1 /5 James Dirden: Merrill Edge Threatened to Sell Our Stocks & Close Our Account
Bank of America has been our family’s primary bank for more than 35 years. Five years ago, my wife and I opened a joint Merrill Edge self-directed brokerage account. Throughout this time, the only paper communications we have consistently received from either company have been our monthly statements.
That is why I was shocked to receive a recent letter (attached) from Merrill Edge with this alarming headline:
“Unfortunately, your account features have now been restricted – here’s how to avoid account closure.”
This anonymous letter claims that I have ignored all prior communications and am seriously delinquent in completing my "Merrill profile review." It further threatens that, unless I act “soon,” Merrill may sell our securities and close our account.
I spent over an hour trying to meet Merrill’s demands. Unfortunately, both the “Online” and “Mobile” instructions in the letter are totally inaccurate. There is no such thing as an online "Merrill Profile!"
I then called two Merrill Financial Services Representatives for assistance.
• Tyler, the first representative, logged into my account and confirmed that I was a “fully-authenticated Preferred Rewards member.” He clearly had no idea what the letter means by a “Merrill profile review.” When I informed him I was recording the call, he refused to continue the conversation (even though he was recording it).
• Hannah, the second representative, assured me that I was “fully verified” and that my Merrill profile was “completely up-to-date.” She also explained that customers cannot update their profiles online, contrary to the letter’s instructions—they must call a Merrill Edge representative directly.
After wasting nearly two hours on this matter, I came up with the perfect solution: I transferred our entire Merrill Edge account to our E*TRADE account. Initiating the transfer process online took less than 15 minutes - and, I received a $1000 promotional bonus!
In spite of Tyler’s and Hannah’s assurances, I simply cannot trust a company that allows this sort of threatening, inaccurate and unsupported (even by their own employees) customer communications.
Its no wonder that such an egregious document is anonymous and unsigned.
