M&T Bank

Banked with M&T for about five years after moving to the northeast, closed my accounts today. Local service is mostly friendly and professional, they remember your name, there are plenty of branches all over the northeast when you’re on the road, the online banking has improved over the years, and the policies, rates, and fees are mostly reasonable, although perhaps a little more in the bank’s favor than average.
That said, there were a number of small annoyances that ultimately caused me to leave:
— Arbitrary fraud detection that froze my card when I was three hours from home and tried to pay for a ten dollar breakfast at a reputable establishment, but allowed a company in the Middle East to whom I had never given the card to run it for four figures.
— Multiple compromises of my M&T card over the years. This has never happened to me with any other bank or card, and the final incident happened with a card I had hardly ever used. I heard a similar complaint from another individual, which forced me to wonder if there may be a security issue specific to this location.
— Very poor call center service. After I came in to discuss one incident where a representative was actually belligerent, a branch employee I’d become acquainted with told me that the customer service center isn’t worth calling and that I should always just come talk to them directly at a branch.
— Things got a little more nickel-​and-​dimey after the Credit CARD Act.
It’s a shame, because I’d prefer to support a bank with a strong local presence, and if you need a local commercial bank, they’re probably the best choice. However, I switched to another major bank’s online checking for a while to test the water, and I now understand why some customers were upset when this bank left the area and sold the branches to M&T. It’s been a much more pleasant and professional experience.