So if a deposit goes astray, and five checks come through that day, I’ll get hit with a fee for each one, but they will waive one of the fees. It’s far worse than the highest rate of interest on any line of credit.
Comment by Wayne — May 22, 2006 @ 7:23 pmAnother thing that’s in the fine print has to do with their “free ATM withdrawals – foreign and domestic.” Some banks I deal with charge no fee for ATM use, and reimburse me for a certain number of uses of ATMs not run by them. WAMU will not charge for the ATM use, but they will not reimburse the fees charged by others either. They will also charge for foreign currency exchange, so it’s not exactly free. It’s not free of fees charged by others, and it’s not free of fees charged by WAMU.
Aside from the misleading advertising, it’s a stupid thing for banks to do. I’ve been with WAMU since 1984 (they bought my original bank) but the account was almost dormant for over a decade because they did not have a branch near me. Reimbursing me for an ATM fee is far cheaper than building a new branch. But they advertised free ATM use, while other banks delivered on it. They finally built a branch very close to me, and I use it to deposit misc. checks, get cash, and transfer things electronically. But it will not go back to being my primary account. That account used to be free and paid interest, until WAMU bought it and started advertising their “free” accounts. At that point, they added a fee, which I was able to get rid of by getting rid of interest. It made me realize that there are better places to put my money.
Comment by Wayne — May 22, 2006 @ 7:36 pmYeah that is outrageous to make it look like customers are ctually getting back something. I think maybe they figure people will think that means 3%….it’s a good lesson to really read each word and not assume anything! I can only wonder how many people sign up for such an offer.
Comment by allison donovan — May 22, 2006 @ 7:55 pmWow, that one’s a beaut! Three whole cents per transaction…wow, how do they do it?!?
Another reader pointed out, as did Edgar imply, that perhaps people will misinterpret the mouse print to mean 3% vs the actual 3¢. I don’t really think that’s the case, as few even read the mouse print anyway. That’s why it’s mouse print. I think it’s simply a marketing ploy to get people to sign up, their advertising prominently stating that there’s a cash rebate in place. But I wonder how many would actually check to see what the rebate really is–I think WaMu’s banking that they won’t.
Dan Kap,
Comment by Dan Kap — June 3, 2006 @ 9:55 amWhittier, CA
Why they would even have a “maximum reward” is beyond me — it would take almost one purchase an hour, every day for a year to make $250 on this deal!
Comment by Eric — July 28, 2006 @ 5:11 pmre – why maximum? To prevent someone from buying 50 million individual gumballs as separate transactions, and thus running up a net positive balance of $1 million. It would be nice if the gumball retailer’s system would stop this, but the bank can’t assume it will.
Comment by rvman — August 7, 2006 @ 5:30 pm“re – why maximum? To prevent someone from buying 50 million individual gumballs as separate transactions, and thus running up a net positive balance of $1 million. It would be nice if the gumball retailer’s system would stop this, but the bank can’t assume it will.”
And each use of the Debit Card depending on the retailer will cost that consumer from .50 to 1.00 per transaction. Using your debit card is not free. It is up to the retailer as to what they will charge for the transaction. Example: I make a purchase at the local Taco Bell using my debit card. I am not only paying for the food but also paying the additional .50 transaction charge as well.
So either way you get screwed.
This offer by WAMU is nothing but a ploy to lure stupid people into opening accounts with them. Nothing more.
Comment by Common Sense — August 19, 2006 @ 10:22 amthe trick is to find something online that costs one cent like some ebook, and then set up a key strokes program to repeat the buy process for you. I have been looking but nothing is out there. I even thought of opening a online merchant account and buying from my self but paypal charges 5 cents a transaction.
Comment by kevin — September 20, 2006 @ 7:00 pmAs a retailer….it is difficult for me to swallow this way that banks encourage
Comment by Kristen C., Cassville, MO — September 26, 2006 @ 8:34 amdebit cards over plain ol’ cash. People don’t seem to understand that although
you may get a 3 cent return (ridiculous to begin with) on each piddly purchase….what you forget is that the retailer is being charged 20 to 30 cents for each swipe plus a
percentage (mine is 1.75 percent). So…although I have not done this….a lot
of small businesses have to post a “credit/debit card purchaes minimum”. Think
about it….I have people who purchase $2 worth of candy at my store and use a
debit card to pay for the purchase. Mr. consumer enjoys the convenience and now
he/she thinks she is getting cash back as well…..BUT…for me, take the $2.00
minus the .25 cents per transaction and then subtract the 1.75 percent….and I
sold $2 worth of candy for $1.71. Considering my mark up is lower than anyone else’s to begin with…this is quite a shock to my bottom line.
In the end….the banking institutions and credit card companies get their money
and retailers are either left holding the bag or are having to be the bad guy
and raise prices.
I think that with the fees that banks charge for their services and the interest rate that credit cards charge….plus the convenience of not having to deal with bounced checks…that credit card terminal fees should be free aside from the monthly maintenance fee that we are also charged for the transferring of funds.
re: upper limit ($250) – if there’s a way for somebody to exploit the system with a huge # of transactions, some criminal will find it. So they protect themselves. And that’s so bad?
re: 3 cents back – someone said it, worth saying again – they are giving you something for simple everyday use, as opposed to nothing at all. Maybe I’ll never hit $250, but if I found $40 after one year of just doing my consumer thing over and over, hey, that’s a nice little perk
re: credit/debit charges to merchants – so sorry you feel put upon to accept revenue from a customer. Instead of looking at the per-charge transaction fees, maybe look at the lifetime value of a customer. If they spend $10 a week in your store, that’s over $500 a year in revenue. Times 10 years, that’s $5,000. Don’t want that? OK, send them over to me.
re: minimum purchase for cards – The terms of service for VISA/MC prohibit setting a minumim purchase. You either accept the card or don’t. Not many consumers are aware of that.
Comment by Mike — September 26, 2006 @ 11:03 amand to get the max $250 per year, you would only have to use your card
once every hour, 24 hours a day, every day for the entire year!
Maybe they are testing our sense of humor?
Comment by Ray — September 26, 2006 @ 11:30 amIMO the reason for the $250 max is to get people (who don’t do the math) excited about earning $250. If they said $50 was max, people wouldn’t get excited, even though it really wouldn’t change the rewards most people got.
Comment by Gerald — September 26, 2006 @ 5:52 pmMerchants are not allowed to charge consumers a transaction fee by Visa/MC. That
isn’t to say that it is not happening. If you know of a merchant that is doing
this let Visa/MC know. Of course the argument can be made that fees charged to a
merchant are passed to the consumer through higher pricing anyway, however all
costs of running a business are passed to the consumer. Merchant fees are very
minimal considering the total cost of running a business.
To those merchants that do not like the fees they are being charged, there is a
Comment by John — September 26, 2006 @ 6:15 pmsimple solution. Don’t accept credit cards. If you feel that you need to accept
credit cards in order to compete then you should not mind paying the same fees
that your competitors pay. I never liked the argument that banks make too much
money. The most successful banks in the country are publicly traded. If you think
they make too much money, invest in their stock.
So if you spend thousands of dollars, they’ll give you enough to buy a gumball. WOW! Thanks WAMU!
Give us all a break.
When this idiot bank gets eaten up by the bigger banks, I’m gonna throw a party. I’m counting down the days.
Comment by Ze — September 27, 2006 @ 4:06 amZe… Wamu is one of the big banks 4th or 5th in the US.
As for the Debit/Credit minimum purchases and usage fees, I believe both are in violation of most mastercard
Comment by ed — September 27, 2006 @ 1:47 pmand visa policies. Need to look that one up though.
Ze… Sorry last statement may have been misleading. In terms of overall value Wamu is not even in the top 50 as of 2005. However they are amongst the largest consumer banks in the US (again within the top 5). And are near the top in mortgage lending (as of 2002).
Comment by ed — September 27, 2006 @ 2:00 pmWhen I opened my account with them I didnt even know I was getting any rewards. Plus, since I have the debit card I am only on check number 3 in a year of having the account. I never use them and I wear my card out. It was great knowing that on my year anniversary I had some extra cash on hand. I had an account at BOA they always held my paychecks for 2 days and they never let you know about it until I opened my mouth and said something, plus it was a local check and deposited before two. There reason Since it is drawn on another bank there isnt much we can do about it. They also charge 5 dollars to cash there own checks, Closed that account ASAP.Its a bank they all have their little quirks and they are all out to get something from you, unless you go to the credit union then deal with it.
Comment by MELISSA — September 28, 2006 @ 9:41 amWAMU is famous for their misleading advertisements. Like their “free” checking.
It is always a bunch of lies, just a most other banks do.
I would not do business with WAMU even if they paid me more than their generous
Comment by Jose S. — October 13, 2006 @ 10:03 am3 cents every time.
This is quite a harsh treatment to nothing that seems sneaky down at the mouse print. True, 3 cent per use of a debit card is so low that no one will care about it but hey, it’s free money none-the-less. I’ve had WAMU for over a year and switched my accout a few months ago to this updated free account. In only a few months, I already have collected $5.00 worth of $.03 purchases. I live in NYC so I basically live off this card. From everyone I talked to, no one has mistaken .03 as 3% of the purchase amount. They even clearly state “$.03″. You have to be an idiot to think otherwise.
And what’s the deal with the talks about a merchant’s credit card charge per swipe? That is way above WAMU’s control. I just know that bottom line, I’ve had a few of other bank’s free account and in one year with WAMU, I have zero problems. No ATM fees other than the machine’s own fee. Free checks and once-a-year overdraft protection. It’s quite a steal in the terms of free banking.
Comment by GC — October 19, 2006 @ 2:41 amFYI, WaMu DOES charge a fee for using a non-WaMu ATM, along with the fee
that particular bank charges. I called and checked because I am going to Maui
next week and there is no WaMu branch on the island. If I chose to withdraw money,
there will be a $2 WaMu fee and the branch fee as well. $4-$5 a pop. No one
informed me of this when I initially opened the account and found out the
hard way when I overdrew my account that month due to several WaMu ATM fees
and then got hit with the $25 overdraw fee when they collected the ATM fees
from my account. Certainly seems like a hidden fee to me. (Incidentally, the
overdraw fee has gone up to $27.)
I have also found I get MUCH better customer service when I go to my local branch
Comment by Leah — November 8, 2006 @ 11:21 amthan when I use their 800 number. They have been more than accomodating more
than once.
This site helps me speed up the one cent donation process:
http://matt911.googlepages.com/paypaldonation
WaMu truley does Rock!
Comment by Mr. — November 11, 2006 @ 1:28 amWell to begin with, what stupid people would even think having no cash back is better than having atleast some!!!!!
Comment by Wamulian — December 22, 2006 @ 11:11 pmsecondly, it is REAL free checking account which gives 0.03 cents cash back on every transaction, free checks for life, no minimum balance require, fre direct deposit, free online banking, free online bill pay, one overdraft fee i.e 27 dollars and one NSF fee i e 27 dollars waived every year, free Wamu Atm withdrawals, free NOn wamu atm withdrawals ( WAMU does not charge you for using any other bank ATM ,the other bank does so stop complaining abt WAMU)and free wire transfers!
I love my bank, you guys so deserve a ccredit union.
i am a wamu customer and i understtod because before when i used a outside atm i was chraged 1.50 for the service charge and wamu on top of that will make you pay a fee of theirs but they have changed that when you use a atm now the atm might charge you fee but wamu will not(NOT) not
Comment by John burnaman — December 31, 2006 @ 12:53 amI believe that the $.03 per purchase that WAMU is offering is only if you use the DEBIT card feature and not use it as a MASTERCARD. If used as a Mastercard the reatiler still would pay a percentage (1% – 3%) of the sale price to Mastercard, VISA, etc. However if used as a Debit card there are not fees due to Mastercard and therefore WAMU is willing to share their cut of the pie.
Unfortunately your cut is a sliver of the actual money made by WAMU. Kinda like every other savings plan offered at most banks and credit unions out there.
Remember, “FREE” usually means you’re paying for those services unknowingly. Banks don’t lose money, they make it. Unfortunately most bank patrons don’t.
Comment by David Anderson — February 16, 2007 @ 11:30 pmWAMU’s free checking account offers services for free that other banks will charge. For example:
Wire tranfers are around $40 at other banks, free with WAMU.
Comment by Cesar — February 17, 2007 @ 4:44 pmChecks $15-20, Free with WAMU.
other banks charge monthly fees WAMU free checking account has NO monthly fees and no minimum balance or direct deposit requirement to make it free.
You will get three cents back when you buy a $1000 fridge or a $1 drink. And the average person does not spend $1000/day.
There’s too much focus on the 3 cents back reward when it’s only a part of what the total package has to offer. C’mon, are we asking for brand new cars? For a bank, they are quite generous.
I switched from BOA to WAMU becuse BOA kept charging me over draft fees becuse it took them 3 days to process my direct deposites. with WAMU ive only had 1 overdraft fee. what i like about WAMU is i could run down to the corner store and use my debit to buy a coke or something and by the time i get back the charge is posted to my account. the only thing i miss from BOA that i don’t get from WAMU is if you had a savings account and your checking account went into overdraft BOA would automaticaly(free)transfer from your savings to cover the overdraft. at WAMU you have to ask for this feature and you still get charged a fee if you overdraft which is only slightly lower than the basic $27 ODF.
Comment by Sonja — March 14, 2007 @ 7:44 amWow… you people will complain about damn near anything won’t ya? You people are whining because the WaMu Debit Rewards Program doesn’t give back enough per purchase? Who says WaMu HAS to offer the Debit Rewards program at all? I’ve made a handful of purchases with my debit card since I started my account, and come my anniversary I’ll get about $40 from WaMu for my Debit Rewards. That’s awesome in my book. WaMu doesn’t HAVE to give me a damn thing when I use my debit card. All they have to do is hold my money for me until I need it. Everything else they do is cake.
So WaMu is generous in offering Debit Rewards in my view. What, they just aren’t generous ENOUGH from your viewpoint?
