by Matt Marquardt –
MASON CITY – A Mason City man asked NIT to look into a policy of his credit union which requires its customers to remove hats and sunglasses before it will complete a transaction.
Nick Hodak has been a long-time Mercy Family Credit Union (MFCU) member. He wanted to withdraw a large sum of money in cash from his account there, but MFCU told him he would have to come back in a few days to get his money.
Hodak was further troubled by MFCU’s policy that requires its customers to remove hats and sunglasses before it will complete a transaction.
Hodak asked NIT to observe his attempt to withdraw cash from MFCU. He was able to get his cash a little earlier than he thought and take it home on his first attempt after they had told him it would be a few days before he could get his money. He was asked to remove his hat and sunglasses before being served. The teller explained that MFCU had been robbed in the past and that this was their policy.
MFCU CEO John Sherrick told NIT that the policy is in place for several reasons.
“It’s a protective measure,” Sherrick said. “A safety precaution. We would rather err on the side of safety.”
Sherrick said that when a customer wears shades, it may be difficult to tell if they are in an “inebriated state” or in a disguise. He said his employees should be able to “look our customers in the eye. We treat others with respect, and we expect the same from our customers.”
NIT contacted another local credit union and several local banks to check on their policies towards hats and sunglasses worn by customers as they attempt to do business.
Iowa Heartland Community Credit union said “We have no policy on that. We make every effort to ensure the safety of our customers.”
Wells Fargo Bank Manager Reid Peterson referred out questions to a higher ranking official, who said “Checked on this. We do not have such a policy in place.”
A U.S. Bank official also confirmed that there is no policy in place there regarding hats and sunglasses worn by customers.
