Consumer complaint received 2019-09-12
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: GA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Fee problem

Complaint:
In response to a targeted offer of {$300.00} for opening a Bank of America checking account and making {$4000.00} in " Qualifying Direct Deposits '' in the 90 days following account opening, I opened a Bank of America checking account in XX/XX/2019. My employer then directly deposited amounts totaling {$6500.00} within 30 days after account opening. In XXXX, I called Bank of America and was told that I had met the requirements for the {$300.00} checking bonus and simply needed to wait 60 days to receive the bonus in my account. However, I received no bonus ( and have incurred {$48.00} in monthly maintenance fees since XXXX while I have waited for the bonus to be deposited ). 

At the beginning of XXXX, I contacted Bank of America via phone to remind them to deposit the bonus, and they claimed that the deposits made by my employer did not meet the requirements of the bonus because Bank of America coded the direct deposits as " Online Banking Transfers. '' The offer defined a Qualifying Direct Deposit as " a recurring direct deposit of a paycheck, pension,  Social Security or other eligible regular monthly income, electronically deposited by an employer or an outside agency into your new checking account. '' The offer also provides that " a transfer done via ATM, online, or teller, or a transfer from a bank or brokerage account, Merrill XXXX or Merrill Lynch account is not a Qualifying Direct Deposit. '' The definition of " Qualifying Direct Deposit, '' of course, does not require that the deposits be coded by Bank of America in any particular way. 

The deposits made by my employer were deposits in a series of recurring direct deposits of my paycheck electronically deposited by my employer into my checking account, and thus plainly meet the requirements of the checking bonus. The second portion of the definition of " Qualifying Direct Deposit '' is vague but seems intended to disqualify transfers made by the account holder to game the checking bonus offer system ( e.g., transfers from another bank account or brokerage owned by the account holder ) ; given that all deposits are " [ transfers ] done via ATM, online, or teller or [ transfers ] from a bank or brokerage account, '' this section can't reasonably be construed to disqualify direct deposits done by an employer online from an employer 's bank account, as that would disqualify all transfers and make the offer completely illusory ( arguably to the point of fraud ). 

I followed up with Bank of America on XX/XX/2019, and was told that they would re-review my claim for the second time. On XX/XX/2019, Bank of America cancelled a credit card I held that was attached to a rewards account with points worth upwards of {$500.00}. This seems like a retaliatory action. 

As far as I can tell, the only avenues for relief are a complaint here or a claim in XXXX 's Court.

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