nicholasguindon.com

Hey everyone,

So a few weeks ago my mom was doing some banking and needed her signature on a form witnessed. President’s Choice is an online bank, but they told her the form could be witnessed by management at any CIBC branch. She went there but the assistant manager refused to do it. Witnessing a signature is a very simple process – you’re just confirming that you watched someone sign their own name to a form. It takes less than a minute. Yet they spent ages arguing because the assistant manager refused to believe that PC Financial is in any way affiliated with CIBC. My mom eventually left and paid a lawyer $50 to stand there while she signed the form. She called the bank later, and the manager backed up his assistant about the (non-) relationship with PC Financial. We were left with no other option than to write this letter:

Attention to Mr. Eranga Goonetilleke

CC: CIBC Customer Care & CIBC/President’s Choice Ombudsman

Following our telephone conversation on Wednesday January 6, 2009, I am forwarding you the legal documents printed from the CIBC and PC Financial websites.

According to you CIBC does not represent or have an affiliation to President’s Choice Financial. This is of great concern to me because it is not true and I am banking with President’s Choice. You told me on the phone that CIBC does not make a difference between (as per your example) TD Bank or President’s Choice. I was told the same on Monday January 4, 2009 by your assistant manager.

When I went to your branch I had a legal paper (form 487) from CIBC. I needed someone to witness my signature. At the bottom of the form it is clearly indicated that it can be witnessed by a Branch Officer and I was told the same by President’s Choice. Neither you nor your assistant manager (Miss Jay) recognized the legal document as one of your own. On the phone you kept repeating that President’s Choice has nothing to do with CIBC. You were not even aware that CDIC would combine assets from BOTH CIBC and President’s Choice up to $100,000.00 because President’s Choice is a trademark of CIBC. This is upsetting to me because you cannot accurately council me about my investments if you do not know that.

You and your assistant manager kept telling me that you had contacted your legal department. This is hard to believe. I am sure they are aware of the arrangement with President’s Choice. Below is a link to the President’s Choice Legal Stuff section of their website, which contains numerous references to CIBC. There is also a link to the CIBC’s Deposit Insurance Information page which repeatedly refers to President’s Choice. Paper copies of these web pages have been sent to Mr. Goonetilleke.

• http://www.banking.pcfinancial.ca/a/legal/dailyBanking.page (accessed 01-06-10)
• http://www.cibc.com/ca/cibc-and-you/to-our-customers/dep-reg-info.html (accessed 01-06-10)

Unfortunately I will not do business with CIBC as I do not have faith in your ability to handle my assets.

Sincerely,

-contact information-

I hand delivered a copy of this letter to the manager, who did not recognize me (I was never at the bank). A few days later we were contacted by the Ombudsman, who was incredulous and not very apologetic. They informed us that the manager would be informed of the relationship between the two, but they honestly didn’t seem to believe he wasn’t aware of it. A few days after that, we were called once again. Apparently the manager had forwarded the documents to them and they were sincerely sorry. My mom is even supposed to get a $50 credit for the lawyer fee…

Nick