Citibank

Surprisingly, this place offers the best iced tea in Palo Alto, and it’s free. Overall it’s a decent branch, but I’m often annoyed by one of the managers who constantly asks if I want to refinance my home. The tellers are always nice though and the ATMs are pretty reliable.

Virtually impossible to reach a branch employee even if (as here) they had requested that I «phone ahead» before I walked in the branch to make a specialized withdrawal. It took a long time to get a live person at the 800 number. It then a long time to transfer me to a branch employee, who was apparently talking to me through his cell phone. The cell connection, which was terrible from the start, broke before we concluded our transaction. So I’m headed to the branch with no «phone ahead.» Shame on me for not asking for a direct dial number when I was asked to «phone ahead.» Actually, shame on me for not using First Republic, come to think of it.

Several days ago, I went into the branch to put a stop on a monthly automatic withdrawal. First, the manager said that I could not do this. According to her, I have to tell the recipient of the money to put a stop on this transaction. When I then told her that the RWC branch was able to put a stop on two different auto-​withdrawals for other payments, she looked into it and found the link online… THe stop was made, supposedly. Now I see that the withdrawal happened anyways. There is no way I can contact this manager other than going into the branch. No branch phone numbers are listed. And trying to get my money back is going to be another challenge. PA Univ. Ave. is not my branch, but the few times I have gone in, I have been very annoyed.

I have just paid my account ending **** in full because after months of being told to call back the forbearance dept to see if there is something available (a reduced payment plan) during my time of financial hardship, I have been told there is nothing anyone can do. I will be sent to collections. The 1000.00 I just gave your company will prevent my daughter from getting new school clothes. I am so saddened by the way I have been treated by your company. I have also been told that since I broke my ‘once in a lifetime’ payment arrangement the summer my Mom and best friend was shriveling and decomposing before eyes, i can never have another one. The image of my mother dying is all I can remember from that summer. Please take pity on my family and I and refund the late fees for account **** you have assessed over the past year since I received a reduction in pay. Please?

Citibank is possibly one of the worst banks ever.
They have ridiculous fees, terrible customer service, and they really make you want to kill someone over there.
Life is too short, go somewhere else.
Wells Fargo has a bunch of idiots working there but if you check all of their work it’s manageable and Bank of America is ok as well. DO NOT get a Citibank account and if you have one move to Wells Fargo or BofA ASAFP.

Good luck if you want to actually speak to someone at the branch. I called this branch instead of my regular one since it actually had a phone number. First someone answers, but his English is so poor, he had no idea what I was asking and was clearly giving me the wrong answer. I asked him about how to «deposit or cashing a check with two beneficiaries» and he kept saying «we can sell you a cashier’s check» over and over. Finally, I just said, please connect me with my regular branch. At which point, he tried and I was disconnected.
I called back (crazy long menu to speak to someone) and a second person came on. I explained the entire situation again, and he said he cannot connect me with the other branch, and he put me in touch with his supervisor. His supervisor said the other branch does not have a public phone number (*really?*) and that she could answer the question. She did give me an answer, but I will never get this 20 mins of my life back. She said the only thing I could do is try the 1800 number– which I had done before this mess started, but you need to enter your SSN, password AND your debit card number just to talk to someone. Um right…

No, you cannot ask me how much I have in my Roth, just to satisfy your curiosity.
Maybe, just maybe, if we had a nice long chat, but the conversation preceding that question did not make me comfortable enough to disclose that kind of personal information in the middle of the open floor.
Then I was told (in a joking manner, I think) that I was too young to have a Roth. Ummm… what??! Maybe she was just trying to get me to loosen up because I tend to be just straight-​business talk in stores, but. seriously, I may look young, but I simply didn’t appreciate that comment. If anything, young people should be encouraged to start planning early.
Not professional; not how I want to be treated at my local bank. I’ve had exponentially better experiences at the branch on El Camino.
I’ve gone to both branches over the past 5 – 6 years.
Unless you are desperate, go to the El Camino branch. Every now and then I give into laziness and go to this one because the location is much more convenient, but now I’ll only do that if I have to use the ATMs. Maybe a deposit too. But absolutely nothing else.

Ok, so to make something clear: right this minute, I’m not exactly loving Citibank… I’ve banked with them since 1995, and as of late, they have been screwing up one thing after another. The branch on Castro Street set some wrong expectations, didn’t link my accounts like I wanted, charged me needless fees that I had to spend too many minutes of my life getting reversed, etc. But to give credit where it’s due, I have to tip my hat to the customer service (specifically the manager, Jamel) at this branch. Despite the fact that I do not bank with this branch… I just wandered in after meeting a friend in the area, my concerns were addressed in a patient & courteous manner, immediate action was taken wherever possible, and while I’m not 100% happy with Citi’s policies in some situations, Jamel worked things out enough for me that I didn’t walk away that day with a closed account, and a check for the full amount in my pocket, en route to the closest competitor. Citi needs more employees like these, to bring folks’ (possibly very accurate) impression of their services out of the dredges!

Haven’t used my card in months. I suddenly start getting bills that say that they have credited my account by $ 10. My balance is -$ 10 but the next month it says my payment is past due.
I call the 800 number and enter my credit card number in. I am transferred to an analyst. After telling me that I don’t know my mothers maiden name 4 times, I ask for a manager. She asks me for my social security number and address for security purposes.
I close the card out. Never again.

We had a number of issues opening our accounts a few years back. (1) They put a credit line on the checking account, after we told them we didn’t want one (we were house shopping and it resulted in a «ping» on our credit). Secondly one account that we indicated we wanted to be a joint account was apparently opened as an individual account. It took us a couple years to uncover this. Citi made good on all these issues, but it took a while to unravel. Additionally, they keep calling us about REFINANCING a mortgage. Each time, I explain that we ARE RENTERS. Finally I got so mad, I demanded they take us off their call list.

I second Mike W.‘s account.
Two months ago, my friend stopped by here while we were on our way to lunch. The moment we walked in, we were pounced on by this Asian woman who asked what we needed help with. My friend answered and went to go stand in line. The lady then asked me if I was a Citi customer and I did an awkward giggling, «No, but thanks for asking.» She then spent the next ten minutes jabbing at brochures, trying to convince me to sign up for an account and then called over to my friend (in front of the entire bank) that if I signed up, my friend would get a cash bonus. When we didn’t budge, she then asked if we had any friends or relatives we could refer to her. Uh… hard up for customers, lady? I barely know you and I certainly would not refer friends and family to someone I just met ten minutes ago when she accosted me and refused to stop the hard sell routine.
This month, my friend and I met up again for lunch and my friend again asked if we could stop for a few minutes so she could do a transaction. The place was deserted, but a nice man greeted us after we walked in. Right after his greeting, the same Asian lady pounced on us again and repeated the same shpiel. This time, she added that the economy is so bad that she will have to get a second job or lose this job if she doesn’t get more referrals. She might go back to China since «Shanghai is hot right now.» If you are curious, her husband has a full time job (she told us, not that we wanted to know). Impending departure plus doom and gloom is not really what you want to hear from a bank representative.
While my friend was wrapping up, a middle aged Asian woman walked in and «I am about to be laid off or go make loads of money in Shanghai so can you please give me your friends and families’ contact information» lady scurried up to her and immediately launched into a speech in Mandarin. Hilariously, we caught a sprinkling of English… «…cash bonus!» «…Citibank!» «…referrals!»
She might want to re-​think her routine.

So I was about to move my money anyway, but here’s what sealed the deal. On one of those rare occasions where I actually need to talk to a teller I go in to this Citi branch. While I’m dealing with the teller, ANOTHER Citi employee walks right up and asks if I have any friends who want to open checking accounts there! I expect such disregard for manners and privacy from, say, panhandlers… but bank employees? It’s beyond ridiculous.

How does the sound of a 29.99% APR sound to you. Their rates are about as good as their customer service which is to say terrible. I would not recommend Citicard by Citibank to anyone.

They have one of those glass cages around the ATM which requires a card to access it, to supposedly keep the riff raff out. However this is also the «Drunken People» Citibank because this is where everyone from the various bars in the area go when they’re out of money for booze. I’ve seen people eat their post drinking whole pizzas here, as many as 10 meatheads playing grab ass, and chicks passed out on the floor. Quite a lot of entertainment for a roughly 8’x8’ room. I’m sure Citibank security get a good kick out of it too because most of the people forget that there are cameras recording everything. Stupid people.