Complaint Review: HSBC

I went to pay my credit card standard payment last night (07/29), and my due date was not until 07/30. Therefore, I am making my payment ONE day early, correct?? Well, not according to HSBC's online payment utility. I got a popup that said "To avoid a $35 late fee, please use our rush payment option". After further reading, any payments made after 4:00PM are considered posting the next day (which would be my due date); AND they require one day for a payment to post. So, to avoid the $35 late fee, I had to pay their $15 "rush" fee. All this, when according to my statement and due date, I am paying one day early.

I manage the IT department for a $150M Credit Union, so I am aware of how payment processing works in the industry. I find it absolutely ridiculous that they would treat a customer this way. If we have a customer that makes their payment ONE SECOND before late fees post, or statement cycling, their account is fine... no fees, no late penalty, and we process the payment immediately and it is available money to them on their credit card. It's amazing that a little Credit Union has better technology and customer service than a multi-billion dollar bank.

They are completely unwilling to work with me this morning. I got a generic, computer generated response email from their "customer service" department saying that they would not remove the rush payment fee.

How in the world can I make my payment before the due date, and still get charged a fee??? This is absurd!

Cballant
Newark, Ohio
U.S.A.