The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation), the organization that protects the money in your bank accounts, is currently seeking to raise the limit on the amount of money that will be protected in the event of a bank failure from $100,000. Shelia Blair, Chairman of the FDIC, did not specify an amount she would like to see it raised to. Instead, the amount of the increase, if any, will be determined. The $100,000 figure was set in 1980, and beginning in 2011, it will increase annually to account for inflation. This change was passed in 2005 by Congress.
With the public failures of both Washington Mutual (Thursday) and Wachovia (Monday), many people are looking at this on a more speculative level. While many people don’t carry nearly $100,000 in their bank accounts, many busiensses do. It is estimated that in 1991, 82% of deposits were protected while today only 63% of deposits are protected. [CNN Money]
Last Friday, my room mate Matthew and I went out to dinner at A*pplebee’s, which we do fairly often. Normally when we go the service is pretty good, even when it is particularly hectic in the restaurant. However, this trip was the exception. Without getting in to all the details, our service wasn’t that good, bordering on poor, and they were under half capacity. Our waitress just wasn’t attentive to our needs. I was sorely disappointed, and had considered taking A*pplebee’s off the list of restaurants that we frequent for awhile.
Later that evening, I was explaining the situation to my room mate David while we were standing in line at the checkout of our local Noco. A man behind us said, “Man, I hate to hear that.” He then introduced himself as the District Manager for Applebee’s, and we talked for a couple moments about the incident, and ended up exchanging contact information. He requested that I call the next day when he was in his office. The next day when I called, I explained the situation again so he could write down the details, and he was kind enough to forward me some food vouchers for our next trip. He also explained that the waitress wouldn’t be fired, but that he would personally speak to her about the service that evening. His attention to detail really shows that customer service is important to their company. Obviously they are there to turn a profit, but it’s nice to see that their management is willing to go the extra mile to ensure customers are happy.
Some people may see this as a plug, which it isn’t. My only “payment” was the vouchers for our trouble. I just like to point out when organizations take the extra time. The manager in my adventure could have easily not said a word. He wasn’t working, wasn’t in a corporate shirt, and just happened to be shopping. His dedication to customer service, however, showed through.
Update: Matt, Dave and I returned to the A*pplebee’s in question earlier this week. The store manager came over when she saw our vouchers and personally thanked us for giving the store another chance. Dedication!
The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation), the organization that protects the money in your bank accounts, is currently seeking to raise the limit on the amount of money that will be protected in the event of a bank failure from $100,000. Shelia Blair, Chairman of the FDIC, did not specify an amount she would like to see it raised to. Instead, the amount of the increase, if any, will be determined. The $100,000 figure was set in 1980, and beginning in 2011, it will increase annually to account for inflation. This change was passed in 2005 by Congress.
