Customer ReviewsforTIAA-CREF

Ive been with TIAA for more than 30 years. I recently decided to consider drawing my lifetime annuity. What a nightmare! Telephone calls not helpful. Seemed hesitant to allow me to withdraw my money. After multiple phone calls, I finally spoke to an experienced representative. He was knowledgeable, informative, straightforward, and very helpful. After that call, I had to make a couple follow up phone calls. I feel that Im forced to be rude. **** used to offer wonderful service, but not now! They used to request an immediate survey following telephone conversations. Well, thats stopped. With the exception of the one representative, Ive been very frustrated with ****. Fortunately, they havent started to outsource yet.

July 23, 2024 ************************** *************************************** RE: BBB Customer Review ID # ****** TIAA SR ************** Dear **************** am writing in response to the July 10 comments you posted on the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which were received by TIAA on July 11. In your comments you expressed disappointment with the level of service provided by **** in your attempts to begin lifetime income from your ********** of Chicago Medicine retirement plan.I regret that your service experience has not matched the expectations you are entitled to have as a valued client of TIAA. Your comments will be used to help improve our services moving forward.Paperwork to begin lifetime income was mailed to your address of record on July 9, and has not yet been returned. If you have not received this paperwork or still have questions regarding it, please feel free to contact our *********************** or myself directly using the information below.For additional assistance regarding this matter, please feel free to contact me directly at ****************** or ************. TIAA consultants are also available at ************ weekdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET). Additional information can also be obtained on our website at TIAA.org.Sincerely,********************. Customer Resolution Manager

Horrible liars. Apparently, customers are not allowed to file complaints.

July 12, 2024 RE: Better Business Bureau (BBB) Customer Review ID ****** TIAA SR# ************* Dear ************************* correspondence is in regard to the July 5 customer review filed with the *********************************************, which was received by TIAA on July 6. In the review, *********************, states that customers are not allowed to file complaints.We searched our records and are unable to locate any clients under the name and email provided. Additionally, on July 8 I sent an outreach to the email address presented, which was returned as undeliverable. If the individual wishes to further discuss the review, they can communicate with me by utilizing my contact information below.For specific questions related to this inquiry, you can contact me directly at ***************** or by calling **************************. If you have additional questions, please contact us at ************. Consultants are available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET). Additional information on TIAA services can also be found on our website at TIAA.org.Sincerely,***************************** Customer Resolution Manager

I have a health account set up through my school corporation. I cannot roll this money over from this "special" account.They have a company called Optum take care of medical claims. They are apparently located in *****, because literally every person who answers the phone has a heavy accent, which makes it difficult for someone from the ******* to understand. My blood pressure is already escalated due to the fact that I have already submitted ALL medical information related to this claim several times. The problem was they weren't printed in consecutive pages. What? Seriously? All information was there, the rep admitted. The problem was they can't tell if it's related to the same claim. So, they think I had two procedures done on the same day, but I only wanted one paid for? This makes no sense. I'd be s******* myself.Don't worry. I figured it out. They want me to go away, they want me to forfeit my money, and they want to keep said money. Nothing else makes sense. What really bothers me is that my school corporation is apparently okay with this as we are locked in with both TIAA-cref and Optum. Optum is a band of crooks. I am thoroughly disgusted with both companies. If TIAA cref is okay with Optum, then they are as guilty as Optum. If you're in a business situation looking at investment companies, avoid TIAA cref because this is where you'll wind up.

July 16, 2024 ************************* *********************************************************************** RE: BBB Customer Review ID #****** TIAA SR ************** Dear ****************** am writing in response to the review that you posted with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) regarding the level of service received from claims administrator *************** while attempting to receive reimbursement for medical charges through your ************** Schools Retirement Healthcare Plan.We regret the difficulties you experienced with your requests. In reviewing your account, you filed 6 claims for medical reimbursement, and 2 of those required additional documentation to be processed. It is my understanding that the additional documentation was received by *************** on July 1, and all your claims have been processed.*************** also indicated that an associate would be making outreach to you to describe the documentation needed to process claim reimbursements according to the *** rules for this type of benefit account.If you have additional concerns regarding this matter, please feel free to contact me directly at ****************** or ************.Sincerely,********************. Customer Resolution Manager

My sister had **** as her retirement plan. She had listed me as her beneficiary and her estranged daughter secondary. When she passed away she had left me her login and password. I needed to get her documents for tax purposes so I logged into her account. While there I clicked on beneficiaries and I was listed as the beneficiary. I sent in her death certificate and kept waiting for the papers to arrive. When I called in to check they told me I was not the beneficiary. I texted her estranged daughter and they had sent the papers to her. Now I have turned it over to an attorney to check in to it for me

July 5, 2024 BBB Serving the Southern Piedmont of N.C. and S.C. and Western N.C.***************************************** Re: BBB Investor Complaint ID: ****** TIAA SR * 1-26008681664 Dear Better Business Bureau:This letter is in response to the above referenced complaint filed with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) by ************************* concerning her deceased sisters TIAA accounts. The ******************** customer complaint was received by **** on June 21.TIAA records do not show ************************* listed as a beneficiary of her sisters accounts at the time of her death. ************************* has contacted **** by telephone and has been notified that she is not the named beneficiary. For the security of our clients records, we can only discuss the account with the named beneficiary or a court appointed representative of the clients estate.TIAA has provided the named beneficiary with the proper settlement forms.Sincerely,************************* Customer Resolution Manager

I have been saving with TIAA-CREF for nearly 40 years. I tried to make my first withdrawal, and it seems impossible, with one reason after another being offered. Since I am still part-time, only some funds are available, but their website does not indicate which funds are available. I made a request, completed the spousal approval form, and it was denied because I picked the wrong fund. They never notified me about the denial, and the request sat there until I logged in and saw the issue. I figured out the right fund, reissued the request, and again, it sat for days with no notification. When I checked the status again, this time, they claimed that the form wasn't filled out properly by the Notary. So we got another spousal approval form, uploaded it, and now they are telling me they are unwilling to use the same spousal approval form. It was the same transaction! Now they are saying I need a new spousal approval, even though it's the same amount, within just a couple of days. This has been going on for two weeks with half a dozen phone calls that often took 30 minutes or more. Seriously? I will be fully retiring soon and I will be sure to take my money out of this organization. They have not invested in their technology or processes and their customer service processes are terrible, unacceptable. The difference in service at ****** and Fidelity is stunning, so my money will be moving ASAP.

June 27, 2024 Better Business Bureau ***************************************** Re: Customer Review ID #****** TIAA SR ************* To Whom It May ************ letter is in response to the Customer Review filed with the *********************************************** June 13 by ************************************* indicating that she has submitted requests to withdraw funds from her TIAA contracts and that **** has not processed her requests. The BBB review was received at TIAA on June 14.Ms. Stoutenburgs TIAA contracts were issued through her participation in the ***************** retirement plan. The plan stipulates the provisions for withdrawals and requires that a spousal waiver be submitted with each withdrawal request. Based upon a review of our records, Ms.Stoutenburgs initial withdrawal request was received for her Retirement Choice (RC) contract issued through ***************** plan number ****** on June 5, and the required spousal waiver was received for this request. The employer declined the request as she is still employed with ***************** and in-service withdrawals are not permitted from this contract. A request was also received for her Retirement Choice Plus (RCP) contract issued through ***************** plan number ****** on June 7, which allows for in-service withdrawals. The required spousal waiver is specific to each request and must be signed and dated on or after the date of the withdrawal request. The spousal waiver for plan ******, signed on June 5, was received again on June 7 and 12 but could not be used to process a withdrawal from plan ******. For this reason, no payment could be generated. ************************** is required to complete and submit the spousal waiver associated with the withdrawal from plan ******.An outreach was made to ************************** on June 17 to offer further assistance. A follow-up email was sent to her on June 24 with the explanation provided above and included a copy of the required spousal waiver for completion of her request. She contacted TIAA on June 24 and spoke with ******************** Consultant ********************* and discussed the withdrawal options for her contracts.Her withdrawal request will be processed once the spousal waiver is received at TIAA in good order.If you have additional questions pertaining to this request, you may contact me directly at ***************** or by calling ************ weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (ET).

