Consumer complaint received 2020-04-03
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
State: NY
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Banking errors

Complaint:
Dear Ombudsmen, I wanted to thank you for helping resolve an issue with XXXX where they had made an error. 

Regretfully, I approach you again with an error. This time caused by Citizen 's Bank. 

My Father XXXX XXXX within 10 weeks due to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, his story made the news ( see link below ). https : XXXX I was awarded {$2000.00} in death benefits as his beneficiary. This was mailed to me and I physically went to deposit the cheque at Citizen 's bank via their drive thru service. The teller handed me a receipt confirming the {$2000.00} USD deposit had been completed. It would take 24 hours for the funds to be settled/verified. No problem. I kept my slip and awaited the usual processing. 

The following day I awake to find the funds have settled and are available. I put aside some in my savings account and had alloted funds available in my checking account, where i was going to purchase diapers for my XXXX  and pay a few bills. 

When I finally get time to try to make my purchases, i am told my card is declined. I tried a second time, thinking it was an error. No, declined again. 

I quickly log into my Citizen 's bank to find I had been deducted {$660.00} AND was minus {$55.00} overdrawn into the red. I also got a {$37.00} fee for being overdrawn. 

i immediately got on the phone with Citizen 's bank ( which took hours ) and XXXX, their agent was a real delight. She couldn't understand why only this time the bank made the error ( despite the bank receipt even stating US dollar for the {$2000.00} cheque ) but she did reverse the {$37.00} fee imposed by the bank for drawing into my overdraft. 

She assured me the supervisor would call me by the end of the day, at worst I'd hear back on saturday - guaranteed. I waited, and never had a call back. 

On monday I called again, waiting another 2 hours to get a hold of someone. I had to repeat the whole situation and even go through the pain staking reexplanation of my father 's death as to why I had the funds as a foreign cheque written out for US dollar payout and mailed to me at my residence in XXXX, NY. 

The agent was kind, but was limited to their ability on reversing the error, as it was up to a supervisor/manager to reverse. They checked but all managers were occupied and I was told I would receive a call again by end of day, or as soon as a couple hours. Never heard back. 

Along came tuesday. I called and waited 2 hours AGAIN. Unfortunately the representative I had this time was rather abrasive and was quite apparently not having a good day. He asked me to repeat my entire card number over the phone ( no other agents ever have, and its entered into the phone system when you first call in, before being placed on hold ). 

I explained I had called several times already and required a manager for the bank error. He then had me explain to him the entire situation, again. Despite being unable to help any way. He began saying I didnt wait 24 hours and thats when managers do call backs. I politely informed him I had been waiting since Friday and it was much more than 24hrs. 

He proceeded to interrupt me and said he would try to reach a manager by putting me on hold. I was placed on hold by him for a lengthy period of time and he came back, only to hang up on me. Which I screenshotted on my phone. 

I was in the process of beginning to redial but received a text from my grandmother that she required to be taken to the emergency room at the local hospital and needed me to take her. She had a XXXX almost 2 weeks ago and lives alone, she's XXXX. She has had nurses coming by a couple times a week for wellness check and the nurse insisted she must go to the hospital. 

I was forced to call it a day in terms of my almost week long ordeal with citizen bank 's error. Plus almost 4 hours of being on hold and run in circles. I packed up my XXXX year old and XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and rushed to Grandma 's residence to take her to the hospital. 

I would just like the funds due to me, to be reversed. It isn't okay for them to brush me off regarding my funds and their error. Especially during this global crisis when people need access to their rightful funds. 

I will be changing banks after this js resolved. As I have always been a phenomenal client of the bank, for years. And even their agent XXXX stated she's only seen one other account that was so well maintained and managed. She asked what my secret was. 

I would like to thank you for reading my submission regarding this horrendous ordeal and error. 

I have also submitted my call log, showing time spent on the phone with the bank ( XXXX was the most helpful and spent about 30 minutes with me trying to help. The others spent at most, 5 minutes ). I have submitted a photo of the teller slip/receipt showing the funds were to be US dollar and the caption of my grandma 's text and photo she sent from the hospital. 

Last note to add, it is now Friday, XX/XX/2020 and I still haven't gotten the promised call, nor my funds. I look forward to your help. Thank You.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation