A couple weeks ago, I needed to withdraw some money from a mutual fund that I’m invested in. Some mutual funds charge a small withdrawal fee to the investor, called an “exit load.” This is typically 1 percent if the investor withdraws his money within a year of investing it. When my money was credited to my bank account, I noticed that the exit load was somewhat higher than it should have been.

I checked the mutual fund’s website for its rules about this transaction, and I also checked a recent account statement I’d received. The exit load rules were quite clear, and it was evident that I had been charged more than what the company said it would do.

I emailed the company with the relevant details, and a few days later I got a phone call from its customer service manager. Although he was quite polite and empathized with me, he said the company had made some changes to its exit load rules some months ago. Apparently it had neglected to inform customers about this or update its website.

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