Consumer complaint received 2020-06-25
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: NC
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Opening an account
Sub-issue: Unable to open an account

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2020, my former employer terminated my position at the company. In late XXXX or early XXXX, I re-opened my XXXX account in order to search for employment. On XX/XX/XXXX, a XXXX XXXX emailed me and stated he found my resume on XXXX. And that he was with XXXX XXXX XXXX, and that they were interested in my resume. Well since I had been on XXXX and had applied for XXXX XXXX positions I was initially excited about the idea that XXXX responded to me. Therefore I replied back to him with my own expressed interest in the job. On XX/XX/XXXX or XXXX, a XXXX XXXX contacted me via XXXX XXXX to interview me. Initially I was absolutely leery about being interviewed via a Chat. However, I recalled that my previous employer hired me after having interviewed me at a bar in XXXX North Carolina. At that interview were the President,  the VP and the Marketing Manager ( now the Ops Mngr. ). I thought, " This must be a new innovative process using multiple options for interviewing nowadays. '' Later in the interview XXXX hired me and told me that due to the position being a Work-From-Home I should expect to receive a Start-Up Check to provide for the home office. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received the check, followed their instructions, then went to deposit the check into my account. Now when I saw the amount of the check I was also leery because even for me I can set up a home office with a lot less money. But then I thought they would just have me return any residual back to the company. When I entered Bank of America I asked the XXXX  Female Representative to take a look at the check to see if it was real? She looked at it and said, " It looks fine just go over there and give it to the Teller. '' And I even expressed to the Teller my concerns. She then did something and told me, " Well it went through so. '' I said okay and exited the bank. It was not until their next request of me that I immediately knew something was wrong and that was when they instructed me to purchase some card in order to set up the Team Meeting with them online. I then sent them a Chat letting them know I now believe they are a fraud. And they immediately stopped responding. At that point I called BOfA to try to tell them that I believed I had just been scammed and to please stop that check. They did an internal investigation, learned the check was fraudulent, then closed my account and reported to XXXX that I was a fraud. I am NOT a fraud. This has totally ruined me. The bank where I had my primary accounts, XXXX XXXX, received the XXXX report, and they even immediately closed all of my accounts. I am devastated. I gave BOfA the email, the chat, the XXXX  package copies, etc. The information I provided to them should have let them know I did not do this thing. One of the managers at BOfA told me they were not going to re-open my account because the bank now sees me as a naive new customer. I am not naive. That is not normally a part of my character. For me I was desperate to become re-employed because I am alone in my life. There is no one to pick up the slack when I am unemployed. And when they told my I would be paid XXXX XXXX/hour that was a plus. Listen, I was scammed. I even hired XXXX XXXX to try to see where the scam originated but I could no longer afford to pay the investigator. Bank of America 's report to XXXX does not represent me and my character. They have caused such harmful damage to me that I am completely devastated. In XXXX, after I lost my employment I began working with the three Credit Bureaus to enhance and build my credit, and now this. Bank of America made an impulsive and wrong decision to close my account with them, then report a libelous claim to XXXX which in turn caused my other accounts to close. I am extremely devastated. I would like to request that the bank retract their report against me, and I would like to request that XXXX remove fraud from my consumer report and I would like for XXXX XXXX to either re-open my checking account with the origination date.

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