After an action packed dinner at Bimbo’s tonight — foie gras protesters at Quinn’s! — my crew headed up Pike to Madison. One of my companions spotted a stray credit card on the ground and passed it to me. Having had my own credit card stolen (and fraudulently used) before, I immediately called the number on the back of the card:
1) “Welcome to no-name phone banking!” Navigated multiple menus, found human, gave credit card number, but “oh, that’s a debit card! I need to transfer you.”
2) “Welcome to Chase!” Navigated multiple menus, found human, gave debit card number, but “oh, that’s a Washington Mutual debit card! I need to transfer you.”
3) Me: “NO. I’m done. Please tell WaMu that I will immediately cut up the card when I get home. Good bye.”
So, if you are a woman who lost your WaMu debit card tonight on Madison, please know that it’s safely destroyed. I’m sorry that I didn’t have the patience to follow through. But you might want to consider getting a new bank.
The frustration of dealing with call centers is just too much… let alone call centers for banks. You’re a miracle worker for sticking to it through so many steps.
RIP, credit… er, debit card.