What sad, dark lives you must lead to be able to only focus and exaggerate on the negative…
EDGAR replies: Ryan, if you only made a “handful of purchases” since you started your account, the most the WAMU debit card program would give you is 15 cents (3 cents per purchase), not the $40 you claim. You may have this particular reward program confused with another one.
Comment by Ryan — March 16, 2007 @ 11:44 amWell, Edgar, let me clarify. I shouldn’t have said “handful”, as that is not accurate. I should have said I use the card for damn near every purchase I make. And I shouldn’t have said “about $40″, as the real amount is just shy of $30, and will most likely hit $30 before my anniversary date on 5/4/2007. So that is $30 WaMu didn’t have to offer me, AT ALL, that will be automatically deposited into my bank account on the 4th of May. Now, how about that?
Comment by Ryan — March 28, 2007 @ 12:48 pmIm going to have to say Im pro WAMU. I wont repeat whats already been said that I agree with, but Ill also add that they gave me an account despite my bad credit where no one else would. yay!
Comment by Skairkro — April 3, 2007 @ 5:06 amOne must be stupid or something to not like free money.
Comment by Jeffy — April 10, 2007 @ 7:47 amKeep in mind also that WAMU offers a no-gimmick 5% APY savings acct.. ING Orange, and HSBC are the only companies in that range… BECU, First Tech… etc are close..
Comment by Keith — April 20, 2007 @ 3:43 pmI’m actually thrilled with WAMU. Complain if you want about 3 cents per debit card transaction, but I personally don’t know of any other bank that offers it. Free money is free money. Just using my card as I normally would and by my anniversary date with them I’ll have enough to go to tehe movies with my sweetie or go get a spa pedicure. Can’t beat that. Other positives are that they’re super friendly at the branch where I go, they refund one overdraft per year (try to get that with any other bank), their online services, and their savings accounts are waaaay better than other banks. Since I have a checking account with them, I get a deal for their online savings account where I get 5% interest and the minimum monthly amount to avoid the $4 fee is only $300. My only complaint is the lack of drive thru ATMS, etc. in my area, but it’s not a huge deal to me.
Comment by Krys — June 19, 2007 @ 11:56 amI agree that 3 cents per transaction is better than nothing at all. And the problem isn’t that people don’t like money, it’s that they are so greedy that they want more. I personally think that anything is better than nothing at all.
Comment by Mysti — June 25, 2007 @ 1:00 pmI didn’t even know about the 3 cents thing, and so was pleasantly surprised when it showed up after my first purchase. I signed up because of the 5% APY on the savings account, compared to the measly .25% I was getting at Chase. WAMU is amazing.. Two weeks after opening the account, and with only about 700 in the account, I already had 75 cents in interest in just TWO weeks… I love wamu.. Also, their CD rates are great. I’m making $13 a month on a 3,000 CD…
Comment by Ashley — July 12, 2007 @ 9:59 amWow…I’m stunned that all you greedy bastards are complaining about this. I switched from BOA (don’t even get me started…) when I moved and wasn’t aware of the debit rewards at all. I signed up because they had totally free checking, a 5% APY savings (can’t beat that), and a lot of local branches. After a couple purchases I noticed some change piling up in my online banking account summary. As far as I’m aware, no other bank gives you ANYTHING for debit purchases. So you’re essentially getting something for nothing, as I haven’t changed my spending habits at all. I do agree that they are using this as a marketing ploy to attract customers. But guess what, so does every other company.
Comment by Rich — August 22, 2007 @ 5:27 pmI am in the same boat. I already had a WAMU account but when I saw the 5% interest I had to switch. I earned more interest last month than i have in the last three years with my standard saving account there. Thank you WAMU
Comment by Jeremy — August 30, 2007 @ 3:08 pmTo Rich,
I was wondering why you switched from BOA. I like WaMu for their service and locations, but my girlfriend has an account with BOA and joined the Keep the Change program. She got back some good $$ this year, and is fairly happy with the service. I have other issues with BOA like issuing Credit Cards to illigal aliens, ect, but this program sound pretty good. I read all the fine print and don’t see any catches that would prevent all or some of the benefit. My girl a full $250 from the rounding up.
FROM THE WEB SITE:
Comment by Shawn — September 25, 2007 @ 1:13 pmWhen you enroll in our Keep the Change savings service, we round up the amount of any Visa® Check Card purchase. We match 100% of the amount of your Keep the Change transfers during the first three months after you enroll, and we will match 5% thereafter. The maximum total match is $250 per year.
Cash and carry…never spend a $1 bill or silver. If you buy something for $3.10, give at least a five dollar bill and a dime – get back $2. Regardless of your income, if you discipline yourself to NOT spending the dollar bills you save, you will be amazed at how much you have curbed your spending, saved a lot of money (I have saved up to almost $700 in one month in dollar bills), and the money is always there (in a safe hiding spot) if you need it for an emergency. Try it for a month, then post your comment on how much you saved. E-mail me your success with it…I’d like to hear from others as to their success. As for the savings?….INVEST!!! DA_LANE67@yahoo.com
Comment by David — October 2, 2007 @ 2:40 amDon’t sign up for an account with WAMU. If they ever start billing you for their Plus package (an upsell) they will continue doing it and you won’t be able to cancel. I went into branches numerous times and told it was cancelled. After billing me for another eight months for it they said it wasn’t a bank error and they wouldn’t refund it. NEVER FALL FOR THEIR TRICKS.
Comment by Former WAMU customer — November 1, 2007 @ 10:45 pmI recently opened a “FREE” checking & savings account with Wamu ONLY because they advertized that it was FREE
Comment by Roy — November 27, 2007 @ 1:51 pmto use their ATM card at any bank. HOWEVER this is NOT TRUE. I used their ATM card to make balance inquiries at my local bank
and they charged me @$2 for each balance inquiry and caused my account to go into overdraft.
When I told them about their ad that said that ATM usage was free at any bank, they said they had not specifically mentioned
in their ad that balance inquiries will not get charged. This is a clear case of MISLEADING ADVERTISING.
I use WaMu and I closed me old account and opened a new one about the time that they introduced the offer. So that I could get SOME of the benefits that new members could get. Debit rewards was one of them, I don’t think I get free check for life, but the first box was on them, which was good b/c I just moved and needed new ones.
I’m not going to complain tho b/c I love this bank, and it’s a locally founded NW business, so they are everywhere
I think many people are mad and upset about what they read in this article b/c they are upset that they didn’t read the fine print when they started the account.
If you read this stuff while, or before, you sign up then there isn’t much to be surprised about. Many banks, and companies do this to get users to sign up.
Why would you throw a big stink about how generous a bank is being with you?
If you don’t like it, go somewhere else, if you don’t care, then don’t care.
Yes, it’s only about 3 cents per transaction, but you know what? It’s adds up, and it’s something.
It’s something more, if you didn’t have it before, then why complain. They aren’t charging you,
And about the overdraft fee’s, you wont have them if you keep track of your money.
Spend wisely, log it, and you wont have a problem, don’t assume that just b/c your direct deposit goes in at this time you will have money then. My direct deposit posts to my account Friday at Midnight, so technically it’s Saturday morning, but it is dated to go in the following monday, but since WaMu allows you to make and overdraft and get away with it as long as the money is put back into the bank within 24 hrs. It doesn’t matter, all the transactions that I make during the weekend will go through monday and then the last one that will go thru will be my deposit. So that means, all the money I took out, was replaced with in 24 hrs. I learned how my banking works, I learned from past mistakes that I made and learned how to avoid them.
As far as I’m concerned WaMu has been the best bank I have been with.
Comment by Derek — November 27, 2007 @ 3:57 pmYes, there is fine print, all banks have it, but if you ignore the fine print, then you will be upset with whom you’re banking with.
Yeah, keep track of your money, right? Except when they charge you for balance inquiries, etc. Then they charge you if someone writes you a bad check, if the deposit bounces. Then you bounce a transaction because they took money from your account without your knowledge. Even better is when two or three low dollar transactions are pending when they do this. Then they charge you $30.00 for each overdraft. “But it’s not a bank error”, they say. No, they fully intended on charging you for all the balance inquiries without telling you! That’s not an error.
Then they offer you 3 cents for each transaction. That’s equivalent to someone patting your back every time you swipe your card. It’s pointless and doesn’t amount to a hill of beans at the end of the year.
For example, I had over $100,000.00 in transactions last year, and I earned $3.39. Oh, and one month this year, they charged me $3.00 for my savings account because they didn’t automatically transfer the monthly savings funds which makes the account free. They explained that because the transfer was scheduled for the same day as my direct deposit, there wasn’t enough balance to make the transaction before putting in my paycheck!
So all told, this wonderful “rebate” amounted to $0.39 for me last year.
I’m so glad I bank with WaMu!
Comment by Scott — November 28, 2007 @ 12:53 amI can’t believe everyone is complaining about WaMu…I have had an account with them since July and I have already earned $10.80 in rewards dollars. I too had the problem with balance inquiry fees and I called my branch (not the 800 number, even the employees at the branch have told me not to call the 800 number) and they reversed the fees. I have called and asked for an overdraft fee to be reversed because my husband forgot to make a deposit (this was after my 1 free for the year had been used) and they reversed it. I have deposited checks that ANY OTHER BANK IN AMERICA would have put Reg CC holds on and they never put a hold on the checks.
No one is every going to hit that $250 per year rewards limit…it would require you to use your card 23 time every day…for 365 days. But if you use your card 3 times a day you can earn $32 by the end of the year…when was the last time someone handed you $32 just for doing business with them. If you have a spouse who uses their card as well…you could double that $32 and make it $64.
