David Kireta sent a message to Stuart Parker that said:
Dear Mr. Parker,
I am a veteran and member of USAA for over 20 years. I wanted to alert you to my recent growing dissatisfaction with your company.
I retired in 2001 in New Orleans after 20 years of active duty. I did not take up residence in another home until 2007 after a period of university study in Miami and home construction outside Gainesville, Florida. After surviving back-to-back hurricanes in the 2004-5 time period in FL, I was told by USAA rep in 2007 that I could no longer obtain home insurance for my new home. What a disappointment that was to me. I called a few years ago, and was told that some counties in Florida had been permitted to be insured now, but Alachua Co. where I reside was not one of them.
In July 2019, I was contacted by your credit card division and notified that there were several irregular charges placed on my account amounting to about $12K. The card was discontinued and I was issued a replacement card in a timely manner.
When I checked my account statement near the normal payment date, I saw to my astonishment that USAA planned to draw funds from my checking account to pay for both my charges and the fraudulent charges!
I contacted USAA and was told by the phone rep that nothing could be done to avoid the $12K overpayment. I asked for a supervisor and in total spent over one hour on the phone to address this issue. I was advised by the supervisor that the only way to avoid paying for the fraudulent charges was to cancel the scheduled automatic payment and make a manual payment for my personal charges only. I was assured that the fraudulent charges would be removed before the next payment cycle. following an investigation.
To my astonishment last week, my USAA credit card was declined when I went to buy groceries, how embarrassing that was. I looked at my online account later to find out the automatic payment that I had set up for over 10 years had not been restarted since the summer.
I called USAA one week ago and discussed my matter with a pleasant & professional young lady named Charlotte. She waived the late payment fee and assured me the company would investigate and give me a decision within 2 business days on payment of the accrued interest. Yesterday, I called USAA to ask why I hadn't been contacted yet and wat the results of the decision. I was informed by the USAA phone rep someone that would eventually contact me, that the investigation was a lengthy process. When I asked to speak to a supervisor, I was told he would do so, then placed on hold for 15 minutes, so I hung up in frustration. Five business days later, I have still not been contacted.
I have been charged $169 in accrued interest due to USAA's inability to make timely corrections to my account to avoid paying fraudulent charges. I can no longer insure my home with USAA because Florida residents were penalized due to season of back-to-back hurricanes. As such, I am considering canceling my rather long relationship with USAA.
My friend has told me for the past year that AARP has relationship with State Farm and is offering better automobile insurance rates. And I receive at least 2-3 solicitations for other credit cards with attractive offers.
I have avoided leaving USAA because of the longstanding relationship we have had over the years. But I feel the company has grown to the point where much of the personal service I associated with USAA is being lost to a corporate mentality of revenue over customer service.
Thank you for your time to read this letter. And thank your for your service to our country.
Respectfully,
David A. Kireta
9974 Holden Park Rd.
Hawthorne, FL 32640
(352) 215-2565
