Anyone else get this letter from Chase??

[magyar123]

I guess a lot of folks - including me - left Washington Mutual when Chase took them over.
Today I received what I call a "bribe" letter - offering me $100 if I open an account with Wamu/Chase.
The condition is to open an account with a minimum of $100, and after 12 weeks they would credit this account with their $100 bribe.

[DisneyGirl]

Now I'm wishing I would have left, LOL!

[simon2020]

I did - my neighbor and I opened a new account with them and the officer at the bank said in 12 weeks our account will be credited with $100 cold cash.

Sweet!!

[Flamingo]

That is nothing new - lots of banks do that - we used to get them all the time from ING Bank. Usually its for opening a savings account - they will put that money in there after a certain period of time.

[magyar123]

I think Chase's motives are far more sinister - sending these bribe letters to folks who left Wamu for greener pastures (other banks) when Chase took them over, but still have credit cards from/through Wamu/now Chase. They don't like the fact that now they won't be able to dip their thieving/robbing fingers into checking/savings accounts if all of a sudden you don't pay on the credit cards.

[magyar123]

And the reasoning for the above - sinister motive - is that my neighbors who were also with Wamu and switched banks when Chase took them over - but did NOT have any Wamu credit cards - did NOT get this bribe letter.

[Flamingo]

It may not be a "bribe" as you want to see it, it could be your name is just on a mailing list. We are 2 1/2 years since BK discharge and we still get all sorts of crapo stuff we either shred or recycle. You should see the "bribes" we get to try to get us back into the car dealer to get a new car! You can either contact them to get your name off their mailing list(s) or just toss the mailings.

[syn]

My mom has WaMu but the only letter she has gotten from Chase is about the merger, nothing about getting any money.

[JoeBankrupt33]

When you do your taxes next year, make sure you wait for your 1099-int from chase. The $100 will count as interest income. Even though it's a bribe, any money a bank "gives" you is considered interest. Also, if they give you something like an i-pod shuffle, they will send you a 1099-int for the value of the i-pod.

[FLBK7]

That is nothing new - lots of banks do that - we used to get them all the time from ING Bank. Usually its for opening a savings account - they will put that money in there after a certain period of time.

I agree. And may I add that this is a common gimmick many businesses besides banks use. When I transferred all my prescriptions from Walgreens to CVS, Walgreens kept sending me offers for $25 gift cards if I transferred them back. And when my wireless contract with Sprint ended, I switched to AT&T and now Sprint is sending me amazing offers. Amazing enough to tempt!

But no, I like AT&T better. I had major problems getting a signal with Sprint sometimes. At&T so far has been 100% reliable.

[TEW]

yes i got one of those today and I did not have any chase accounts

[Flamingo]

When you do your taxes next year, make sure you wait for your 1099-int from chase. The $100 will count as interest income. Even though it's a bribe, any money a bank "gives" you is considered interest. Also, if they give you something like an i-pod shuffle, they will send you a 1099-int for the value of the i-pod.

Only if the I-Pod costs more than $600.

[JoeBankrupt33]

Actually, banks are required to report interest of $10 or more.

[Intoodeep80]

I hate Chase. I wish nothing less than the families of the top executives to be infested with the fleas of a 1,000 camels!!

With that being said, yes I have received the same offer 2x now.

Forunate for me, I went with TCF bank. $50 visa gift card on the spot to open a free checking account, and I get $25 for each referral I send over (Im on my 7th referral!)