Stop all the complaining and realize you are being given money for nothing.
PS: As a former bank employee I would also like to point out to all of the haters out there…Banks are not Non-Profit entities…they have employees to pay and building fees and they have to make the money to pay interest on your accounts and all of this, and they are accountable to a board of directors and shareholders who expect profits for providing the solvency in the bank you so desparatly want (why would anyone want to bank with an insolvent bank). If you think they make all of this money on loans you are sadly mistaken. People want low interest on loans and high interest on savings and no fees on their accounts. When banks charge fees they are suddenly the bad guys…if you don’t like it keep your money in your safe at home, don’t deal with banks at all.
Comment by Sarah — December 10, 2007 @ 3:43 pmI just got a WAMU Visa card. They credit you 12000 points if you: (abalance as (A) transfer $100 balance and
(B) Use the card one time
Now, what does 12,000 points get you? How about $100 credit at Lowes, Home Depot, and several other retailers. I think its a good deal. The $100 balance transfer accrues interest right away so I will pay it off quickly.
Comment by RP — January 23, 2008 @ 8:51 pmIn my experience the best way to avoid an atm withdrawl fee is to buy something inexpensive as produce, i.e. banana, apple etc. At the point of sale you enter the pin of your atm debit card and it will ask if you want cash back, you select yes and walla you can get cash back and all it cost you was a piece of fruit.
Comment by mv — February 22, 2008 @ 1:42 amI’m not sure how people can complain about free money for using a debit card. Who cares if it’s only 3 cents and you would have to use your card 23 times a day. Isn’t a little money better then no money?
I had been with Bank Of America for almost 5 years when I finally got fed up with their BS and closed my accounts. BOA charges for everything, non bank ATM fees, international transaction fee’s, BS overdraft fees (I never understood why they would charge an overdraft fee for transactions that posted the SAME night that a deposit posted), ect ect. The day after I closed my account I was even charged a $5 check cashing fee to cash a payroll check that was from a BOA account. Hello…is it just me or does the word “SCAM” come to mind. I asked for an explanation and they said “some employers offer to cover the charge. Talk to your payroll department and see if they can issue you a credit”…right. After years of dealing with bitchy customer service I now realize that if you don’t have 500K in your account they are probably going to treat you like a second class citizen. The love my WAMU account. Everything including checks are free and the customer service is great. The only think that I miss about BOA is the ability to make online BOA to BOA acct transfers but I am pretty sure that WAMU will be offering this service soon.
FYI, the reason I closed my BOA acct:
Comment by Tim — March 4, 2008 @ 2:53 pmI lost my debit card on a Friday night. I went in to a local branch Saturday morning and worked with a teller, transferring all my money to my savings account except enough to cover pending transactions. I had lost my card at a friends house and was hoping to find it that weekend but didn’t want to have any extra cash in my account in case someone had actually picked it up. I was trying to avoid having to go another 4 weeks without a card because the card replacement system BOA has is super slow. So Tuesday morning comes around and I have 2 overdraft charges ($35 each) for two items totaling @ $8 that had been overlooked by the teller. I called customer service and explained the situation to the customer support rep and his manager. They refused to refund the charges saying “do you write down all your transactions”, really…who records EVERY transaction they make w/ their debit card? Maybe I should have but the point being they are not willing to work with you on anything…which is not acceptable for me.
Wow. I can’t believe society has come to this. You people are mad because you’re not getting enough back for living your normal life? Remember the days when you got NOTHING back for spending your money normally? Wow. I’m appalled. And I’ve used WAMU many years and haven’t found a misleading case of the free checking. The misleading cases are Wells Fargo and Bank of America, who charge you every month for having their accounts. Not all jobs have direct deposit ya know.
So please people get off your high horses and accept a gift. It doesn’t have to be given at all. Wow.
Comment by TONY WILLIAMS — May 9, 2008 @ 2:50 pmAnd by the way, for those of you that think WAMU’s lying about the transaction fees being free, try Wellsfargo or BofA. If you use someone else’s ATM, it’s not WAMU that charges you the fee, it’s the owner of the ATM. Now if you’re with other banks and use someone else’s ATM, not only does the ATM owner charge you, but your bank does too. WAMU doesn’t do that. Oh my gosh you folks amaze me.
Comment by TONY WILLIAMS — May 9, 2008 @ 3:00 pmAnd the ATM owners even tell you at the beginning of the transaction you’re gonna be charged for it. So blame yourselves! not WAMU. Geesh
Comment by TONY WILLIAMS — May 9, 2008 @ 3:01 pmAnd for the person that’s so geeked up on BofA’s reward program. They actually take your own money, that you already have in your checking account, and transfer money from THAT to your savings. They don’t actually give you money from their bank. So really you could just go transfer the money yourself. WAMU actually gives you money from them. Better I would say.
