Fifth Third Bank / 53.com
reviews and complaints

This bank is the worst bank I have ever dealt with! Their phone tree keeps you on hold for 30-60 minutes before telling you the call center is closed and to call back later. When you finally get through to a representative, they have no idea why you are calling despite having to repeatedly enter information in the phone tree. The customers are unhelpful and borderline rude. It took them 6(!) business days to respond to an email.

To make matters worse, my mortgage loan was sold to them and I so wish I could have it sold again. Now I am trapped. I implore you, no one knowingly should do business with this company. Right now, I am fighting to have them pay a property tax bill from my escrow account which I have paid every month. It is a nightmare dealing with them.

I have never experienced such poor customer service in my life. It is clear that they do not value their customers. I have had to jump through hoops just to get basic information about my account. It is frustrating and time-consuming.

I would not recommend this bank to anyone. They are not worth the hassle. If you are looking for a bank that values its customers and provides good customer service, look elsewhere.

I been banking with Fifth Third Bank for a long time now, but I gotta say, the service lately has been real bad. I had a problem with a merchant charging me for a subscription I didn't want no more, so I called up customer service to stop the payments. But the agent straight up lied to me and said the merchant had to cancel it themselves. That ain't right, man.

Then, to make matters worse, I missed a payment on my credit card and they cut it off without even telling me. I was still way under my credit limit, so I don't know what the problem was. And get this, my card status on the website said it was still active! I called up customer service again and they told me I could use it again after I made a payment. So I paid my bill from my checking account and thought everything was good. But nope, six hours later my card got denied again. I was so embarrassed, man. And it was a real inconvenience too.

I don't know what's going on with Fifth Third Bank, but they need to get their act together. I'm thinking about switching to a different bank if they don't start treating their customers better.

I gotta say, online banking with Fifth Third Bank (53.com) is a real pain in the neck. Whenever I try to check my account from overseas or make a purchase outside of the good ol' US of A with my International card, the system goes haywire and blocks my account. And when I call customer service to try and sort it out, all they can say is "I'm sorry, but it's generated by the system. There is nothing we can do about it if the automated systems finds suspicious activities." Like, seriously? That's supposed to make me feel better?

It's not like these are unusual transactions or anything. I mean, lots of people travel internationally or buy stuff online from foreign retailers. But apparently Fifth Third Bank thinks that's suspicious behavior. And the worst part is, getting your online banking rights reinstated is a real hassle. You have to jump through all sorts of hoops and wait for days or even weeks to get everything sorted out. And even then, there's no guarantee that it won't happen again the next time you try to do something "suspicious."

It's really frustrating, because I used to be a big fan of Fifth Third Bank. I thought their customer service was great, and I never had any problems with my accounts. But ever since this security madness started in October of 2022, I've been nothing but critical of their banking services. It's like they don't trust their own customers or something.

All in all, I wouldn't recommend Fifth Third Bank to anyone who values convenience and ease of use when it comes to online banking. If you're okay with jumping through hoops and dealing with a lot of hassle just to access your own money, then maybe this is the bank for you. But personally, I think there are better options out there.

This bank is not the best option for those who are struggling financially. If you have a low balance and are worried about overdraft fees, be careful. While they do offer three courtesy reversals, if your account is negative by even a few dollars, you will be charged a hefty overdraft fee. This can be a real problem when you need to prioritize things like putting gas in your car or feeding your family during these tough times. It's important to note that other banks are starting to eliminate fees, so it might be worth looking elsewhere. Fifth Third Bank, please read the room and consider making changes to better serve your customers.

I opened a business account with Fifth Third Bank (53.com) a while back. I only had $50.00 in the account and it sat dormant for several months. However, I was surprised to see unauthorized charges of $19.95 each come in and the bank charged me $200.00 in overdraft fees. I was really upset about this and decided to talk to an officer at one of the branches.

The officer I spoke to was really nice, but unfortunately, she couldn't issue a refund. She told me that I had to go to the issuing bank to get my money back. I went to the issuing bank, but the manager was in meetings all day and couldn't see me. I was really stuck and didn't know what to do.

I don't have the money to put in the account to make it come to a zero balance and they won't close the account. I never received a statement and was totally clueless as to these charges since the account was really supposed to be dormant. I feel that this is totally unfair and unethical to the customer. I am outraged that this can happen and feel I have been unjustly treated.

In conclusion, I am really disappointed with Fifth Third Bank (53.com). I feel like they should have done more to help me with this situation. It's really frustrating to be charged for something that I didn't even authorize. I hope that they can fix this issue and make things right for me.

This bank is just not good. It's like a big old dinosaur that's stuck in the past. Their online portal is pretty much useless. I had to switch my mortgage to Fifth Third Bank for servicing and it's been a total nightmare. The welcome packet took forever to arrive and the whole set-up process was a real pain in the you-know-what. And don't even get me started on their customer service. They were so rude and unhelpful. I talked to multiple reps and they all gave me different information. And when I pointed out that they were contradicting each other, they just tried to pass me off to someone else. It's like they have no accountability at all.

But the worst part is that you have to print out a physical form just to set up automated payments. Who does that anymore? It's a major problem because not everyone has access to a printer. And even if you do, it takes forever to get everything set up. Like, 4-6 weeks? Are you kidding me? I can't wait to get my loan serviced by literally anyone else.

If you bank with this company, you will know the technology is literally a decade behind schedule when it comes to other banking institutions. When I chose this bank for one of my business needs, it was rated in good standing however for the second time in less than one year, this bank has pretty much raped my account in fees taking away half of the deposit transaction with overdraft fees that shouldn't be a factor in less than 24 hours for people who accounts never go in negative standing. Whomever is over business accounts having fees applied without a 24-hour deposit turnaround needs to be fired for implementing this rip off of your clients by gutting their hard earn money without a 1-day grace period. This is the only bank with this policy that I have personally used and do not recommend them for any business accounts. It's a trap disgracing good account standings. This bank is similar to wachovia that was literally the plague of poor mortgage lending.

Fifth third has got to have by far the worst customer service ever in recent times. You can never get a hold of anyone. Thier website is clunky and not user friendly. Literly i just needed my account number and its took me 5 days of calling and tring to register. I ended up just having to wait for my next paper bill , lucky i didnt go paperless. Its really [censored] mortgage could be sold to them without my permission. That should not be allowed.

On May 12, I was dismayed to see someone had drained $800 out of my checking and savings accounts with Fifth Third bank by somehow access my account and zelled themselves money from my accounts. I immediately reached out to them and let them know what happened. They said I had to wait until the transaction was completed before I could even file for an investigation. By Saturday the transaction was complete and I filed a fraudulent transaction. They said I would have to wait 7-10 business days for them to conduct and investigation even going so far as to insinuate they needed to make sure I didn't zelle someone money myself in an attempt to defraud them. After ten business days (two weeks total) my money was still not in my account so I contacted them and they stated they had closed the investigation because the zelle account my money had been sent to had been closed. They indicated I could open another investigation request and it would take another 7-10 business days for me to get an out come. So I am out $800 dollars that I needed for bills and there is no guarantee I will ever get my money back.

I submitted a loss Mitigation application for a forbearance on 10/12/22 three weeks later they said they never got it but it was faxed from one of their branches. Resubmitted 11/2/22 the rep took 3 months to submit and on 1/21/23 said the file was completed and sent to underwriting. Three weeks later I started to get calls from adifferent rep asking for P&L statments again I said those were submitted I am waiting on an answer... crickets. They told me I was protected against being reported to the credit bureaus LIES they started reporting me jan feb march and april! I escalated the problem to the Office of The Presidents Susie Muller said "your file expired" I said well find out who's desk it sat on an expired cause I did everything I was asked to do. I am a frntline worker that worked my butt of for almost 3 years during covid in ER's around the US to save lives and I will not be treated this way. I rec'd a letter yesterday saying Fifth third was still investigating as of May 16th however in the same mail run I have 15 letters from attorneys wanting to represent me in my foreclosure. This back is not even regulated in the State of florida. They have screwed so many and now I have an attorney and I am sueing them for cost attorney fees and for not escrowing enough mone for my taxes which is what put me in this position to being with!

