Consumer complaint received 2023-09-03
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
State: RI
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Banking errors

Complaint:
I recently sold a wheelchair that I purchased with my own money on XXXX. A buyer agreed to the purchase price and sent me a check for the cost of the chair plus an additional amount to cover the cost of someone he had who was to pick the large chair up and handle shipping it. The buyer said it would be easier to do it this way because he knew the picker and it would be easier for me because I would not have to arrange shipping. Im a quadriplegic, so this sounded good. I deposited the {$3500.00} check and waited for citizens bank to clear the check and make the money available in my account. AFTER CITIZENS cleared the check, I paid the picker a person named XXXX XXXX {$2500.00} to schedule a pickup and handle the shipping of the XXXX. After I sent {$2500.00} via XXXX, conversation with the buyer got weird and I got very suspicious ( I have records of all conversations ). Out of an abundance of caution I called citizens around XXXX. Citizens said the situation sounded off, but said that the check cleared and my account appeared safe. This was a recorded conversation. Despite this, I still felt uneasy, so I looked at the original {$3500.00} check that I had remotely deposited on Thursday XX/XX/31. I looked up the routing number and called the bank associated with the check account, XXXX XXXX. They couldnt tell me much, but they did say that it sounded like fraud and told me that there was a good chance the {$3500.00} would be returned, thereby stripping it from my checking account! In this scenario I would lose the {$2500.00} I XXXX. Concerned, I looked up the XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX, a XXXX XXXX  company which was the name listed as the payer I spoke with the CFO XXXX. She knew right away, I had been scammed. She said for the last month someone had been using their company to defraud people. XXXX said that the money was not coming from their account, instead it was just their company name being used. So I dont know where the money was coming from specifically, accept that it was associated with XXXX XXXX . Obviously I was extremely concerned. I cant afford to lose {$2500.00}. As a quadriplegic, my resources are limited. So I again continue with my due diligence. I called Citizens Bank again in attempt to proactively resolve the issue. I spoke with Fraud and Claims and explained the situation. They basically told me that there was nothing they could do!!!! I explained that I had done the due diligence that I believe was Citizens fiduciary responsibility! How can I be punished after Citizens failed to verify the source and status of the check? And even more infuriating, now that I had uncovered a fraudulent scheme that has been ripping people off for the past month, citizens says there is nothing they can do! ( XXXX from XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX said that it has been going on for a month ). So Citizens told me that there is nothing I can do. I asked if I could file a claim proactively, I told them I would not have money for mortgage payments, I begged them to help me. Citizens told me there was nothing they could do. I had to wait till the {$3500.00} check was returned, meaning I would lose the {$2500.00} I sent via XXXX, then I could file a claim, but that Citizens probably would not reimburse me!!! I explained that Citizens was at fault, they should not have cleared the check. Finally, I asked what would happen if I moved the money in my account to another bank to protect my money. Citizens told me that I would be charged an overdraft fee!!!! This is completely ridiculous. A billion dollar bank, at fault for clearing a fraudulent check, is going to punish me?! Over {$2500.00}? I have records and documents to prove the validity of all these statements. I am desperately in need of the money, I can not afford to lose {$2500.00}. I hope you can help me.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation