Consumer complaint received 2023-11-04
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: WA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Banking errors

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX An ACH with the title XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX in the amount of {$570.00} was withdrawn from our checking account. 

Our bookkeeper is in 2 days per week and we look at this account about 3 times per week. This withdrawal was discovered less than 48 hours after it happened. 

I reported it and was told that it had t be turned in within 24 hours or a " stop payment '' to be done. 

My reaction was How would I do that if I was unaware and that that 24 hours is NOT a reasonable expectation of discovery. I had told Wells Fargo that I had also tried to contact XXXX  XXXX, whom would NOT speak to me as I was NOT a customer. So I filed a formal complaint as instructed. 

Original Claim filed XX/XX/XXXX NOTES on File : XXXX XXXX can not provide any information regarding this claim Contacted on XX/XX/XXXX within 48 hours of charge Contact XXXX  XXXX and they could not tell me anything or numbers to match WE did not initiate or authorize this charge. 

I waited 7 business days and then a Call placed : XX/XX/XXXX ( XXXX then XXXX at XXXX XXXX escalating up the chain. 
Was told I had to deny before charge went thruHow can I do that if I knew nothing of the charge Yet she assured me that it would be taken care of and a serious matter as we are " Valued Customers '' and it should be cleared up within 10 days. Here is my Reference # XXXX Claim number They told me they had investigated back to XX/XX/XXXX verifying this vendor had NEVER been used by our business before and the gal than admitted that " maybe a typo and they will continue to investigate '' I questioned her as to what this meant and that it was a recorded call and that I would like to be moved to the next level up. I was on this chain of calls for a total of 57 minutes and then when they got me to the last person who asked again for the 4th time after explaining to the last 3 people ; he put me on hold and then the line disconnected. 

Out of pure frustration, I again called XXXX XXXX Dispute line and was on HOLD XXXX min xfer to Business Department to NO Avail ... I was ran through the calling tree and without being a banking customer was NEVER able to get a live person. 

I waited a couple days, hoping that Wells Fargo would at least attempt to contact me. 

On XX/XX/XXXX attempted another call and again went through the phone chain and this time they created a client care ticket number # XXXX to get a response which could take up to 120 days. However, this person suggested that I " close '' and reopen my account so this does not happen again ... ..I was enraged by this statement and actually considered closing it permanently. However, the inconvenience of this with a small business and running and operating that would be very difficult with current resources and staff. 

I then placed another call : XX/XX/XXXX for a status update, as I had heard nothing to date. They said they tried to call and I had NO RECORD on my phone of a missed call from either Wells Fargo or an unknown XXXX number since my last communication. I spoke to XXXX, who sent me to claims specialist.Reggie and he recorded my issue and assured me someone would be in contact with me. 


Hearing nothing by XX/XX/XXXX, I placed another call and spoke to XXXXThank You for being a valued client and I told her that " NO MESSAGE WAS EVER LEFT '' and she sent me to XXXX ; the Customer Advocacy Team and he filed a Complaint Department Form filled out and that it would be dealt with in 2 biz days... 

REPEAT of Previous and I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING .... 

So I contacted them again to get a " Claim Update '' ... .3 days later ( 1 day after they said it would be dealt with and XXXX assured me that it was being worked on today and contacting the other bank and I again provided information and waited. She actually suggested to check the next day if I didn't hear anything... 

GUESS WHAT. I never heard from them so... 


XX/XX/XXXX I called again and XXXX sent me right to XXXX XXXX & " XXXX '' filed an additional complaint. 

I waited until Friday XX/XX/XXXX and was told my claim was being worked on and we should hear in next few days... 

This is what I got on XX/XX/XXXX in an email Wells Fargo case number : XXXX Account number ending in : XXXX Business name : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Dear XXXX XXXX XXXX : Thank you for contacting us. We completed our research and are providing details to address your concerns. 

Fraud claim decision In your inquiry, you had concerns about unauthorized transaction made from your Initiate Business Checking account ending in XXXX. 

After completing our investigation for claim case XXXX, the Claims Assistance Center denied your claim for the charge on XX/XX/XXXX, for {$570.00}. Because too much time has passed before you notified us on XX/XX/XXXX, we are not able to reimburse you. We attempted to contact you on XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX, but were unable to reach you for additional information. We recommend that you contact the merchant, XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX at XXXX to resolve your issue. 

As your inquiry did not provide us with any new information to consider, we continue to support the decision made in the claim. We respectfully refer you to our previous letter that details our evaluation of your claim. Attached is the Claims Assistance Center letter dated on XX/XX/XXXX, for your reference. You may also reach out to Claim Assistance at XXXX, Monday through Friday, XXXX XXXX  to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, if you have any questions or concerns regarding your claim. 

While we realize the information provided may not alleviate your frustrations, we hope this letter helps to clarify our actions about this matter. We strive to provide exceptional service and were sorry we didnt meet that expectation in this instance. 

Case status We have closed the case as of the date of this letter. If we receive additional information, we will open a new case to address any remaining or new concerns. 

How to contact us We appreciate the time and effort you took to contact us. If you have questions, you may reach us at XXXX, Monday through Friday from XXXX XXXX to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX We accept telecommunications relay service calls. 

If there is an attachment to this email and you can not read it, please contact us. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, SD XXXX WHAT IS EVEN MORE " UNREASONABLE '' ABOUT THIS IS THAT IT IS NOT XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX as indicated in the email yet XXXX XXXX is in the letter attached. 


Please assist me one this as I believe we have been wronged and this is unacceptable and unreasonable. This is blatant fraud and we think Wells Fargo is negligent in handling this and our account. 

Thank you XXXX XXXX

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