Consumer complaint received 2018-06-26
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: CT
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account
Sub-issue: Money was taken from your account on the wrong day or for the wrong amount

Complaint:
I live in XXXX XXXX, XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX I traveled to XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX for a business meeting. I stayed overnight in a hotel. That night, I took what I thought was a cab home, only to find out the next day that the card charging device that I thought I used to pay for my ride was actually a skimming device that stole all my banking information. I woke up the next morning to a bunch of calls and text from Bank of America asking if I were responsible for the withdrawal attempts that had occurred in the early hours of XX/XX/XXXX or if they were fraudulent. As soon as I saw these calls/texts I responded denying all the withdrawals and began working with the fraud department to freeze my accounts and protect my money. The entire time I was dealing with the fraud reps they were reassuring me that I had 100 % guaranteed protection meaning that I would be reimbursed for any money stolen. While it was my checking account information that they stole initially, they were able to somehow access my savings account information as well and transferred money over to the checking account so that it could be withdrawn. I regrettably punched my pin number into the device the night of the incident which likely helped them do this. When I was on the phone with one of the fraud reps the morning of XX/XX/XXXX, they said they had actually just talked to someone claiming to be me using a voice-changing device trying to get BOA to unfreeze my account and approve the withdrawals. Ultimately, the thief was able to get {$7500.00} in total from my accounts. Since I had to get back to Connecticut for a business meeting the following day, I was unable to file a police report and didn't think I could provide them with a ton of valuable information anyways other than the color of the car and a physical description of the driver ( in XXXX this wouldnt have accomplished much ). I tried to file a report over the phone weeks later but they said they were unable to do that over the phone. I tried to begin the claims process from a local banking location that Saturday XX/XX/XXXX but was unable to get through to the claims department to the surprise of the local banking rep. I went back into a local BOA location on Monday to open a claim. I explained my situation in thorough detail to the local rep and the claim rep that was on the phone in hopes of leaving no room for misinterpretation - all the while feeling like this was just a formality since I was clearly a victim of fraud and had been reassured continuously that I was 100 % protected. Not to mention they have all the recorded calls that detail the sequence of events and the different conversations held between myself and the fraud department and the thief and the fraud department ( for which they used a voice changing device as noted earlier ). BOA then reviewed my claim and determined that there was no fraud committed because they said I approved the charges! That's right, even though I had several conversations with multiple fraud reps and vehemently denied the charges/withdrawals during every conversation, they had one conversation on record that approved the charges and that was the one where the person claiming to be me was using a voice changing device. In my mind this was absurdly unjust for BOA to use this as a reason to deny my claim when it was clearly an attempt for them to get out of reimbursing me for the {$7500.00}. So I go back into the local bank to start the appeal process and figure out how they possibly denied it the first time. The bank rep had me hand write a message clarifying the voice-changing situation ( even though this should have been obvious to them ) and reaffirming that I never approved any of the charges. We then faxed the letter to the claim department. The banking rep assured me that my case was now air tight and I should have no further problems. After their 30-45 day review period they denied my claim again this time saying that because I hadn't given the perpetrator my pin number that this was the only way they could have stolen the money in the fashion that they did and therefore I must have been the one behind all of this. So now they were essentially saying that I was committing banking fraud. I was infuriated to say the least. Especially because I had already stated that I punched my pin number into the device that ultimately stole my information. So I go back to my local bank once again. This time they tell me to provide as much information as possible defending how I couldn't have been the one who was responsible for this. To me this was completely ridiculous that they were now putting the burden of proof on me. Especially because I've been an exemplary customer ever since I've been with BOA. I'm a preferred customer. I have a great credit score for a XXXX year old. I have multiple accounts with them and always have sufficient funds in each of them. I have great payment history. I work for XXXX XXXX XXXX I would NEVER commit banking fraud! So I give the claims rep a ton of additional information supporting why this was a fraud incident that I was the victim of. A lot of that supporting information I have already discussed in this complaint. I also typed up a document describing everything we had discussed and faxed it to the claim department so that they could add it to my file. I was really hoping that this would eliminate any chance for miscommunication or misunderstanding and that they would finally approve my claim request. The claim reps that I spoke with over the phone all said that I had a very strong case and that they thought it would get approved. After another 30-45 days or so BOA denied my claim for the third time this time saying that the perpetrator would have needed to have my verbal passcode and therefore I must have been the one responsible for the transaction and no true fraud was committed. I didn't even know I had a verbal passcode at the time of the incident. It might have been the same as my pin number, I don't know. What I do know is that by running my debit card through a skimming device and getting me to enter my pin number, the perpetrator was able to access my checking and savings account and ultimately stole {$7500.00}. Bank of America is denying this happened and it couldn't be more egregious. They are clearly trying to use any excuse possible not to reimburse me when anyone in their right mind can see that I am victim here. Friends, family and coworkers that I have discussed my situation with are all very confused at how BOA could possibly deny my claim. A lot of them have shared terrible experiences that they have had with BOA and poor experiences that they have heard of from others. I'm prepared to take legal action if I need to but I figured reaching out to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was a better first step. I don't know if I've ever been more frustrated with something in my life. I worked my tail off to get to where I am and at the age of XXXX, {$7500.00} is A LOT of money. Especially as I prepare to buy a house and start a family. Please help me get my hard earned money back. Below I will include the letter that I typed up and faxed to the BOA claim department so that it was added to my file. I called the following day and confirmed that it was received and added to my file. 

Claim Number : XXXX Customer Name : XXXX XXXX Last 4 Digits of the Compromised Account : XXXX Notes for Reopened Claim Review Im including this letter detailing some of the pertinent information surrounding my fraud claim so that there is as little room for miscommunication or misunderstanding as possible. I have been over all of this with multiple claim reps who have added notes to my claim file, but would also like a version that is in my own words so that I can be as clear as possible. 
1 ) By punching my pin number into the scanner that I believed was lawfully charging my debit card, the fraudulent offender was able to use this information along with other banking information extracted through the skimming device to gain access to my checking and savings account.

2 ) This incident occurred very early in the morning of XX/XX/XXXX when the thief who posed as a cab driver was giving me a ride back to my hotel room. As soon as I woke up the next morning and saw the missed calls, voicemails, and text messages from Bank of America, I immediately responded in an attempt to deny all charges and freeze all my accounts. I was as responsive and cooperative as possible as I worked with multiple fraud reps to try and resolve the situation. I had business meetings the afternoon of XX/XX/XXXX and all day XX/XX/XXXX. I tried to start the claim process on Saturday morning of XX/XX/XXXX. I went to a local banking center in XXXX XXXX, XXXX where I opened up new checking and savings accounts. The banking rep there tried to help me get in touch with the claim department but we were unable to reach anyone. I then had to wait until Monday XX/XX/XXXX to officially begin the claims process. 
3 ) Ive been an upstanding client of Bank of America since XXXX with multiple accounts and a credit card. I have a great credit history and have never missed a payment. Ive been labeled as a preferred customer. My transfers, withdrawals, and payments all follow a similar pattern as I try to manage my finances as responsibly as possible. The fraudulent charges to a third party vendor name XXXX do not fit the pattern Ive demonstrated whatsoever. If you are having doubts about the validity of my claim then I would encourage you to reach out to XXXX and see if they can provide information on the person who is responsible for the transaction, at which point you will see they do not fit my description. 
4 ) Ive been an employee for XXXX XXXX XXXX for more than 5 years and plan on spending the rest of my career here. I would in no way ever do anything to jeopardize my career. Certainly not banking fraud as implied in your previous claim denial. 
5 ) My paychecks from XXXX are directly deposited into the checking account that was hacked. I would never jeopardize an account that is directly tied to the basis for my livelihood. 
6 ) Before the fraudulent activity began I had roughly {$290.00} in my checking account. Once that account was comprised, I believe the perpetrator tried to over-withdraw to get more money than what was available. Then they transferred {$11000.00} from my checking to my savings account so that they could try to get even more money. If this was something I was involved in, wouldnt it have made sense to transfer that funds days in advance so that the money could have been withdrawn from the checking account much quicker? This is another strong indication that this was a criminal completing fraudulent charges. 
7 ) Once I was informed by a local banking rep that it would may help my case to file a police report, I called up the XXXX police precinct I believed could help me. This was roughly 3 weeks after the incident. They told me that I could not file a police report over the phone. They said that it would also be difficult to do anything because the incident happened 3 weeks ago. They said that since the charges were made from XXXX that they werent certain of whose jurisdiction it would fall under. Since I live and work in XXXX, it is very difficult to find time to travel to XXXX especially when it did not sound promising between the jurisdictional issues and the fact that I had limited information about the suspect. I knew that what she looked like and that she drove a yellow car, but did not get license plate. 
8 ) The first fraudulent charge on my account was {$10.00} for fuel at a gas station in XXXX. I was never in XXXX, nor did I have my car with me. I took the train into XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX for a business meeting and therefore could not have been responsible for this. The other three {$2500.00} fraudulent charges were also conducted in XXXX. I purchased my round-trip train ticket on my corporate credit card on XX/XX/XXXX and can provide proof of this purchase. I have included a copy of my statement and circled the relevant charge titled XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX for {$35.00}. 
9 ) I believe I have done nothing other than act as a model customer for Bank of America. I will be a home-buyer in the near future and want to be able to consider BOA for my mortgage. I dont want to be forced to move all of my money to another bank and close my credit card. I dont want to advise all of my clients that are construction business owners not to open any BLOCs with Bank of America. I dont want to advise them never to issue a business or residential mortgage through Bank of America. I dont want to reach out to the XXXX State Department of Consumer Protection to make them aware of any injustices or mishandlings. I dont want to hire legal counsel to make sure I reclaim the money that was stolen from me or the investment interest Ive missed out on up until now and into the future. I dont want to reach out to my contacts at XXXX news and share with them my experience. I dont want to do any of this but I am fully prepared to do all of it. I ask that you please review all of the information in my case closely so you can see the undisputed validity in my claim.

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