July 2021 by Alison H.
I have always banked with a credit union, but I switched my business account to Kitsap Bank because it is local and has been around for over 100 years. I have never been charged so many fees and had my accounts mismanaged in such a short period of time. When I opened my accounts (personal and business) in May of 2020, they only provided me with a checking account, not a savings account. Weird, right? I had to go inside the bank after many confusing phone calls and finally I was given a savings account. I suppose it is common to open a bank account and only want a checking account? No way, that is weird, everyone wants both checking and savings. It is absurd that I had to REQUEST for a savings account. Absurd. My biggest gripe is the plethora of problems with their online banking/phone app. I wasted a lot of time on the phone and in person regarding this. Pop-up messages said I did not have authorization to deposit checks. HOW NUTS!!! I'm the only one on the account, what do you mean I can't deposit a check in my own account?! I was unable to use the online deposit because I was never given a debit card (which was absolutely essential for using Kitsap Bank's phone app, as they have a second party app you must also download and then enter your debit card number in order to use their services). Impossible to do that without a card, which should have been given to me right after opening my accounts. While on the phone, multiple separate times, I was speaking to the bank's web master/developer of the app. I know this because while on the phone, they were re-writing the code so that when I closed the app and then re-opened it on my phone, options that didn't exist magically appeared. Because of their poor service, I closed my accounts a month ago and only NOW am I finding out that I was charged a $25 closing teller fee. NO ONE EVER told me about that fee. I want my $25 back, I found out about this fee after I was sent a paper statement (which earlier I had to OPT OUT OF in order to not be charged $5 EVERY MONTH, and the only way to opt out is through their useless app). I received no receipt the day I closed my account that said ANYTHING about this fee. Let's be honest, wow, burned while opening my account, burned closing my account. I took my business and money to Kitsap Credit Union and I'm never looking back. I will write a review on any and every website to warn people of this bank that certainly doesn't care about you, only your money. Kitsap Credit Union was so helpful and it was easy to open my new account with them. They even printed my new debit card that day!! And their online/phone app is excellent and easy to use. Stay away from this bank- so many fees, lack of communication, poor service, and let me tell you, when I closed my account at the Kingston branch, the teller asked me why and I said the online services were beyond sub-par. She agreed then she went on to tell me THAT SHE has an account with Kitsap Credit Union. So there you have it folks, even the employees don't want to bank where they work. That speaks volumes. Goodbye Kitsap Bank, know that I will share my experiences with everyone and anyone that will listen.