I just called to say I LOVE YOU

I love USAA! (I know I'm inviting a bunch of San Antonio hits again, but that's OK. They should know how much I appreciate them!)

Why you ask? Because...

1. they always are kind and patiently answer all of my questions when I call. (You know me - I always have a lot of questions.

2. the representatives always speak English fluently.

3. Totally free banking! No stupid fees for me letting them use my money. Why do people stand for that from other banks?

4. they refund my ATM transaction fees (and they started WAY before other banks did that).

5. I can deposit a check in prepaid envelopes in the mail or instantly online by scanning them from home. I don't have to go anywhere!

6. their checking and savings accounts are interest bearing (not just if you have thousands of $s).

7. their insurance rates are incredibly low. I have compared online with other companies and the comparison is laughable. We get a great deal!

8. I get dividends back on my insurance policies depending on how well the company does that year.

9. They have a great website - I can do everything online. FOR FREE!

10. And they are really understanding and human. They seem to have my best interests at heart and have compassion!

And it's this last item that causes me to write today. Last year we had a check written to us (a whole $4.80) that we deposited and then had it refused by the other party's bank. We were then charged a "chargeback" fee of $5. I saw the "chargeback" on my statement online and called my bank to ask what this was. Together we put the info together about what had happened and completely unprompted the gal on the phone with me said, "Well, that's silly that you have this charge. It's more than the check was worth! I'll just go ahead and refund that money to your account." I was shocked! I figured I would make the people who's check was returned take care of my $5. But USAA totally took care of it! They are awesome.

Then this week... We return from our trip to visit R's sisters and I checked my email. I received one from PayPal - all in Japanese (or whatever, Asian script for sure). I log in to PP to see what on earth this is, thinking it's one of those spoof emails. Well, lo and behold someone has hacked into my account (so scary!!!) and stolen $42.50 and paid an online gaming site with MY MONEY!!! Oh man, I felt violated and scared. I called PayPal right away and, of course, was sent directly to India. Thank heavens that PP protocol is to send fraud claims back to an agent in the U.S.! I would have had the worst time trying to explain what happened to someone who didn't really have an understanding of English (done that before - as I'm sure you have). I started the ball rolling there with my claim and went back to USAA to switch funds into my savings account to take care of this little blip. Well, I don't keep much in our savings since I get better interest in our money market account. But the evil teenage boy (total assumption, but I can picture him in my head!) who stole my money had already put our account into overdraft and there was a $29 non-sufficient funds fee already posted. Aaaaa! PayPal would refund the $42.50 but who's got to cover the $29? Me! Oh I was so mad. I stewed for a day or two and then I thought about my awesome bank... Would they maybe refund it? I decided to send them an email explaining that I knew it wasn't their mistake and they were totally justified in that fee, but as I wasn't responsible for that debit would they pretty please refund it? Well, the next day I get an email back - "Sure" and it's done! Most banks seem to look for opportunities to squeeze all the money they can out of you. But my bank is the opposite! They are so wonderful! So I am singing their praises! Rick has been so impressed each time we've dealt with them. Early on in our marriage he said that he didn't care if we got a better deal insuring or banking elsewhere - they had our loyalty for life. They are that fantastic! And, totally against my frugal nature, I whole-heartedly agree. I trust them absolutely and I am so grateful for that relationship!