Consumer complaint received 2022-10-05
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: CA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
XX/XX/22 - My vehicle was broken into on XX/XX/22. My credit cards and cash were stolen, but my purse and wallet left behind. I immediately contacted Bank of America that same day to cancel all of my cards and report the fraudulent transactions. I also filed a police report that same day with the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX in the city of XXXX XXXX, CA. ( Police Report # XXXX ) The fraudulent charges on my account were credited back and I was assured I would not be responsible for them. 

XX/XX/22 - The fraudulent charges were quietly added back to my account ( {$850.00} and {$860.00} ) I was not provided any form of correspondence about this or notification. To this day I still have not received a letter or anything as to why this happened. 

XX/XX/22 - Is when I noticed the charges and contacted BOA fraud dept for answers. During that call no answers were provided as to why my claim was ultimately denied and reversed almost 2 months after initiating the claim. They only offered to re-open the claim for re-investigation. I offered to provide the police report information and any other documentation necessary, and I did so that day. I was told that once the claim was officially reopened for investigation then the fraudulent charges would again be cleared from my account during this time. I was told this could take up to 48hrs to show. 

XX/XX/22 - The charges were still shown on my account. I contacted the fraud dept again to inquire. This time I was told different information. I was told that the charges would not be cleared off during the second investigation. I was told I could either pay the charges and hope to expect a refund at the close of the investigation which could take upwards of 2 months, or let the charges sit in my account and accrue interest and fees. I was told there must have been a filing error on BOAs behalf and that is why the claim must have been denied and the process indefinitely elongated. Despite this admission of fault, BOA has offered no timely or expedited resolution. 

XX/XX/22 - I received a letter in the mail from BOA Claims Resolution Dept dated XX/XX/22, stating that the matter is resolved in my favor and my account credited for the fraudulent charges. However, this is not the case or reflected in my account. I will attach the letter for reference. ( This still remains to be the only letter Ive ever received on the matter of my claim ) XX/XX/22 - Severely disappointed with the service and lack of resolution over the phone with the fraud dept up to this point, I went into my local BOA branch in XXXX XXXX, CA with letter in hand to seek answers and resolution. I worked with associate XXXX XXXX. She contacted the fraud dept while I was there, explained the situation, and referenced the letter I received. She was told by the dept that my account will be credited and the situation rectified by XX/XX/22. Because of the confusion, inconsistency and mistreatment I had experienced up till this point, XXXX scheduled me a standing appointment for XX/XX/22 at XXXX in her branch to come in if the credit wasnt shown by that date so she could follow up with the dept. 

XX/XX/22 - The credit has not shown. I came to my appointment. XXXX attempted to call the fraud dept and discovered it closed at XXXX on weekdays, so was unable to assist the situation that day. She apologized for the inconvenience and said she would call them first thing in the morning and give me a call with an update. 

XX/XX/22 - After not hearing from XXXX, I became in contact with the branch XXXX XXXX XXXX. I explained the situation. She said she would contact the dept to attempt resolution and call me back. She did call me back that day and said she requested escalation of the matter, but still didnt have any answers or a timeline of when my account would be credited. I expressed my frustration with the situation, and emphasized that I dont want to have to pay charges I do not owe in order to avoid penalties, fees, and late payments which would effect my credit. I mentioned to her that perhaps I should involve a XXXX party such as an attorney or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to get results. She empathized and said shes done all she can to help the situation but her powers are limited as a branch XXXX, and ultimately the fraud department needs to resolve this. 

XX/XX/22 - I called the fraud dept and spoke with XXXX from Tennessee. She stated that my claim shows still under investigation and being reviewed. I explained the whole background and situation to her. She stated she sees noted on the account that the matter is to be escalated as of XXXX. It was unclear if this means the issue is due to be resolved. She stated after escalation the credit will be due to appear back on my account within 2-5 business days. She took my phone number and said she could follow up on the status to make sure and call me back in a few days. This left me feeling not confident in the information of pending resolution she just provided. I informed her that such promises have already been made to me and not followed through on, so I have completely lost trust in BOA and promises made. I let her know I will likely be filing a complaint against BOA to assist in resolution. 

To this date I still havent received any letters about my claims, status or decisions made, except for the one letter stating the claim was resolved in my favor. BOA has completely mismanaged the claim from the start and has failed to provide any proper documentation which as a customer I am entitled to.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief