Consumer complaint received 2021-12-16
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
State: MA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Savings account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account
Sub-issue: Transaction was not authorized

Complaint:
Citizens Bank has taken {$8800.00} from my individual savings account without authorization or explanation. The banks actions are unethical and illegal. Citizens Bank unauthorized taking stealing of my {$8800.00} is antithetical to the banks stated policies, the history of the account, and legitimate banking practices. 

Though I have been a loyal Citizens Bank customer for many years, I believe Citizens Bank is emboldened to take my money because they assume I do not have the means or education to fight a large national bank. Citizens Bank can see that I am the sole account holder without a lot of money in the bank. I am a single mother of XXXX in XXXX, MA working to support and educate my children. The money in my bank account is hard-earned and arduously saved. 

Citizens taking of my money has significantly impacted me and my family. I have lost significant work and family time in trying to resolve this issue with the bank. It has caused great XXXX XXXX impacting our holiday season, and placed tremendous financiaXXXX XXXX  upon me, with college tuition due for the upcoming semester beginning XX/XX/XXXX. 

I have made multiple attempts to resolve this situation with Citizens Bank, both via phone and in-person. Despite this, I have no indication that Citizens Bank is taking any action or has any intent to return the {$8800.00} they have wrongly taken from my account. 

On Tuesday evening XX/XX/XXXX, I discovered a withdrawal of {$8800.00} from my individual Citizens Bank savings account. Since I did not make the withdrawal, I followed the procedure Citizens outlined and immediately called XXXX to report this withdrawal as fraudulent. 

The Citizens Bank representative, XXXX, said the {$8800.00} withdrawal from my savings account on XX/XX/XXXX was made by Citizens Bank to bring my adult son, XXXX ', overdrawn student checking account to a XXXX balance. There was a mobile deposit of {$9000.00} made to XXXX student checking account on XX/XX/XXXX, overdrawing XXXX account by {$8800.00}. On XX/XX/XXXX, the bank, without authorization or notification, withdrew {$8800.00} ( {$8800.00} + {$20.00} returned check fee ) from my individual unassociated savings account. 

My savings account has no association with XXXX account. There is no overdraft on either account. XXXX didnt know the bank withdrew the funds from my account without my authorization, or why they allowed an {$8800.00} overdraft on a student checking account that does not have overdraft. He stated it was because the check was deposited via mobile banking into XXXX account and noted that XXXX opened a fraud claim associated with the mobile deposit and withdrawal of funds from his account. XXXX account and claim are entirely separate from my savings account and have nothing to do with me and my bank account. I asked to speak with a supervisor. After some time on hold, my call was disconnected. 

The following morning, Wednesday XX/XX/XXXX, I visited the Citizens Bank branch at XXXX XXXX XXXX and requested to speak with the branch manager. I was told the manager was out, but met with XXXX XXXX He could not determine why {$8800.00} was withdrawn from my unassociated savings account. XXXX placed an internal call & was told that the funds were withdrawn from my savings account because XXXX student checking account is a joint account. 

XXXX student checking is not a joint account. It was opened individually, in XXXX name, under his social security number. He is listed as the customer, with all of the account services. According to Citizens Bank Personal Deposit Account Agreement, when an account is joint, each person will have equal authority and rights regarding the account ( page 18 ). I do not have equal authority and rights over XXXX account ; he has account services : ATM card, checks, etc. As I have been told numerous times in the past by Citizens Bank, and just last week by both XXXX and XXXX, I do not even have the authority to remove my name. Correspondence regarding XXXX account overdraft has been sent to XXXX ; the fraud claim is with XXXX. I had no notice of the fraud claim or the {$8800.00} withdrawal from my savings account & subsequent deposit of those funds into his account. Clearly, I do not have ownership or authority over XXXX account. 

XXXX suggested that I wait for the fraud claim on XXXX account to be investigated. This is unacceptable. XXXX account and claim have no bearing on me or my savings account. I need my funds restored to my account so that I can pay my childrens college tuition for the upcoming semester beginning XX/XX/XXXX. 

I located the original folder and paperwork associated with XXXX account opening on XX/XX/XXXX. This account paperwork identifies XXXX as the customer ( a customer whose account we opened in that particular state or region page 2 ). It shows him as the owner and indicates all account services ( ATM, online banking & bill pay, checks ) are in XXXX name. I permitted XXXX to open his account, but I do not have any account services, as indicated on the Account Services Summary of XX/XX/XXXX. 

On Monday morning, XX/XX/XXXX, with this paperwork in hand, I visited the Citizens Bank branch at XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, where I met with XXXX XXXX, the branch manager. She also could not explain why the funds were withdrawn from my individual savings account. She called an internal assistance line. The woman with whom XXXX XXXX spoke could not explain why the funds were withdrawn from my account. There was no note on file in my account regarding a fraud claim in XXXX account. When XXXX XXXX mentioned that to her, the representative looked into XXXX account, could see a claim, and contacted the Fraud Department for rationale as to why money was withdrawn from my account. No one was available who could explain, so she sent an email requesting an explanation as to why {$8800.00} was withdrawn from my individual savings account. 

At close of business on XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call back from XXXX XXXX, who told me that the Citizens Bank Fraud Department reported that they took {$8800.00} from my account because I signed with him in XXXX when XXXX opened the account at XXXX years old. I did give permission for XXXX to open the account in XXXX, an account that by design XXXX could not overdraw. He could not access money that he did not have in the account. 

If you dont have sufficient available funds in your student checking account to cover a transaction, it will be declined and, in the case of checks, bill payments and ACH transactions, the item will be returned unpaid. ( https : //www.citizensbank.com/checking/student-checking.aspx ) XXXX account does not have overdraft. It should not permit overdraft. I did not authorize overdraft for his student checking account from my account, yet the bank manager reports that the funds were removed from my account, to cover the overdrawn balance in XXXX account. 

XXXX account has never operated this way in regard to overdraft. 

XXXX overdrew his account on two occasions in XXXX, XXXX ; two occasions in XXXX, XXXX ; again in XX/XX/XXXX, and in XX/XX/XXXX but at no time did the bank cover these items from my account. 

This instance is the very first time since the account opening in XXXX of XXXX that Citizens Bank is treating an overdraft on XXXX account in this way. On XX/XX/XXXX XXXX overdrew his account in a similar scenario, in which there was a {$1000.00} deposit made that had not cleared. The bank did not release the funds. 

Yet, in this case, Citizens Bank withdrew funds without authorization or precedent from my savings account, and even charged me a returned item fee for a check deposited into an account I do not own. Overdraft fees and Returned Item Fees are not charged on Student Checking Accounts. This statement is visible in the included overdraft notices. 

Even though XXXX account has never operated this way in regard to overdraft, Citizens Bank does not have a rationale for why money was withdrawn from my savings account without authorization. Each person Ive spoken to at the bank has offered a potential explanation, none of which can be supported by the history of XXXX account, or legitimate banking practices. 

I can only conclude Citizens Bank made an error in disbursing funds which were not available from a student checking account without overdraft, and then recouped the funds by withdrawing funds from my unassociated account. This is wrong. But despite a phone session and two in-person meetings, I have no indication that anyone at the bank is taking any action, or has any intent, to return the money that was wrongly, and without authorization, taken from my account. Citizens Bank actions are unethical, illegal and stand in defiance of legitimate banking practices.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation