Consumer complaint received 2020-09-04
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: CA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Banking errors

Complaint:
I have been trying to find help in getting back money that was stolen from my checking account ( acct. # XXXX ) due to coercion/undue influence which I provided audio and video evidence of to the branch manager at the XXXX Branch on XXXX XXXX XXXX. in XXXX. Not only have I been unsuccessful in getting my money returned to me, but Wells Fargo has only compounded the problem by not following Regulation E. This IS a regulation E matter, and I have a letter from the OCC which states just that. Wells Fargo denies this, of course, in a letter they sent me on XX/XX/2020. According to XXXX XXXX, who explained the rules of Regulation E and debit card disputes, they could not find a claim to research. Even the notion of this is ridiculous. Notwithstanding the amount of calls I have made, letters I have written, in-person meetings with Wells Fargo personnel,  responses I've sent in at WF 's requests, complaints I've filed, etc ... I was given confirmation by the banker I initially gave the proof of the theft of my money to, and then met with the branch manager of the  XXXX location who confirmed, on camera I might add, that he did in fact forward the evidence I provided him and reviewed with him at the branch to the fraud department on my behalf. Aside from that confirmation, I also called the 800 number and reported the fraud as soon as I was certain of it, and at that time, my online account access was frozen and I had to visit another branch in XXXX to have the freeze removed. In fact, I also reported the entire situation and showed the very pregnant banker who was assisting me, and she is the one who actually called fraud from her desk as I sat there. That brought the total number of Wells Fargo personnel who I have shared the information regarding my victimization regarding my account with WF to 9 ( initial call to XXXX Branch, Ms. XXXX, two fraud specialists by telephone, in person at XXXX Branch Ms. XXXX and the branch manager, manager at the Downtown XXXX XXXX Mall branch, XXXX Branch Manager and teller there and then to the fraud department @ XXXX by the rep who told me that my case had just been re-opened )! Aside from those contacts, I also have appx. 19 letters from WF to me since I filed the fraud which are in reference to this matter and the people who have contacted me personally and lied to me about how seriously they take these matters, and how I would have a resolution within ten business days, and how they need more information from me, despite the fact that I had already provided this information in person, by telephone, in writing, at their request, and by the numerous complaints I've filed with the different consumer " protection '' organizations. To say they knew nothing of my claim or couldn't find one to research is an outright lie. It's insulting! Even more egregious is how rude the man was to me whom I called when I had questions about this matter, who told me that my case had been re-opened. That conversation alone proves they knew of the situation, closed it, and then re-opened it once I began to file complaints. Forgive me if I'm wrong, CFPB, but aren't you supposed to be enforcing these rules? And shouldn't WF be enforcing these rules internally? And certainly there is a record of all of these facts I've listed somewhere which will validate that I am being discriminated against by this bank. The fact is, in order to " re-open '' a claim, it would have had to be closed. If it were closed, then it should have been investigated. If it were investigated, I should have been notified in writing of the investigation. If it wasn't completed by the initial time frame, I should have been given provisional credit. I should have been notified of that decision in writing as well. The entire investigation should have been completed in a maximum of 120 days, I believe, and then I should have been sent any decision about it in writing. NONE OF THESE THINGS TOOK PLACE! NONE! 
Additionally, it is quite offensive that each time I filed a complaint, they would respond by pointing out that my account was closed due to prolonged overdraft and how they sent me letters of warnings that it would be closed. Funny ... they fail to inform even in post script that my account was closed in the middle of what should have been an investigation, which is not legal, I believe. Furthermore, had they followed the regulations, any debits that came in during that time should have been honored by them, but was not. That flushes their all mighty warning letters down the toilet where they belong. I have mentioned this several times, yet that is the only thing that they want to bring up because it makes me look irresponsible as though they did nothing wrong. XXXX! They have caused me an irrevocable toll in ways they can't even imagine. 

I want to remind Wells Fargo and the CFPB, that several times in many of my correspondences, I asked for help. I explained that I was afraid of further victimization. I was willing to allow WF to keep my money if it transcribed the audio on the documentation I gave the branch manager at XXXX. Not one person has offered up even any sympathy to me. Guess what? I have been further victimized by the same people, who I managed to capture on video, yet again, discussing my bank account information and threatening me, all while under some type of subjugation and during a XXXX XXXX. As far as I'm concerned, each and every person who wrote me a letter, and that would include .XXXX XXXX-Executive Office Case Specialist, XXXX XXXX-Executive Office Case Specialist, XXXX XXXXOperations Complaint Management Executive Office , XXXX XXXXEscalated Complaints Specialist, Centralized Executive Office Escalated Complaints, and of course The jerk who told me the case was re-opened ; plus every branch manager I spoke with including XXXX   XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX XXXX Mall in XXXX, and the rudest one of all in XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX who I spoke to on XX/XX/2020 and which was my last communication with WF personnel who also refused to take any documentation from me, and in fact, scolded me for going down to the branch at all, and finally both of the fraud specialists I spoke to by phone. All of these people did absolutely NOTHING to  help me. Each of you hold a measure of culpability in me being victimized further as far as I'm concerned. 

I did everything that I was supposed to do. I reported the fraud, in each capacity even though it wasn't required. I contacted law enforcement after I was misled into believing that it was a requirement from the bank if I wanted them to investigate the matter, when had I not been lied to, I might have taken my time and accessed a victim advocate to assist me with my meeting with the police and then maybe it wouldn't have been the horribly futile and emotionally bankrupting ordeal it ended up being. I provided all of the information Wells Fargo has asked of me, in all nearly 20 letters, and I have been so much more than patient, and in the meantime, Wells Fargo, what did you do? You sent letters out trying to cast a shadow on me because YOU f 'd up and didn't follow protocol? Because YOU didn't help me? Because YOU want to just keep the money that should have been returned to me? Because of your GREED and because of your heartless employees at the Executive Offices, I had to suffer through an unspeakable ordeal ... AGAIN!!! People like you don't really care about other people or people like me anyway, so I don't expect any apologies. I'm sure you are all content with the smoke and mirror game you all played and all of my money you kept that I might have done something to spare myself or any other victims some pain with. This situation is absolutely frightening. It is a slap in the face to my ideals of what Americans are supposed to feel about one another. It is a slap in the face to victims. It's a slap in the face to consumers and Wells Fargo, this is a slap in YOUR face for not helping me and joining the side of the crooks by keeping my money, and not investigating my claim and then pretending you didn't know anything about it. Shame on you and your coward employees who must be afraid they'll lose their jobs if they actually do the right thing! This is why people hate banks. I should have never entrusted you all with my money to begin with given your track record of shady employees who make victims of your customers! I suppose that I will never be given back my money, despite the evidence your branch in XXXX " lost ''. How that is my fault, or why I am being punished for it, or why the CFPB isn't stepping up to the plate in this situation and enforcing their own regulations is beyond measure when it comes to the negligence Wells Fargo has demonstrated here, but I WANT MY MONEY BACK AND I WANT IT NOW! I WOULD LOVE NOTHING MORE THAN TO POST THE NEW EVIDENCE OF MY XXXX ON HERE SO YOU ALL CAN SEE WHAT YOU ALLOWED TO HAPPEN, BUT A XXXX XXXX   VIDEO ISN'T SOMETHING I AM WILLING TO PUT ON HERE AND SINCE YOU REFUSE TO OFFER UP A REAL EMAIL YOU WILL NOT EVER SEE WHAT I ENDURED. HAPPY? I BET.

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