Consumer complaint received 2022-05-02
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: NY
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Unauthorized transactions or other transaction problem

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX I sent a payment of {$950.00} intended for XXXX XXXX. We had made several transactions in the past and I had his information saved in the XXXX console of my Chase XXXX XXXX. 

Soon after I told him I made the payment and sent a screenshot, he informed me that his phone number had changed. We had a video call where he further explained that the new owner of his number had not been cooperative when he needed simple things such as one time passwords that were automatically sent to that number. 

I called and texted the number after we hung up, to no avail. In fact it seems my cell has been blocked by the number ( XXXX ) or it has since been disconnected. Immediately after my conversation and texts with XXXX, I called Chase Claims to inform them of the payment, to see if it could be reversed or redirected. 

They said within minutes the payment had gone through, so it looked like the recipient had XXXX set up with their bank, but that a claim could be put in and that Chase would contact the bank of the recipient. I complied and provided them with the information requested. 

When I came to understand that the claim was denied by the back office, I thought there may be some misunderstanding because I had started the claim over the phone in a state of duress. At that point they said I could provide additional information or documents that could be used to re-open the claim. I wished that I had been given that opportunity at the outset, but I complied, compiling my texts with XXXX and screenshots into a letter. I also asked XXXX to send a fax to the claims department. 

In the meantime while I awaited the re-opening of the claim, in my back and forth with XXXX we tried to establish the identity of the recipient, and after some online searching I found the recipient of the funds may be this individual : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX IL, XXXX But this may have been just one past user of the phone number and these online white pages services sometimes have incorrect or out-of-date information. It is puzzling to both me and XXXX that the recipient on my Chase application was noted as " XXXX XXXX, Registered as XXXX, but when I asked Chase who the actual recipient was or what their bank was, they said they could not disclose any of this information. 

In conversation with the Chase claims department, I asked what recourse I had at this point, given that I could not direct any lawsuit towards the individual who had my money as I did not know their identity, and they said I could file a police report. Given that I do not have access to the recipient 's information, I don't know how far the XXXX can go with trying to recover my money. I don't even know if the XXXX is going to call Chase about this. 

I did some further research online and found that I may be able to receive my money back from Chase under Regulation E of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act. I am filing this complaint hoping it may be a first step in finding some resolution with my bank, not having the financial wherewithal to hire legal representation. Please let me know if the CFPB can help here and if so, whatever further information I can provide.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation