Credit cards with Cantonese customer service
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 29
Credit cards with Cantonese customer service
My mom recently contacted Bank of America customer service to cancel her card, and we were both surprised that they had Cantonese-speaking agents (not translators, but agents that work for the bank). Which other banks offer customer service in Cantonese? I'm looking to get a long-term, no annual fee card for her, and the rewards are secondary to being able to call in her native language in case she has any problems with fraud or declined transactions.
#2
Join Date: Jun 2009
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Does she live in an area with a large Cantonese speaking population? If so, banks and credit unions in that area likely have employees who speak Cantonese. I know that Chase, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America actively look for bankers and tellers who speak languages commonly spoken in the local neighborhood and likely have phone agents who speak those languages as well. Also, credit cards marketed to Cantonese speaking people likely have Cantonese-speaking agents for all of their cards.
#5
Join Date: Jun 2009
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Credit cards with Cantonese customer service
If anything, the local bank employees can translate for her. Many people go to the bank branch for questions about their credit cards and the branch employees can generally answer questions.
Fraud protection is often handled by a third party such Falcon Fraud Protection for Visa cards.
China Union Pay cards operate on the Discover network. One would guess they have Cantonese and Mandarin speaking agents. JCB might as well.
Fraud protection is often handled by a third party such Falcon Fraud Protection for Visa cards.
China Union Pay cards operate on the Discover network. One would guess they have Cantonese and Mandarin speaking agents. JCB might as well.
#8
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Of course, this only works when you're somewhere with a large community of speakers of that language. Some of my friends out in Montana have discovered that Citi, of all banks, doesn't have actual Chinese-speaking phone agents. This is a bit of a problem given that there are no Citi branches in the whole state.
#9
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I tend not to discuss anything with a Cantonese staff.
IME, they do all the things by the book. There is not much leeway going around.
Declaimer - I am a native in Cantonese.
IME, they do all the things by the book. There is not much leeway going around.
Declaimer - I am a native in Cantonese.
#10
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: DTW
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Posts: 1,188
I also agree that getting a Cantonese phone agent depends on where you are calling. Other than HSBC, I think it is hit and miss. SFO, Toronto, Vancouver, and NYC are probably places you can easily find Cantonese speaking agents at a local branch (in Chinatown for sure...)