Comment by TONY WILLIAMS — May 9, 2008 @ 3:10 pmOkay, So here’s one more pro-WaMu post. I have multiple accounts with WaMu. Savings, checking (personal & business), home loan, etc. Now here are a few tricks that I have learned from WaMu’s finest.
1. Don’t open accounts online. The customer service options, if there is a problem, are limited. (example – like some above, I have had a problem that caused an overdraft. Overdraft fee caused more overdraft, credit line kicked in, paid the overdrafts – not the fees. WaMu automatically waived one fee. There were almost $150 others.
When I walked into the branch to talk to my ‘friend’ he waived a few more. And told me that if I had opened the account at that branch, they could have tapped the branch’s profit center and refunded everything.)
Branches can do a lot, to keep a good customer. When you call the 800# all you are is an account number.
2.Sneeky little balance inquiry fee. Oh come on – This is just stupid. I only got 1 of those before I figured out the work around. This works on most ATMs especially branch and other bank owned machines. When you do an ATM transaction, it will ask if you would like a printed receipt – Yes, you do. Why? because your account balance and available balance will be printed on the bottom of the receipt – Free balance inquiry!
I like Washington Mutual, they do a good job, and when I have an issue, they fix it. Thats why they are my primary bank – and yes for various reasons I also have accounts at USBank, BofA, Citibank, & Wells Fargo, and I hate them all, well not citibank – They’re better than the others.
Comment by JohnW — June 3, 2008 @ 12:15 amFYI, if anyone has an old “free checking” account, before they advertised “Wamu free checking” account. goto your bank and “upgrade” to the “WAMU FREE CHECKING” account. (once updated you will be eligible for the free checks and waive (1) overdraft fee per year.)
yea there’s a difference:
Free checking account(old)
Wamu Free checking account(new)
they won’t budge on the old and new accounts when you ask them why you see billboards saying one waiver overdraft a year, cause its not a “WAMU free checking account.” ….oh well
LOLOL
Comment by john adams — July 22, 2008 @ 5:30 pmi have had a wamu account for about a year now. I like how they process things right then. as in ican deposit a check and when i go online within 30 minutes depositing its there unlike other banks. however that 3 cents thing is bogus. I have bought multiple things with my debti card and i only get 3 cents per week.
Comment by Rebecca — October 12, 2008 @ 6:44 pmI dont understand what the big deal is. WAMU is giving you free money for doing what you would normally do anyway …. use your debit card. In this economy you’d think people would be grateful for that and stop complaining. Back in the day you could use your card and get absolutely nothing for it. In my opinion I think we need to revisit the word graditude.
Comment by CrystalB — October 18, 2008 @ 11:38 amQuote– “So if you spend thousands of dollars, they’ll give you enough to buy a gumball. WOW! Thanks WAMU!
Give us all a break.
When this idiot bank gets eaten up by the bigger banks, I’m gonna throw a party. I’m counting down the days.
Comment by Ze — September 27, 2006 @ 4:06 am”
wow you called it Ze… you def called it 2 years ago…
Comment by Dee — December 10, 2008 @ 12:33 pmHey people, Stop complaining, is free money.. You are going to do what you normally do with your card. So free is free. O r what about if you find 5 or even a dollar on the street you are not going to pick it up just because is a dollar?
Comment by Naomi — December 15, 2008 @ 11:56 pmI only use my card as a “credit” card (I don’t enter my PIN ever) and I still acrue the .03 reward per purchase. Just a heads up for everyone.
Comment by Mel — January 31, 2009 @ 3:02 amWho is surprised they went out of business, raise your hand? When I moved I asked if I needed to transfer my account to my new state. They said no. No the account I’ve had for years and YEARS would remain the same. Count 5 years later and I try to sign up for a savings account to get the relationship interest rate. The web site says it can’t link the accounts. Instead of forging ahead, I called and asked if they would be able to link my accounts after the fact. Sure! So I did it. And I called, and they said, “No, we can’t. Your accounts are in two different states.” Why should that matter? I said for get it and asked them to please cancel the initial deposit transaction. SHe reminds me all I have to do is open a new checking account. Fat chance. I had that account through three mergers and it’s the principle of it all. I find later, she canceled the application, but put in an additional deposit for an account that doesn’t exist!
Then the Chase thing comes up. The “free” checking account has different requirements than WaMu, so I drop a specific, easy to read note that gets in return a bunch of “rah rah” doublespeak about Chase. They don’t answer the question. I try again. Same response. SHortly after I get an enticing ad from Capital One for a checking account, their savings account is decent (not great) and I already have their credit card. WHat do you think I did?