I had my mortgage bought out by Fifth Third Bank. They immediately raised my mortgage payment $10.63 per month by performing an escrow analysis and claiming costs (insurance, taxes, etc.) went up, so now I have to pay and extra $127.56 per year.

I called and spoke with a manager (Felecia). I asked if I could pay the escrow difference and keep my monthly mortgage payment the same like every other mortgage company in my past. Felecia said "no, we can't do that". I believe they could if they wanted, because every other mortgage company can! I also believe they probably don't know how to do, or don't want to be bothered to do it since they are a relatively small bank and don't seem to care much about their customers concerns.

I would refinance to get away from this bank but my interest rate is very low, and rates have gone up.

VERY unprofessional of a bank to not have this option for their customers!

Hello Sir,
I have bought property: 543 Black Tea Way, Franklin, TN, 37064.
Here I am sharing the 53 bank mortgage account number: [protected].
My Home value is apprised around an year ago and I have submitted the Requrest to removing PMI and your banking team has denied my request without reviewing it.
I have made additional payment of around 8K$ in Oct 11 2022 and it is not reflected in my loan amount.
Please help me with removing PMI amount and returning my additional amount which I have paid.
FYI, Curtailment 7990.02 $
Thanks
Jai Ram

I have been trying to access my funds in the above account without success. It was opened 20 years ago when I was working in Lexington Ky. There is approximately [edited] of my money in the account. For the past 6 months, I have tried to re-establish my online connection but through no fault of my own, this has been unsuccessful. In addition, I cannot contact US 1-800 phone numbers from Australia where I am currently living.

I have formally asked the bank in writing on 2 occasions to transfer my funds to a US-based account and then to close the 53 account. For reasons that are not known to me the bank has ignored my letters and not actioned this request.

The account to which I want the funds sent is:

Account holder: [edited]

Routing number: [edited]

Account number: [edited]

Account type: [edited]

Wise's address: [edited]

I have only one 53 bank contact - Eryn Johns - at your Lexington branch. She has full details of this case and can supply copies of letters sent to the bank.

I can be contacted at this address: [edited]

Your help in getting this frustrating matter fixed is greatly appreciated.

Peter O'Meara

I have been trying repeatedly to get someone at customer service to help me to no avail. My father worked for 5/3 Bank for 15 years and he died in October 2022. The credit card account that he had then was moved over to my mother's name. My mother is 80 years old, in poor health, and grieving from the loss of her soulmate of 52 years. I, as her daughter and power of attorney, am trying to assist her in addressing what can be done with this account. I was told the first time by customer service to bring the power of attorney paperwork to my nearest branch. I did that, gave it to Sue who filed it and said to follow up with customer service. Sue at the Rochester Hills, Michigan branch has been the only helpful person. When I called to follow up a week later, as soon as I mentioned the word power of attorney, the customer service representative told me to go to the nearest branch and hung up the phone on me. I called Sue back and she took the time to put a note in the account for me to call customer service back. I called customer service back, was told that they couldn't look at the account and that I had to go to the branch despite my explaining multiple times that I had already done that. This is the poorest excuse for customer service that I have experienced and it is deplorable that this company would treat the family of a longtime employee this way let alone their other customers.

My wife and I deposited a check and we're told it would clear in 2 days when it didn't I went to are branch in Smyrna GA we we told the head office put a 10 day hold on it and so of the reasons could be my history with the bank my credit which I do not agree with they are using my money until they release it.When we were told that it would clear in 2 days. I made arrangements to start paying off debt and loans we have for instance every day I do not pay my loan off it costs me 9 dollars a Day same with credit cards and so on .I feel I am being descrimated against.So I needed to get this out because I think it's wrong.

Thanks Michael & Donna McGuinness

My husband died in 2021 and my name was not on the mortgage promissory note. I got the affidavit of Survivorship since I am the spouse so I could continue to live in the house and make the mortgage payments. However, I decided to go to Colorado Springs in 2022 and there was a house fire at my house. The insurance company denied the claim, but the mortgagee had a claim on the insurance. The insurance company did not send Fifth Third Bank the Proof of Loss form and I notified the insurance company that the bank had not gotten the form. However, the insurance company told me to tell the people at Fifth Third to get in touch with the insurance company to reopen the claim so that they can pay out. to this day. no one has reached out to the insurance company. I have e-mailed the complaint department. I have called the escrow, mortgage, and insurance department. Recently, My dead husband was sent a letter stating that Fifth Third Bank had taken out mortgage insurance on the house because it was in the interest of the bank. Why is it not in the interest of the bank now? The house is not livable. At this moment the house has over 100,000 in fire damage and no one at Fifth Third Bank seems to show any interest in the property, but you want to increase the mortgage on the property due to homeowners insurance

I am a 5/3 costumer and I have an overdraft on my account when my account was in the postive, I reached out to the employee consumer line and was told that. It was because of the the inuity cut off time. However I reached out to the inuity and they stated they deposited it instanly. The account on my on line serivce stated postive. I had an agent to look at it on friday 04/15/23 and "hope" agent on line stated it was postive. On sunday 04/16/23. I was accesed a 111.00 +25.00 overdraft fee all in the same day. When my account was in the postive. I reached out to a supervisor who told me there was no one else I could speak to in refrence to this matter. That I need to bring this current. When I shared with her the findings that I was at a postive balance when these fees occured. I asked her if she was refusing to allow me to speak with upper manangement, or her supervisor she then transferd me to a vm of a shamri. Meanwhile I am currently still occuring theoverdraft fees. I have been to a branch and was told they could not help me. Because I was once an employee there. However the situation still stands, I was charged an outrageous overdraft fee for something when I was clearly in the postive. I have convo between my self and the chat agent online banking stating I was in the postive, please address this issue. I feel as if I am forced to report this to the consumer financial proctection burea. Please assit

Been banking with them for almost six close to 7 years same job I've had for 5 years I do side work as an independent contractor I got a handwritten payroll check not the first one I have gotten go to do a mobile deposit on Sunday and my account is flagged Monday night where I can't even get into it car customer service at 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday just to get told that my accounts are getting close cuz they're being flagged as fraud over me depositing a check they are also threatening to hold my direct deposit check from another job I've had for 5 years for 7 to 10 business days how do they hold a direct deposit when the money is directly deposited into the account saying that check might be fraud also very per customer scares people they put on the phone cannot speak English properly and get very rude when you're upset cuz your money is getting took and then they want to charge me $15 for a bounced check fee

The processing of this bank is nothing short of awful. We used to mail our payments, but the payments were constantly shown as late unless we mailed them 3 weeks in advance. We finally agreed to direct debit, even though we don't want a bank that has obvious processing problem having access to our bank account.

In addition, every year they claim they have not received our homeowners' insurance information (we have never had this problem on our other home loans.) This year our agent sent our insurance information twice, but I was still notified that 5th/3rd had not received it and had bought insurance for us which we have to pay for.

I have waited in line for more than 40 minutes so many times I can’t count, just to deposit money at our local 5/3. I can be the first to drive up in the drive thru but the last one to be waited on. They merged two branches in to one to become more efficient but very often there are just two tellers to wait on three drive thru lanes and two inside windows. The people who work here are very nice and I like 5/3 otherwise, but this constant waiting to get customer service has me seriously considering finding another bank. It’s very frustrating. I’ve been very patient hoping it was just a “short of help” situation but this has been going on since the merge a few years ago. So not only do I have to drive farther every week to get to the new branch, but I have to wait more than twice as long to get waited on. You need more tellers to help. 40-45 minutes waiting to cash my check is way too long.