My Way Credit

"Wells Fargo goes on the offensive with 'at risk' credit card holders," reports Mark Calvey in yesterday’s San Francisco Business Times. Wells Fargo is writing to customers “it believes may be in the danger zone,” he writes, “offering to set up automatic payments, design a repayment plan or connect them to a consumer counseling service.”

Calvey goes on to quote from the bank’s “warm and friendly approach”:

"We recognize that in a changing economy some of our customers may experience a period of financial challenges and we would like to help. … There are caring Wells Fargo representatives waiting to speak with you. … Wells Fargo strives to meet the financial needs of our customers, and intends to work with customers through both prosperous and challenging times."

“Fantastic!” I thought – but frankly, it sounded too good to be true. So I sent out a couple of emails – one asking Wells Fargo for more info. Lisa Westermann, Assistant Vice President at the bank, responded, saying that Wells Fargo first conducted a test mailing, where “the response has been mostly positive.” 

She also pointed out some of the other services Wells Fargo offers its customers, including a variety of online banking tools, payment options, and account alerts – about cash advances, when customers are approaching their credit limits, payment due dates, etc. And to help last-minute payers, Wells Fargo accepts payments up until midnight PST on the due date as on-time payments.

I was curious to know which credit counseling agency the bank was partnering with for its customers. It’s Money Management International (MMI) consumer credit counseling service, which Lisa describes as “an accredited non-profit organization that provides confidential financial guidance, free credit counseling services, debt management assistance and comprehensive housing counseling certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.”

What Does Our Expert Say?
Gerri Detweiler, Credit Advisor for Credit.com, gives MMI and Wells Fargo high marks. “This is a much better approach than the one many card issuers have been using -- yanking credit lines and raising interest rates,” Gerri explains. “Most of the consumers I talk with say they want to pay their bills but their lenders won't work with them. Wells Fargo is taking the right approach by being proactive.”

Isn't it great to hear about a bank doing right by its customers? Has Wells Fargo reached out to you? Please let us know what you think of the help you’ve received.

Nancy Castleman – Co-author of "Invest in Yourself: Six Secrets to a Rich Life" and founder of Good Advice Press. Nancy has spent the last 23 years teaching people how to get out of debt, save money, and live better on less. She writes on all these subjects for CreditBloggers.com.