Horrible place to put your retirement fund. I am trying to get funds from my 403B plan for a hardship for school, this happened to have been the second time I had requested funds and I got the run around. The people on the phone would never escalate your concerns to the supervisors, just constantly say the processors in the back room handles all the hardship request and your not able to speak to the processors in the back room. I am an adult who has invested my funds in this company to have them dictate when and if I am entitled to my money. Please take your money elsewhere, this place is horrible. Oh did I mention that they was not corresponding with me, I was personally calling everyday to hear a different reason why my request was not approved. The customer service reps would show the documents to these processor people and they would act like the information was not enough. It feels as though they enjoy controlling your money and telling you NO you can not have it.

May 1, 2024 Better Business Bureau ***************************************** Re: Customer Review ID#****** TIAA SR ************* To Whom It May ************ letter is in response to the Customer Review filed with the ********************************************* on April 25 by *************************** indicating that she has attempted to withdraw funds from her TIAA contract due to hardship and **** has not processed her request. The BBB review was received at TIAA on April 26.A review of our records confirmed that **************** submitted a request for a hardship withdrawal on April 22 from her 403(b) contract issued through her participation in the Mount Sinai Health System retirement plan. Per ************************ (IRS)regulations, hardship withdrawals are permitted for a limited number of circumstances,which require supporting documentation, and are only available from specific funds within the contract. Her request was reviewed, and it was found that the supporting documentation provided was not in good order and a notification was sent to her on April 23. The complete documentation required to process the request was received on April 25. The hardship withdrawal calculation was completed, and the request was processed on April 25. The hardship withdrawal payment was sent via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to her bank of record on April 26.If you have additional questions pertaining to this request, you may contact me directly at ***************** or by calling ************ weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.(ET).Sincerely,********************************* Customer Resolution Manager cc: ***************************

In the 1970s when I began my first faculty position at ***************, I designated TIAA to manage my retirement benefits. In 1998 when I moved to ************************ I designated TIAA to manage my *** benefits. That was a mistake which cost me some $700 when I rolled over my retirement funds to LPL in 2024. Here are some of the reasons I would not recommend TIAA. First, they have a clinic style of advising. You do not have a designated advisor who gets to know you and your risk tolerance, for example. Second, at *** the ***** of ******* do not allow you to withdraw funds from TIAA until you retire. Third, TIAA charges a surrender fee of some 2.5% which is significantly higher than the 1% which is industry typical. Fourth, I am an activist and **** invests in projects which result in the deforestation of the Amazon River basin and the harvesting of other raw materials from developing countries around the world. This profit driven business plan conflicts with my values. Find a local financial advisor who knows your name, who shares your values and needs, and who charges affordable rates for services.

May 8, 2024 ********** ******************************************************************************** RE: Better Business Bureau Customer Review ID ******* **** SR * ************* Dear ********************,I am writing in response to the review that you posted with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which was received by **** on April 25. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me on May 7 regarding your concerns.As we discussed during our phone conversation, the 2.5% surrender charge fee that you incurred was due to funds that you had invested in the **** Traditional Annuity within your Group Retirement Annuity (GRA) contract and Retirement Choice (**) contract through the ************* of Regents 401(a) Optional Retirement Plan. The **** Traditional Annuity guarantees your principal and a contractually specified minimum interest rate, while providing the opportunity for additional amounts in excess of the guaranteed rate. To meet the products investment objectives, there are special contract provisions in place that limit access to the funds invested in the **** Traditional Annuity in a GRA and ** contract. Subject to the employers plan provisions, a lump-sum withdrawal may be permitted from the **** Traditional Annuity only within 120 days after separation from employment and is subject to a 2.5% surrender charge. Otherwise, the fastest option for liquidating these funds would be through a 5-year fixed period annuity for a GRA contract and an 84-month payout for the ** contract.We sincerely regret that you were not provided this explanation when you requested your rollover on April 16, 2024. Since you were within the 120-day window of leaving service with your former employer, your **** Traditional Annuity funds were liquidated minus the 2.5% surrender charge and rolled over to your alternate carrier along with all your other investments. While we offered to reverse the transaction and reprocess it without the **** Traditional Annuity funds, you elected to not reverse the transaction.Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback, which plays an integral role in our efforts to improve client experience. Your comments have been shared with management so that we may improve our services moving forward.If you have additional concerns regarding this matter, please feel free to contact me directly at ****************** or ************. **** consultants are also available at ************ weekdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET). Additional information can also be obtained on our website at ****.org.

I wish I hadn't been forced by my employer to save all my 30 years of retirement savings with this institution. Now that I'm retired, I am realizing that it's really hard to accomplish simple requests. Representatives give out wrong information and send wrong forms. Most recently in trying to withdraw from an annuity, I was first given an incomplete form and second time a wrong form. Both times I paid $25 to notarize my spouse's waiver, and now I've been told I need to do it a third time. When I complained about cost of notary, I was told by --- that I could get it done for free at my local bank, which is not true. When I most recently spoke to yet another representative, he said that because itnwas their error, he was escalating my situation to management and that they would reach out to me within 48 hours. It's been over a week and I've heard nothing. My advice to friends now is to stay away from annuities and roll everything over to a different company once you retire. I appreciate that this is a nonprofit, but that shouldn't give a company license to be incompetent. It makes wonder whether there is broad incompetence in other areas such as investing or record keeping. I always trusted them, but my trust is now very low, and I am moving all my money.

April 26, 2024 Mrs. *********************** ************************************* Re: BBB Review * ****** **** SR * 1-25929650067 Dear ******************:I am writing in response to the customer review that you posted with the **************************** was received by **** on April 22. In your comments you mention difficulties experienced requesting a distribution from your ************** Defined Contribution Retirement Plan. Your comments were forwarded to my department, which investigates client concerns.**** received requests to rollover the variable funds from your ************** Defined Contribution Retirement Plan, and those funds were rolled over to your alternate carrier in February of 2024. The remaining balance was invested in the **** Traditional Annuity in 2 separate contracts, a Retirement Annuity (RA) contract and a Retirement Choice (RC) contract.The **** Traditional Annuity within these contracts is restricted in the way it can be distributed,with the fastest option being through a Transfer Payout Annuity (TPA).**** received paperwork to establish a TPA for the **** Traditional funds within your RA contract on March 21, and payment was sent to your ******************* account on March ******** we received paperwork on April 6 to establish a TPA contract for the **** Traditional funds within your RC contract, these were the incorrect forms and could not be processed. **** received the correct forms to establish a TPA contract from the **** Traditional funds within your RC contact on April 23, and your forms have been processed. I have also submitted a request to reimburse you the $25 fee that you paid to have the second set of forms notarized.For specific questions related to this inquiry, you can contact me directly at ************ or ****************** You may also contact **** consultants at ************ weekdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET). Additional **** information can also be found on our website at ****.org.Sincerely,*************************** Senior Customer Resolution Manager **** *************

I cant get them to roll over my retirement. Its totally ridiculous. Choose a different provider these guys will steal your $$ and never give it back!!!

April 19, 2024 ************************* ***************************************************************** RE: BBB Customer Review ID ****** TIAA SR# ************* Dear **************,This correspondence is in regard to the April 8 customer review you filed with the *********************************************, which was received by TIAA on April 9. In the review, you state that you have not been able to complete a rollover from your TIAA retirement account.Upon review, I understand you called our *********************** (NCC) on March 8, and requested a rollover from your Retirement Choice Plus (RCP) contract with the **************************. I see your request expired on April 8, because **** had not received the necessary spousal waiver required to complete your request. We sent you a notice advising of this expiration on this same date. I also show that you called our NCC on April 8 and were informed of the expired rollover request. A current rollover request was submitted on April 8, and the transaction was pending awaiting an updated spousal waiver.Our records show you submitted the required spousal waiver on April 10. We have processed your March 8 request utilizing the April 10 spousal waiver you provided. A check was directed as you instructed to ******************** on April 18.I regret the inconvenience experienced on this matter. For specific questions related to this inquiry, you can contact me directly at ***************** or by calling **************************. If you have additional questions, please contact us at ************. Consultants are available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET). Additional information on TIAA services can also be found on our website at TIAA.org.Sincerely,***************************** Customer Resolution Manager