Consumer complaint received 2018-09-28
Company: WESTERN UNION COMPANY, THE
State: TX
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Money order
Issue: Problem with customer service

Complaint:
Company 's Response to complaint XXXX XXXX XXXX Reference # XXXX : Dear XXXX XXXX, Western Union is writing in response to the complaint received from you through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) portal. In your complaint, you indicated that you experienced difficulties with getting a refund for a lost money order that was later found and reported to Western Union. You are requesting for a full refund plus a refund of your processing fee. Western Union has conducted an investigation concerning Western Union Money Order Number XXXX : Western Union confirms that this Money Order was purchased on XX/XX/XXXX, in the amount of {$300.00}. On XX/XX/XXXX, Western Union was in receipt of your tracer request. Western Union confirmed that this Money Order was purchased on XX/XX/XXXX and was presented for payment on XX/XX/XXXX. Western Union sent you a photocopy of the presented Money Order on XX/XX/XXXX. Please know the even though this item was presented for payment, it was returned as Abandoned property meaning the Money Order was never cashed. Please know that this Money Order originally was for {$300.00}, however Western Union Service Fees were applied, and the money order depreciated to {$270.00}. The service fee statement is printed on the back of every Western Union Money Order sold. It is applied after one year, if the Money Order has not been presented for payment within one year of the purchase date. Please also know that the above referenced Money Order has already fully escheated to the state because of it becoming an abandoned property. In order for you to claim escheated funds back, we would require the original Money Order to be returned to us. Until the original Money Order is received, Western Union is not able to reclaim funds from the state. Western Union encourages you to resubmit your claim including the original Money Order ( s ) to the following address : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ATTN : Retail Money Orders department XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX , CO XXXX On XX/XX/XXXX, Western Union processed a refund of your {$15.00} processing back to you via check # XXXX. The check was mailed to you at the below address : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX # XXXX XXXX, TX XXXX Please allow up to 10 business days to receive the refund check vis USPS. Western Union considers this case closed. If you should have any additional questions or concerns, please contact our Corporate Headquarters at XXXX, and provide the Western Union Reference # XXXX. You may also email us at XXXX. Sincerely, The Western Union Executive Resolutions Specialist Feedback provided STATUS Feedback provided on XX/XX/XXXX Your feedback THE COMPANYS RESPONSE ADDRESSED ALL OF MY ISSUES No ADDITIONAL COMMENTS This is not a satisfactory solution to the issue. They are asking for the return of the original money order but we provided them with a LEGAL COPY of the original provided by XXXXXXXX XXXX. Western Union asked that we send the ORIGINAL document from XXXX to them and XXXX stated that they can not redeposit without the original " LEGAL COPY '' which Western Union has. I doubt we can get the original money order from XXXX so this is a never ending circle. The fact remains that Western Union has failed to resolve this issue. I UNDERSTAND THE COMPANYS RESPONSE TO MY COMPLAINT : No ADDITIONAL COMMENTS We need Western Union to issue a new money order in the full amount as a refund. They are holding our money hostage and hiding behind ambiguous policies that they are in a position to over ride. It may " only '' be {$300.00} but I do not appreciate being strong armed robbed by an institution that is supposed to be trusted and have integrity after years of business. Thank goodness for XXXX XXXX and XXXX and XXXX so that we no longer rely on Western Union to transfer money, I will never use their services again. This is NOT OVER THIS IS NOT RESOLVED THE COMPANY DID WHAT THEY SAID THEY WOULD DO WITH MY COMPLAINT No ADDITIONAL COMMENTS We do not have access to the original money order, it was deposited into XXXX XXXX. XXXX then issued a LEGAL COPY that could have been redeposited but Western Union requested that we send in that original Legal Copy so we also no longer have that. Now, to add insult to injury, Western Union is stating that the funds have " Please also know that the above referenced Money Order has already fully escheated to the state because of it becoming an abandoned property. In order for you to claim escheated funds back, we would require the original Money Order to be returned to us. Until the original Money Order is received, Western Union is not able to reclaim funds from the state. '' First of all, if that is the case, that the funds were escheated to the state then why did they not tell us that when we first called customer service at Western Union to find out how to get a refund? Furthermore, it is not our responsibility at this point to obtain the original money order when we sent the original LEGAL COPY from XXXXXXXX XXXX. We can involve XXXXXXXX XXXX  but they may not have the original any longer either since it was returned unpaid.

Western Union has taken part of the {$300.00} and then sent it to the state as unclaimed ( supposedly ) and have not given us one piece of information to help us locate and claim the funds. So now I don't know if XXXX XXXX is robbing us or the XXXX. What I do know is that I paid real money for a piece of paper that I trusted would remain valuable as it was promised and presented to be. I have missed time from work to go to the bank about this and now on my time off work I am spending time working to get this resolved. 

THIS ISSUE IS NOT RESOLVED. Although it is a small amount of money, it is the principle of it and the trust that is supposed to be a given in a capitalist environment. I will take this to the new, to social media and even small claims court if I do not get satisfaction. 

GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation