Former customers of Colorado based FirstBank face adjustment challenges after PNC conversion
Thousands of former FirstBank customers across Colorado and Arizona are continuing to adjust after their accounts officially converted to PNC Bank this week.
PNC completed its $4.1 billion acquisition of FirstBank on Monday. The deal, first announced last September, brings more than 700,000 customers, over 1,600 employees and nearly 100 branches in Colorado and Arizona into PNC's network.
On Tuesday, some customers were still reporting problems accessing accounts, updating banking information and navigating the transition.
"It's been really crazy," one customer said. Another described the experience as "chaos."
Leonarda, a former FirstBank customer, said she had been trying to update her accounts since Saturday. Unable to complete the process online, she visited a PNC branch for assistance.
"I have to update my information, routing numbers and more," she said.
For longtime customer Nita Lynch, who has banked with FirstBank since 1975, the merger has meant spending hours updating routing numbers, retirement accounts and automatic payments.
"They really did give us a heads up, but it's still taking a lot of time," Lynch said.
Although she completed most of the transition online, Lynch said she is still working to update her 401(k) account. After waiting more than 20 minutes on hold with customer service, she decided to visit a branch instead.
"I felt frustrated, but it is what it is," Lynch said. "I even thought about going to another bank or credit union, but I figured it would probably be the same thing."
In a statement to CBS Colorado, PNC acknowledged that some customers have experienced issues during the transition.
"We're aware that some customers are experiencing intermittent issues with individual accounts and are working to support them. Our teams are assisting customers in person, by phone and online, and additional information is available on the PNC FirstBank support page," the bank said.
Despite the challenges, several customers praised branch employees for helping them through the conversion.
"It was hard for me to set up the account, but I came in, and they helped me understand how everything works," said Estefania, another customer.
Lynch agreed, "I want to give some kudos to the people that are working here."
