Date: October 18, 2006 To Whom it May Concern: On Friday October 13, 2006 I checked my Bank of America Checking account balance at an ATM to see how much money I had remaining before making a purchase. The account clearly stated that I had enough money to purchase the items that I wanted to purchase. There was a positive balance showing. On Tuesday Oct 17th for some unknown reason I was unable to use my Debit Card. I went to check my balance and it read -$171.00. From October 10th to the 16th, Bank of America withdrew $490.00 out of my checking account for fees: this represents a full week's worth of pay. The Bank did not want to take responsibility for the lack of information or the ridiculous amount that was taken out of my account for no apparent reason. From the start of this situation Bank of America never once informed me of the overdraft in my account, nor the amount I had to pay to bring it to a positive balance. I allow my employer to make direct deposits into my account on a weekly basis. So, on October 13, 2006 a direct check went into my account, and Bank of America confiscated it...immediately. On Oct 17th I deposited an additional 2 checks into my account and the teller did not take the initiative to inform me at this time of a negative balance. I spoke to a B of A representative about the situation that I was having with the Bank and her best reply was to utilize the online banking system. But online banking doesn't ever synch up with the ATM's balance and neither does phone banking totals. The numbers are always different due to pending transactions that seem to stay in pending mode (especially for deposits) that never seem to make it on time to stop an overdraft fee. In other words, Bank of America places holds on my deposits! The consequence is that if you are living paycheck to paycheck you will end up paying multiple over-draft fees. According to a South Florida B of A representative that I spoke to on 10/18/06 the best way to know what's in my account is to personally keep track of the deposits and withdrawls similar to the past. This exact situation has occurred to numerous customers who are not fully informed of the procedures in which the bank follows thereby creating all sorts of financial problems. I personally feel Bank of America is making a fortune off of unfortunate victims, and I feel this policy should not be allowed. I recently graduated college, so I currently live on a very tight budget; and once the $490.00 was taken from my checking account it completely threw me off course not only with my car payment but housing expenses as well. This situation has become so stressful that I've now been dealing with recurring migraine headaches and depression. You are made to feel safe opening an account with Bank of America, yet they use loopholes to pick pockets. Mine! I contacted customer service via telephone. I even visited more than three of the Bank of America branches to clarify this. They all denied any wrongdoing - refusing to refund any of my lost funds. I believe Bank of America failed to provide me with competent and appropriate financial management services.