Consumer complaint received 2018-10-12
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: MA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account
Sub-issue: Transaction was not authorized

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX I had originally deposited a check worth {$490.00} into my Wells Fargo checking account via mobile deposit. After depositing the check, I had made sure it cleared before disposing of it. Someone had stolen the check out of the garbage and had re-negotiated it 4 months later on XX/XX/XXXX at a Wells Fargo branch I believe to be in Oregon. Wells Fargo would not allow me to get any of this information regarding this transaction. Subsequently, Wells Fargo DID NOT ask for verification to deposit the check which concerns me due to it being written out in my name and having had my signature written on the back as well. In addition, the check was a personal one written out to me from a previous employer whom decided to pay me before the scheduled pay period ended due to me moving from Oregon down to California. 

With the check being a personal one, as well as coming from XXXX XXXX, it says in their policy that personal checks are voided after 90 days, but then Wells Fargo ALLOWED a check which was not for the individual whom had stolen it was negotiating to be cashed or deposited. When I had originally mobile deposited the check, the funds were available to me on the XXXX of XXXX, which since then I have used all of it for moving fees and such. On XX/XX/XXXX as well, I received a notification from Wells Fargo that my account had been over-drafted as well as the balance has reached XXXX  or below XXXX. I checked my mobile app to see what was wrong with my account, and on the transactions tab, it stated that a check had been posted twice ( deposited twice ). So in response to that, Wells Fargo had debited my account for {$490.00} without even sending me an email or given me a call regarding this transaction. I had checked my balance 2 days prior and the funds that I had originally in the account before this fraudulent action had happened were still there, amounting to {$45.00}. 

Right after seeing the balance of my account, I called Wells Fargo to see what was going on. They then went and opened a case on my account to investigate the situation and to find more information out. Over the course of 3 weeks, I have had multiple cases open for both Fraud & Lost/Stolen actions happening to my account as well as putting a freeze on it so no other transactions can happen. In addition, I have been getting calls nonstop for the first two weeks since the incident regarding that I need to pay back my over-drafted account from their collections department. With that also, trying to get any information regarding this and what is happening to my account has been the most difficult things I have ever had to do. I had been tossed around to more than 5 different departments, spoken to at least 9 or 10 different employees of Wells Fargo, and NONE of them have been able to try and help me, give me a straight answer, or accommodate me in this particular dilemma. Anything close to a clear response was that they had told me it is my responsibility to figure it out, and to call my old employer so that they can file a fraud claim through their bank on the check that they had written out to me and was wrongfully negotiated. My concerns with this as well is because I called him and asked him if he could do that, which he has done, and he had spoken to his bank and they have been investigating. What he had told me, looking at his account at XXXX was that there has been no fraudulent activity on his bank account either. So basically I am caught in a bind where Wells Fargo is telling me I am to blame for this and that I need to somehow pay the money back to the previous balance so that I do not receive any negative debts if they were to close the account themselves. 

It has been frustrating because the employees have started be very irritable and not helpful with us ( My wife has been trying to help me ),  especially when we are calling to see what they are doing to try and fix this and if it will be resolved sometime soon. We are young, and in our early 20s and need this account to be up and running because it has put us both in an unfortunate financial situation. We are running out of options/ideas on what we can do so that this can be fixed, and even went on to seek legal council for what type of actions we should do or take, due to Wells Fargo not cooperating with us.

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 explanation