Chase Bank

Banks aren’t any fun and they don’t pretend to be. The reality is direct deposit and a debit card are a necessity to my lifestyle. Chase Bank on St George Ave in Avenel is an excellent bank. The tellers and bankers are friendly and make it very easy for their customers.
Last month I misplaced my debit card and
it was a very simple process to have the card cancelled. When I called, the CSR reviewed my last charge assure me the card
had not been used inappropriately. That was helpful because losing the card was stressful enough so I was relieved to know my account hadn’t been compromised this time.
The next morning I went to the bank and was waiting in a short line. While I was waiting, a banker noticed me standing there from his office on the other side of the bank. He caught my eye and came out of his office to see how he could help me. I explained to him that I had lost my debit card the night before. He brought me out of the line, which I didn’t realize was for business deposits, and we walked to his office. I presented my ID and immediately my Chase banker asked me to choose a PIN for my new card. I did so and he excused himself to return less than a minute later with my shiny, new debit card all ready to use.
I am impressed with Chase for several reasons. First the banker noticed that I needed help (I still don’t know how he knew, but he knew) and came to help me. I never would have known the difference had he ignored me. He didn’t ignore me. He went out of his way to see how he could help me. I am also impressed that I was given a new debit card, ready to use, in a matter of minutes. I have heard some horror stories in which bank customers have no access to their accounts for a week after having a card lost or stolen. When I first joined Chase bank, my account –was-​compromised and I had the same experience (new card and no responsibility for the fraudulent uses of my card). So I know that the procedure is the same if the account has been compromised or not. Good to know.
Chase also has an excellent iOS app and great online banking. Every time I use my debit card I instantly receive a text message telling me my balance. That is by my own choice and I like it. If I make a mistake and overdraft my account I am notified immediately and if I cover the overdraft by 8 pm the same day I am not charged an overdraft fee. Transferring funds to another bank account is as simple as sending an email. If you’re out having dinner with your friend and you’re splitting the bill you can send your share right to your friends account from your phone. It’s a great feature and increases the value of my debit card and my Chase account immensely.
For fair balance I will say that the parking at the Avenel branch is very limited and I’ve had to wait for a spot when I had to go inside. But there is a drive-​up ATM so lots of times I don’t have to get out of my car or worry about parking. Another thing I am not crazy about is the check charge. I write about two checks a year and so I don’t buy books of checks. Chase charges $ 6 for three laser printed checks. I think that’s kind of exorbitant but as I said it’s my choice not to order books of checks and $ 6 per year isn’t so much to even think about so it’s really no big deal. Chase also charges a $ 15 monthly fee on checking accounts but any direct deposit arrangement to the account waives the fee.
I confidently recommend Chase Bank, especially the Avenel branch. There are ATM’s everywhere, an efficient, friendly staff and an outstanding iOS App that I use very often. I can even deposit checks from my phone! That’s really convenient and I like using that feature of the app. I am very pleased with Chase bank and I will continue to bank with them for a long time to come.