Not you too, Bank of the West

Another bank follows the trend of forcing accounts to either have...

• Direct deposit X into your account every month
• Have a minimum of X in your account
• Use your debit card X times during the month

or you pay a monthly fee.

Talk about bait and switch. Last year BOTW offered a $100 bonus and an iPod touch for opening a checking account. Now I get a recent mail that informs me that they will charge me a service fee unless I have:

• $1k min in my balance, or
• Direct deposit of $250 per monthly statement, or
• or 10 or more debit charges

I've seen this before at my previous bank, Chase. Both will become things of the my past. I guess it's time to take my business elsewhere *cough* credit unions; most likely SF Firefighters CU. ATM refunded anywhere in the world? Sign me up. No more flashy advertisements and horrid customer service, please.