Consumer complaint received 2021-09-14
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: TX
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Virtual currency
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
XX/XX/2021 I was called by a " fraudster banker '' from a Wells Fargo number ( Wells Fargo caller ID, verified number ) saying someone was trying to add themselves as a recipient to my account to wire transfer {$2300.00}, which would drain my account. I was asked for information like account number, PIN, birthdate, last 4 digits of SSN, etc., and I navely gave them the information, as I trusted that I speaking to a real banker. They were sending me verification codes to my phone number from official Wells Fargo SMS messages. They tell me they would have to initiate the transfer in order to open an investigation on the claim. 

XX/XX/2021 I call Wells Fargo to check on the status of the " claim. '' Told by the representative that they have no claim number under the one I was given. We realize then that I was a victim of fraud. Rep now opens a claim, closes my bank account, and opens a new one. Tells me he would contact me with a resolution within 5 business days. 

XX/XX/2021 I call to check on claim status. I am told it was denied and closed the day before, XX/XX/XXXX. I was never called or notified. I ask rep if there is any way to reverse the decision, and she tells me it is possible. Says she would put in a request for the investigator, the original representative from XXXX, to call me back and run through the situation again, and that he should call within 2 business days. I ask if there is anything I could do to help my case. She tells me that in the claim 's notes, it was written that I did not file a police report, and that I should. I WAS NEVER ASKED IF I FILED A POLICE REPORT during that phone call, nor ever advised that I should from the original rep. I realized then that my claim may have already been mishandled by that original representative. 

XX/XX/2021 I call Wells Fargo again, since I never received a call. I am in the process of filing a police report at this point and ask for information about the transfer, such as the recipient 's real name, their bank name, locations, etc., as this is some of what the report asks for. This rep tells me they have no information regarding the transfer. I ask how they have no information, and she tells me their notes only provide details from calls. I realize then that the original rep came up with his resolution with no actual information regarding the transfer. This rep tells me she can put in a request for the investigator to call me back in 2 business days, yet again. I tell her I had already put in a request and was not called back, which was the reason I called that day. She tells me the " notes '' say I was called on XXXX, and I supposedly hung up. I received zero calls before or after I called on XXXX. No calls show up in my phone history, and no voicemail, email, any type of notification was left whatsoever. The rep from XXXX also never mentioned me having been called, so I feel this statement was falsified. Regardless, I still never received a call between my XXXX and XXXX calls. This representative proceeds to put in another request for a call-back. I ask her if I should be receiving the call from the same fraud department number, or if it would be from a different Wells Fargo number. She responds that it would be from the fraud department. 

XX/XX/2021 I get a call from a representative, who was not the original investigator, from a random number from North Carolina. At this point already, I see that Wells Fargo representatives do not even have cohesive answers to my questions, since I was told the day before that I would be called from the fraud department, and I was not. This phone call was just to give me some information about the transfer, like I had asked the day before. I realize then that I was only called because they now had a note that said I was filing a police report, not because I wanted to run through the situation of my claim again. I ask this rep if again, there are any chances I could still get my money back. She tells me Wells Fargo gets XXXX attempts to reverse the transfer, and they have only tried once so far. The original representative denied and closed my case after ONE ATTEMPT. If I had not told these reps that I was filing a police report, this information would not have been relayed to me, and I truly believe the last two attempts would not be made. The representative tells me to just " keep a look out '' to see if the money would appear back in my account; did not say I would be notified of any changes or anything. These Wells Fargo representatives do the least for their customers and leave them in the dust when they need help most. 
I received a letter later that day, denying my claim as I was told stating, " As the money will not be returned from the receiving bank, we are not able to reimburse you. '' This " investigator '' denied and closed my claim with the reasoning of " the money will not be returned from the receiving bank '' after having only tried ONCE out of their three attempts to reverse the transfer. This letter was dated XX/XX/XXXX, but was not sent until XXXX, and I did not receive it until the XXXX ( picture attached. ) There is absolutely no sense of urgency by these bankers about something so time-sensitive and as crucial as this situation. I followed the policy instructions of notifying the bank of situations like this, and they still did the very bare-minimum. There is a complete lack of communication from them with their customers, unless they are made aware that an official report, like my police report, is being filed. 
I have turned in my police report at this point ( XX/XX/XXXX ), and have made a security freeze to my credit file as well, which I also had to find out about on my own, when I wish I had been informed about by the very company I trusted to handle my money. I have no income and have had almost no money for nearly three weeks because I have been getting the run-around by these bankers, and they have completely failed me by not fully attempting to help me get my money back. And there still leaves the question of how this " fraudster banker '' was able to identify that I was a Wells Fargo customer and retrieved my name and contact information, called from a Wells Fargo number, and sent SMS messages from Wells Fargo, if not for a security breech in the Wells Fargo system.

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