Consumer complaint received 2023-02-15
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: FL
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Closing an account
Sub-issue: Can't close your account

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX  ET, I called the Wells Fargo customer service line at XXXX to request closure of 10 of my commercial bank accounts. I spoke with XXXX XXXX who laid out the steps necessary to close them. First she advised me to bring all the accounts to a XXXX balance -- which I did while on the phone with her. She verified that I had done so and said she'd send a secure email to me to reply back with my authorization to close the accounts. I received and replied to her email at XXXXXXXX XXXX ET. That same day I viewed the account status online and realized Wells Fargo had not closed or frozen the accounts. Several new payments were pending and an overdraft deposit had been made to one of the accounts to cover a new charge. Nine of the accounts now had a negative balance. I sent another secure message to XXXX XXXX at XXXX XXXX  alerting her to this and stressing that I never would have XXXX out the accounts if I'd known Wells Fargo would continue accepting payments after my request to close them. I received no response until the following day, XX/XX/XXXX, at XXXX XXXX, when XXXX. XXXX replied that I needed to bring the accounts to a XXXX balance before they could be closed and suggested I contact my " relationship manager ''. I sent an email on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX to XXXX XXXX. ( Business Relationship Support Associate ) and asked for her help. She replied back right away saying that the process could take up to 5 business days. I responded back at XXXXXXXX XXXX the same day stating that I was concerned with this time frame considering Wells Fargo had already allowed payments to post after my request. She replied that I'd need to bring the accounts back to XXXX again! ( by depositing money back into them ) before they could close the accounts. We've had several back and forth exchanges since then and three of the 10 accounts have now been closed, but we're at a standstill with the other seven. Payments and fees continue to post to the accounts, so attaining a XXXX balance is fleeting- and Wells Fargo has been unable to close the accounts at the precise moment they have XXXX balances. My repeated requests to freeze/close the accounts are only met responses about the XXXX balances needed. Every day, including today XX/XX/XXXX, weve had to make additional transfers to zero out the accounts. Wells Fargo refuses to freeze the accounts in the meantime, which is the only way to stop this never ending cycle. I know the bank is capable of freezing accounts because they have done so in the past, when forcing us to open an unnecessary/unused account last year. As of today XX/XX/XXXX over a week since telling Wells Fargo to close the 10 accounts only three have been closed. Of the seven they refuse to close, four of them have been sitting with a XXXX balance for at least one day. The other accounts continue to have payments/fees/deposits post almost daily. My repeated emails have not resulted in any further action other than suggestions to wait for the payments they allowed to post in error and the subsequent overdraft deposits/fees to be reversed. They have also so far charged a net total of {$270.00} to another of our accounts ( business line of credit that we are not closing ) to cover overdraft deposits/fees and a finance charge (? after one day! ). I feel like they are stringing us along in order to squeeze as many last fees out of us as they possibly can. This is after having accounts with them ( or the previous bank they took over, XXXX ) for decades. **Note that I have the last names of the Wells Fargo employees, but removed them from this note for privacy reasons. **

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