I’ve banked at Washington Mutual for over 10 years … if you include the time that I started with Home Savings and Loan (Washington Mutual purchased them). This isn’t the first time Washington Mutual has had a glitch in their online banking system … for some reason this time I haven’t noticed it. I think the reason is previously I was paying many of my monthly bills through their online banking system manually … many bills like PG&E and other utility bills you can’t schedule automatically through the banking website as the amounts change month to month.
However, nowadays most of those recurring bills are paid by having the biller pull the money directly from my banking account (so the setup is made at the biller and not the bank) or by credit card (so I can get my 1 – 1 1/2 cash rebate on my credit card) 
Still, this glitch has made me think about how critical online banking and online bill pay is. I haven’t written a check for … I don’t know how long. Even when I buy from retailers nowadays I charge almost everything. Unless the store does not accept credit cards I always use one.
Still, the site has been down for 6 days apparently … for many, it means breaking out the checkbook. I tried logging in and using the Bill Pay system to see, and I was taken to a temporary page. Seems like the workaround should be good enough for most, but the level of complaints goes to show how much online banking, despite protestations to the contrary, has grown.
Tags: Online Banking, Washington Mutual, Website
