Patelco Credit Union

This is the S-​L-​O-​W-​E-​S-​T Patelco branch within a 20 mile radius of my house. I am writing this review after being in line for 10 minutes already. The tellers are making no efforts to move faster despite a current 6 people in line. What a waste of my time.

I love the staff here. Iv been a member here for a few years. I even chose to open my sons first account here. I love the people such genuine smiles, Jessica always greeting me on my way in. I feel so welcome every time i come in. I met Jennifer and she made my visit fun and quick. ALL OF THE TELLERS ARE AMAZING. LOVE THEM. Thank you also Sophia and the rest. Im not good with names but all of the faces are always so friendly. Thank you PATELCO

This is the best place to bank I’ve ever used in my life. People are great, informed, helpful and friendly. But Patelco actually feels like they are on my side, always trying to make things work for me, unlike the big banks where friendly people try to overcome policies that make it work first for the bank. I ask Patelco for something and the answer is ‘sure’. I ask Wells Fargo and they either quote me a policy that says no or they dash off an email to somewhere to see if they can get permission. WF and BofA, have fees, often cleverly hidden, for things that Patelco does for free.
They make things work, like my home equity loan, car loan, and make it cheaper than big banks. i have no reason for saying this other than I tell people about it all the time. And i am hard to please. There is no sense of ‘now what’ in dealing with them, unlike others, (including other credit unions) I have dealt with. Very open communication. i kind of look forward to dropping in to see what they might have for me next. Strange but true.

I also feel very welcomed here and Lauren is so warm and helpful. If there is a line it usually movies fast and I am typically in and out in 10 minutes. Only thing i am annoyed with is Patelco charges $ 10 to issue a lost debit card. Guess, I need to be more aware of where I put my cards. All in all I am glad I made the switch from the greedy Wells Fargo.

I made the switch from B of A to Patelco a few months ago and I couldn’t be happier both with the service and with the rates. B of A was continually sticking members with additional charges. That is not the case at Patelco. Plus the friendly, helpful customer service feels sincere, at least at the Lafayette Branch. The Manager at the Lafayette branch has been especially helpful and always friendly.

This is modified version of the letter I wrote to the CEO of Patelco…
Dear Mr. Burns,
I would like to express my pleasure with the quality of service my family has consistently received from your team, at the Lafayette branch. Pedro, and the other associate that works behind the counter, should be recognized for their outstanding customer service.
My family has been long-​time loyal Bank of America (BofA) and Wells Fargo (WF) customers (checking, savings, credit cards, mortgages, etc.) By chance, we stopped by the Patelco Lafayette branch, several months ago as we were shopping for a new car loan. Pedro and this other gentleman made the loan process extremely smooth and easy. Additionally, the rate offered (3%) by Patelco was significantly better than WF and BofA. We decided to become members and take the loan from Patelco.
Since that first visit, and each and every time we come into the branch, these gentlemen address us by name. This had never happened when we entered our BofA or WF branch. Due to the experience we had with the car loan we have closed our BofA bank accounts and are transitioning all of our banking to Patelco.
Regards,
Robert G…