Comment by Carlene — February 3, 2009 @ 4:50 pmI gotta start making purchases quick! xD
Comment by Tommy — February 4, 2009 @ 10:05 amMaybe if I buy from a foreign country I can get 8333 of something for less than 3 cents each.
I’ll be a millionaire.
we should all try an experiment to buy 8333 for under 250 total..
Comment by nimbusfool — February 24, 2009 @ 5:38 amWOW! In an economy where everything is going to the dogs, you are all going to gripe about getting a few extra bucks back from a now defunct bank that offers free checking. It is something, so stop complaining. Also, anyone who “finds out” the real story months or even years after opening up an account is plain stupid and should have done their research. Don’t complain over a decision YOU made. I have Wamu / chase and it is fine. 99% of the problems listed in here can be chalked up to 1) user stupidity & 2) not reading the fine print.
Take some personal responsibility for your actions. Lack of personal responsibility and accountability is why this country is in the quagmire it is in today. Smarten up.
Comment by Dave — March 6, 2009 @ 11:43 amI have a “free” checking account with WaMu. They charge me $20.00 per month for it, but then they re-imburse me. (HUH???) This month, I did not receive any interest like usualy, even though my average daily balance was over $800 per day.
Regarding the MasterCard I have with them, I have never recieved payment on their WaMu® Cash Rewards. I’m *supposed* to get 1% cashback for every purchase, but they have NEVER sent me any money or applied that cash to my statement.
This WaMu M/C also has Chase Flexible Rewards, and I have 1,678 points accumulated, but they REFUSE to let me cash them in on a 1,500 gift card.
And now that JPMorgan Chase has acquired WaMu, my Chase MasterCard had a credit on it and they “converted” it to a Finance Charge when the credit has been there for over three months.
What a disappointment! I have cleaned out my savings account and am looking for another bank.
Comment by Susie — March 23, 2009 @ 11:08 pmMy wife and I have WaMu/Chase. Two Debit cards. Reward prgram works very well for our joint account. Only had the account 2 months and already have $6 in rewards. 3 cents is 3 cents. If someone offered to give you 3 cents you would laugh, but if they offered to give you $60 after you knew them for a year, and that $60 was just because you knew them… why not.
Even if you only get $10 after a year, i’d like someone to honestly tell me they’d turn it down because “it wasn’t enough”.
Comment by Clint — April 5, 2009 @ 8:25 pmBetter then paying THEM 0.03 cents everytime I used my debit card.
Comment by Bill K — April 15, 2009 @ 12:09 amYeah, money is money. The first year I didn’t know about it, so I was happily surprised to get an extra $20 in my account. The second year, knowing about it, I intentionally used my debit card where I wouldn’t normally (smaller purchases, etc…) and increased it by $10. I’ve never had any other bank give me money just for using their services. That, on top of free checking, is a win-win for me.
Comment by Melissa — April 16, 2009 @ 12:31 pmI left HSBC in January because I found out that my branch decided independantly how to handle my money. My branch manager was such a fraud, he had allowed a check that was almost a year old, that I had put a stop payment on to be cashed when it was finally “found” in the mail… $700 something later in overdraft fees after everything else in my life went through, I decided to go to Wamu. I say three cents back is better than getting raped by the place that is supposed to be “managing” my money and helping me feel more secure. I’ve racked up a “whopping” 8 dollars so far, but who cares? I say thank you Wamu for giving me something back.
Comment by Christina — May 1, 2009 @ 3:58 pmAll I ever got from HSBC was a headache.
I think people neglect to see that banks are not NON-PROFIT organizations. They give free checking with no minimum balances. Free Bill Pay, free Online Banking, and afree Visa/Mastercard Debit card. All that stuff costs money for banks to maintain and still people complain because banks charge fees for other services they provide. Do you go to the corner store and expect free candybars, soda, and gas? NO! So why would you think you wouldn’t have to pay for products and services at a bank?
Comment by Frank — June 30, 2009 @ 10:29 pmthe only problem that ive had with wamu is the running balance updates online. When i opened my account with them 3 years ago i specifically asked them about online banking and how it works and every other question i could possibly think of because i dont keep a running ledger of all my purchases its just not feesible for me…if i were to try and keep a ledger id forget anyhow. For some reason though if you have a CREDIT charge of 10 dollars but you only have 5 in the account then that charge will expedite itself as fast as possible and wouldnt show online until it had posted and overdrawn my account but if you have a credit charge for 5 dollars when you have 10 in the account then itll show online immediately by the time i get home and it takes the usually 3 or 4 days to actually post to my account. Other than that i think WAMU is a fabulous bank.
it amazes me that people would even try and complain about someone giving them free money…wether its 5 dollars a year or 250 dollars its still money that you didnt have before they gave it to you for doing the exact thing you would be doing with that card wether they gave you money back or not.
Comment by Cheddar Bob — October 22, 2009 @ 4:47 pm