Redwood Credit Union

I finally have a resolution!
It took a while, but Todd came through. He instigated a thorough investigation of my case, and although it took nearly a week, he called me to check-​in and make sure I knew they were still working on it. I appreciated that.
The original issue came about because of a particular set of circumstances that occurred within the «Bill Pay» feature of their online banking website nearly a year and a half ago. If I understood his explanation correctly, I was arguably partially at fault but the feature is not as user-​friendly or intuitive as it could be and it’s a send-​out application versus an in-​house one such as a ‘transfer’ would be. The «correction» of the four grand «Move Balance» must have occurred after an audit. According to Todd, this is an issue they will be remedying within the application itself. Either way, I know better now, so it shouldn’t happen again as long as I’m paying attention.
Todd was very patient with me and resolved the issue.

most banks, s&ls and credit unions make you feel like a criminal… hiding behind bulletproof glass, armed guards, and stoic expressions… not here at the new Redwood Credit Union on North Mendocino!!! there is no glass between you and the clerk… only a bar height marble desk! that is soo cool! i feel like a client/​patron/​honored guest… let me help you…
I’d like to thank the marketing geniuses who recognize that most of us are honest, law abiding, people who want to conduct business… way to go RCU!!!

Not happy with this local bank and its staff.
Very unprofessional and poor customer service.
Every time you call, the hold time is incredible.
I have tried to stay and support local businesses, but due to many issues sadly I chose another larger bank.

The people make up for the parking sitch ! I ruined my chiparoo card (don’t ask) and they saved me. Bravo, my wine expedition continues.

This bank is now forcing customers to use chip cards.
I got sent a chip card and told my card would expire and I had to use the chip card. So I went in and asked for a new card with no chip.
I work at a place where the use of chip cards repeatedly freezes the point of sale system and I’ve heard nothing but terrible things about how the new chip cards glitch constantly. RCU refused to give me a regular credit/​debit card. Then told me all my rewards I’d accrued over the last year are not available anymore. Then had me sit in a «lobby» which is four seats three feet from a wall where you sit in blistering sun and stare at a wall for the manager so you can ask wtf is wrong with this bank.
I’m surely not the only customer to completely leave this bank. Rediculous. Next they’re going to implant us all wth fuckin chips.

I went in to fix my account, was help by Amanda at the front desk, she gave great customer service above and beyond expectations. Helped me throughout the situation to find a solution. I would like to thank Amanda for her dedication to helping others!

outstanding! CR’s are a little crowded inside, but the telephone service can’t be beat!

I’ve had a bank account here for 15 years and am finally closing to go somewhere else. I’ve had the same problems for about the past five years. You get charged fees for their errors, and they will put holds on your account whenever they please. Plus their customer service representatives are very condescending and rude. I’m telling all my friends my experiences. I don’t typically review businesses or complain, but this bank started out wonderful and is progressively deteriorating. I’d give it negative stars if I could I’m so mad at how I’ve been treated.

Six and a half years ago I was forced to file for bankruptcy when my ex took off and left me with a large credit card debt. But Redwood Credit Union stepped up a year latter and loaned we $ 20,000, at their current loan rate, on a used car when mine was totaled by a deer in the road.
The loan was for five years, but I paid it off in four. I now live with my girlfriend and other than the $ 500 a month I pay her and my phone bill I have no debt. My salary, for the job that I have had for 23 years, is just under $ 80,000 per year.
Now that car that they financed now has 130,000 miles on it and is getting to the point that something could go wrong with it at any time just due to age. So, I saved up $ 12,0000 and began looking for a replacement. I found something that I was interested in but was $ 6,000 above what I had saved and what the dealer would give me for my trade in.
So, I headed on down to my trusty Redwood Credit Union (where my $ 12,000 was) and asked for a $ 7000 loan (license, tax, and insurance) for seven months. Yep, $ 7,000 for 7 months. I was told by the «Senior Member Services Rep.» who was helping me that she would call me within an hour and a half with their response. 24 hours latter when had not heard back from them I called them and got a new Service Rep. who I constantly had to ask to repeat herself as I could not understand her (no she did not have a foreign accent).
I was then told that since I did not have any debt/​loans/​credit cards/​bills etc that my credit score was zero and instead of their normal 4.44% loan I was a credit risk and they would charge me 11%. I explained to her that I had had a five year loan with them (at their lowest interest rate) and had paid it off a year early just 12 months ago. After many calls in which she became the middle woman for the loan officers I was told that I was being blessed with a 6.99% approval.
Then the next day I get a phone call from the «hand-​off» Service Rep. where she told me that the most current pay stub was from May 30^th and now it was July 18^th and that it was too old. I explained to her (as I had to Service Rep. #1) that I was a school teacher who gets 10 paychecks per year (the last on May 30 and the next on Aug. 29). I also stated that «surely I am not the first school teacher Redwood Credit Union had dealt.» Again the middle woman had to call the Loan Officers. When she called back she said that since my pay-​stub was «out of date» I no longer qualified for the «discount» 6.99% rate and if I wanted the loan it was back up to 11%.
I have been a member of Redwood Credit Union for close to 8 years. All of my paychecks are direct deposited into the Credit Union. They loaned me $ 20,000 for 5 years which I paid off in 4 years. I am now asking for $ 7,000 for 7 MONTHS. NO I AM NOT GOING TO PAY 11%!!!
After my post I received an email from the branch manager asking me to call him about this post. When I called him he was very nice and explained everything to my satisfaction. Although my situation is unique I understand (sort of) and look forward to continuing with Redwood Credit Union.

Online services worked great, and my banking experience in San Rafael has always been a pleasure.
It was only until I needed to close my account did all the courtesy and ease disappear. Each person I spoke with over the phone made it increasingly difficult to close out my account. Not only did I find the representatives rude, but unhelpful when it came down to just getting the details of what they needed to get the rest of my accounts closed.
To be constructive, I would certainly recommend that if RCU continued their courteousness and ease of service from beginning to end, this review would be much different. However, this closing experience has just left a terrible taste in my mouth. It has certainly made me rethink and regret my decision to bank with RCU. I certainly would not recommend this bank to future investors.

I opened up a corporate account here today for the first time. Geriann Camarro took care of me and was very patient and extremely knowledgeable. I feel well taken care of and the level of service that this branch offers is second to none that I’ve experience in the banking industry. Great job training and hiring your employee’s RCU. This is a great start to a new relationship.

I have an auto loan with Redwood. I ran a credit report recently and it said that my loan was supposed to have ended in Jan 2013 but I had a balance of almost $ 6k still. Confused, I called them. The person on the phone was nice enough but had no clue as to why I still had a balance. They had to pull physical records to get all of the information on my loan from storage. A week later they tell me that they placed insurance on my loan because they didn’t have proof of it in 06, 07 08. Now I remembered back when I had received letters from them years ago asking for this proof multiple times I had to fax them the information. Assuming that was the end of it. Last week I sent a letter from my insurance company stating that I had never lapsed and sent it over to the person I had been working with. I heard nothing so I just assumed they were processing my refund check. Yes, refund because at this point I have over paid them.
Today I get a call from finance asking where the payment this month is. I immediately got defensive (can you blame me?) and he stalked to try to trick me into saying that I wasn’t going to pay this month. I am assuming he is doing this so that he can attempt to repo my car? Repo my car when they technically owe me money. I was livid. I asked to be transferred to the person that I had been working with and he wouldn’t take my call. I opt to hold. 5 min later he gets on the phone and said the letter I sent was not sufficient. He neglected to inform me of this and had no excuse as to why he didn’t get back to me.
Anyway long story short, I have not ever lapsed on my insurance coverage and I have gone through hell getting the declarations from my insurance companies because it was so long ago. I am appalled that they just placed this balance onto my loan. I know that I should have paid closer attention to the amounts on my statements but I honestly had no clue that this could be done. It would have been nice if they would have sent a letter telling me they did this instead of just adding it on. Lesson learned.

The human service from Redwood Credit Union is excellent. They’re open on Saturday, and you can bank at other local credit unions as if you were in their branch. Fantastic.
The website could use some work.

I have been a public employee for 25 years, and left my other credit union for this one, as it is better known. I (spouse) had a downturn in credit issues, so I got myself a SECURED credit card (VISA) from them. The interest rate is over 17%! (for SECURED!)
After two years of faithfully paying on the card, I tried to renegoiate the interest rate. I was told NO. that VISA only goes by the 3 major credit ratings, and ‘ignores’ my payment history. If that is the case. why bother? These people have over 30k of my money in savings and cannot negotiate with me? Sorry… I cannot recommend.

update:
Redwood Credit Union did outreach work to make things right for me, and reflected a high degree of care towards excellent customer service.
I’m recommending them for personal banking needs because the «owners» are the members and they are more trustworthy than the big banks.

Always Cool Beans!!!

Why credit unions?
Credit unions are non-​profit organizations (so they won’t be gambling with your money) and are run for the service of the community. Your money is generally only lent out to other credit union members, so you are effectively helping finance your community.
Plus, the rates are usually better than banks and the service almost always superior.
Why Redwood Credit Union?
Ample locations in the general Northern California area, all of which offer superb service. They are finally opening a branch in Sebastopol which will greatly help the west county community. They also recently started renovating their ATMs to have the new ‘smart’ ones which scan your check and print it on your receipt, among other things.
I’ve been a RCU member for about 2 years now and I haven’t had a single problem with this credit union. They offer plenty of services for most people’s needs and I highly recommend them.

Being a member of RCU overall has been a great experience. I used to be a member of a major bank, and let me tell you, the difference is night and day. I have had some small issues with individual employee’s (Mainly at their Mendocino Ave branch) who seemed to have attitudes when asking for simple requests, it was seldom, but it occurred more than a few times.
I walked into the College Ave location a few days ago, and apparently the RCU President approved all of their emplyee’s to wear Giant’s apparel during the series; that was awesome. You have to love local businesses !!

I have been a member for about a month so far and have been pleased. I like the philosophy of a credit union instead of big commercial banks, which is why I switched. Redwood is a good size with numerous branches and a wide range of services.
So far, I have used this branch, Windsor and Petaluma and have been happy with the service I’ve received. The online service lets me do everything that I did with one of the big banks, just looks different. Also, when I call in, the call gets answered quickly and they are helpful and friendly.
My only issue so far is that there was a minor error with a transaction, but they fixed it very easily and quickly.
I don’t know about lending, but so far I have been happy with their deposit accounts and would recommend Redwood as a good alternative to the big banks.