Consumer complaint received 2020-02-20
Company: HSBC NORTH AMERICA HOLDINGS INC.
State: FL
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Card was charged for something you did not purchase with the card

Complaint:
My Name is XXXX XXXX and i am filing a complaint Against HSBC BANK USA NA On the month of XX/XX/XXXX i logged into my HSBC BANK USA NA Bank credit card app to view my credit card balance and i saw 3 suspicious transactions that combined make a total amount of {$3100.00} from XXXX XXXX from purchases i did not make. That same month of XX/XX/XXXX HSBC BANK USA NA had sent me a text message to my mobile phone informing me of fraud activity of a purchase made at " XXXX XXXX '' of {$31.00}. 

I panicked and started to look for my HSBC BANK USA NA Credit card to see if i had it in my wallet or at home and i could not find my credit card anywhere. Very worried about the situation that was happening to me i decided to give HSBC BANK USA NA a call and i spoke to an agent from the fraud department and i explained to him that i am seeing charges in my account that i did not make and asked him what is going on?? This Bank is suppose to be a professional and trustworthy bank, why are they charging me for purchases i did not make? 

He proceeded to help me and filed a claim and a few days later i noticed that the amount was not in my account anymore. I felt safe knowing that the bank had taken care of the situation. They sent a new card. Ever since this situation happened i was afraid to even use my New card so up until this day it's been unused. 

This month XX/XX/XXXX I received a phone call from an HSBC agent stating that i needed to make a payment on my account that it was past due. I knew something was wrong because i have not used the card. As i log in i see that the amount of {$3100.00} is back on the account as if a claim had never been done. So i decided to call again and ask what happened to the claim. 

An agent named XXXX id # XXXX, said that they put the charge back on my account because they needed more paperwork. I was very confused because on the first phone call the agent told me that i did not have to worry about anything and that the charge was going to be removed and that my account was going back to normal to XXXX balance. If they needed paperwork, why didn't they tell me on the first phone call or send a letter to my home or email during the week the fraud on my account happened? why did they lie saying that everything is going be ok and back to normal? This is very unprofessional. 

I explained this to XXXX id # XXXX and she said that she couldn't do anything about it and that i needed to file a police report giving them the details of what happened 2 months ago back on XX/XX/XXXX. I asked XXXX id # XXXX why didn't HSBC tell me about the police report when i called the first time in XXXX? Why did HSBC wait 2 months when it was already too late to file a police report?? 

I told XXXX politely to please get a supervisor on the phone and she told me that the supervisor is busy and he will call me back, the supervisor never called me back. 

I called back the next day to speak to the supervisor and they told me it was passed XXXX and that the supervisor went home and that he will give me a call back tomorrow, and again i never received a phone call from the supervisor This month of XXXX " Two months later '' after the incident happened and i was told everything was ok and not told any paperwork was needed, i went to the police station because XXXX id # XXXX told me thats what i needed to do. 

At the police station the policemen told me that it was too late to file a police report because 2 months have past by already and this report needed to be done the first week and that since 2 months have passed by, the criminal might have already fled and cameras have probably gotten reseted by now. 

I got home and decided to inform HSBC BANK USA NA about what the policemen told me at the police station. I called the bank and spoke to an agent named " XXXX '' and he said that he still couldn't do anything with out any paperwork, that a supervisor was going to call me back, and " AGAIN '' no supervisor called me back. 

On Tuesday XX/XX/XXXX i was traveling out of state and i called early in the morning and asked to speak to a supervisor, and again none was available so i told them please tell the supervisor to give me a call before i get on the flight, to call me before XXXX they said ok, and the supervisor again did not call me back, again very unprofessional. 

I called again on Wednesday XX/XX/XXXX and spoke to an agent and told him I've called many times this past week and begged him to please get a supervisor on the phone, he made me explain the whole situation to him again and then did a verification process and texted me a code to my phone to verify that it was me. After that he put me on hold and i waited 15 minutes to " FINALLY '' speak to a supervisor. 

The supervisor 's name was " XXXX XXXX '' he said he could not provide me with an id number but only his full name and that i would be able to find him with this name only, and no id number was needed. 

I explained the whole situation to the supervisor and he told that me that he still needs a report to complete the process, i explained to him what the policemen had told me at the police station and he still did not want to help me. I also told him that HSBC should have mentioned this police report the first day we spoke on the phone and not lie to me and say that everything was going to be ok and back to normal. 

I am 2 months pregnant and i also suffer from anxiety and panic attacks, i work a full time job and i am a mother of a XXXX year old child and i also provide care for my nephew and niece it is really hard for me to get out of the house and make trips to the police station which is miles away. I have been very compliant with HSBC BANK USA NA and they have wasted my time and are still charging me for something i did not do. 

I read that as an HSBC customer, I am automatically enrolled in their Fraud Alert program which states that i am protected under their " Zero Liability '' Policy unauthorized transactions. Their website also states the following statement : " Have peace of mind knowing that HSBC Bank USA, N.A. won't hold you responsible for unauthorized transactions. As an HSBC Debit or Credit cardholder, Zero Liability applies to your purchases made with your U.S.-issued Debit or Credit card in the store, over the telephone, online, or via a mobile device. As a cardholder, you will not be held responsible for unauthorized transactions if : 1. You have used reasonable care in protecting your card from loss or theft ; and 2. You have promptly reported to HSBC Bank USA, N.A. when you knew that your HSBC Debit or Credit card was lost or stolen. If you believe there has been unauthorized use on your account and you meet the conditions above, rest easy knowing you have the protection of the Zero Liability promise. To learn more about additional protections with respect to unauthorized transactions, please contact HSBC by calling the number on the back of your card. Zero Liability does not apply to the following ( or certain ) Mastercard payment cards : Commercial cards, unregistered prepaid cards or gift cards. '' Nowhere on the website does it say i need paperwork to be protected.

the terms also state that they would monitor my account 24/7 and send me text messages of fraud alerts, and the never sent me notifications for the 3 XXXX XXXX transactions, they only sent me a text message notification for a XXXX transaction. 

You can read their Fraud Alert & Detection terms and policy on their website, which i have copied and pasted below : https : //www.us.hsbc.com/credit-cards/fraud-alert/ I will also attach screenshots of their policy. 

I think HSBC Bank USA, N.A was being really shady, and tricked me into believing everything was ok, and than put the charge back on the account 2 months later knowing the police were not going to help me, forcing me to having to pay the balance so i would protect my credit history and not damage my credit score. If this is so they are in for a big trouble i am in the middle of buying a house and I am also worried that HSBC Bank USA, N.A will damage my excellent credit report, which will require me to make strong legal actions against the company.

My lawyer has advised me to take HSBC BANK USA NA to small claims court but i strongly believe that there can be a better solution to this. 

This whole process has been affecting my mental stability and i am concerned for my health. 

Please help me by finding a solution for this matter.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation