I have also called 1-800 number to talk to a Phone Banking Rep who adamantly said when one has a Business + Personal banking relationship, there is NO monthly fee to the Premier Checking Account. I asked her about the conditions listed on Chase website, how to explain that? She said the website did not address the Relationship Banking. She told me even when one misses the 5 debit card non PIN transactions, one would ONLY be charged with the fee on the Business Classic, but NOT the fee on the Premier Checking that linked to the Business Classic.

My banker also called me back again today to re-assure me this IS the case - no fee as long as I do the 5 debit card non pin on Business Classic. She further said, "I am your personal banker, if and ever you get charged the fee on the Premier Checking when you have met the 5 debit card transactions, come see me at the branch and I would take care of it."

And YES, I can go back to my banker in case there is a fee hit our accounts.

Seriously, one can easily downgrade back to the Personal Classic Checking and it STILL allows the 5 debit card transactions (on the Classic Checking itself) to avoid monthly fee. Only the Better Checking or whatever the name is called, requires $1500 balance and then one does not need to do the debit card trannie.

I dont see such a big deal because one can easily downgrade back to the Classic Checking. Besides, there is no notification whatsoever on our accounts whether from statements or email or what have you, 0 notification on such changes - the only thing I know such may be coming is from your post.

Finally, she is NOT babbling the WAMU change over you talk about - she is talking about Chase is NOW hitting those "converted" WAMU free checking accounts with new stipulations to avoid fees. Nothing to do with the description you gave about WAMU - those were in pass tense already.

She also wasn't trying to sell me a CC, she was just going over my account and then saw that offer of $100 sign up bonus. As a banker, this is natural she would mention this to the client. I would do the same thing if I am in the same position. However I have yet come across a banker, be it with Chase, BofA or Citi, who would mention the offers in their system but when customers tell them there are better offers from other sources, that they would still press the offers. They are just doing their jobs, like you and me, and part of their jobs is to sell their banking products they see from their end. I would not read into that being "ignorant" on the current changes while trying to sell a new product.

So now I feel much better because personal banker's info has been VERIFIED by a 3rd party - the Phone Banking Rep from 1-800-935-9935. The phone banking rep also said THE ONLY CHANGES are to those old WAMU accounts.

You may want to call the 1-800 number and see if YOUR area accounts are the same. I honestly feel you SHOULD call the 1-800 number as there is at least ANOTHER poster who called Chase and got the SAME info as I did. I am 100% sure the poster is NOT in the same region I am in.

I were you I would call to see if the 1-800 tells you the same thing your branch manager has told you, so you can know for sure if your branch manager is telling you the truth.

Now we have at least 3 sources - my personal banker, the 1-800 number I called, and the other poster who also called Chase though that person did not say whether it is 1-800 or his / her branch.

As for your branch manager, he is BSing in my opinion. Yeah, every bank wants to have customers put ALL their money with the bank, regardless other things. My banker has no issue for me NOT to put money into our Chase accounts when I told her CapOne is paying 1.05% for a MMA and 1.01% for a fully liquid checking account. Chase cannot match that whatsoever, and she fully understands it.

Out of curiosity, were you told by the branch manager when you came in to close the accounts, or were you go in the bank to do some business and the branch manager came out to talk to you? Or did you EVER receive any notification of any form about this changes?

May be your branch manager wants to get rid of unprofitable accounts and choose such unethical tactics to scare you to close all your accounts. Who knows?

For us, our accounts are not 6 months old yet, therefore I would not close them to risk my bonuses being yawned.

As for the "Chase at the verge of buying another big bank..." this aint going to happen after the financial crisis and the outcry of the "too big to fail" bail out big banks.

Who the heck "a big bank" in this country Chase could buy? Not BofA, not Citi, not US Bank, not SunTrust, not PNC...

No such rumors circulating on WS lately regarding this. The only news I saw right now is JP Morgan Chase is in the thick of the Madoff's Fraid...

News Alert
from The Wall Street Journal


J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. stood “at the very center” of Bernard Madoff’s fraud, according to a lawsuit unsealed Thursday that reveals for the first time how bank employees’ concerns went unheeded and irregularities in his accounts were overlooked.

The $6.4 billion lawsuit filed by Irving Picard says J.P. Morgan only reported its long-held suspicions of Mr. Madoff to British authorities in late October 2008, less than two months before he surrendered and the fraud was exposed.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...=djemalertNEWS