Consumer complaint received 2020-05-06
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: WV
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: International money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2020, I noticed fraudulent charges in my XXXX account. Worried that my bank account might also have been compromised, I logged into my Bank of America account and quickly discovered that {$990.00} had been transferred out of my checking account and {$2200.00} from my savings account, both via XXXX. 

I immediately called Bank of America and reported the fraud that same day. I explained that I never authorized the XXXX transfer,  nor did I receive any texts from XXXX to approve the transfer. The bank rep said they would open a fraud claim for each account and that it could take up to 45 business days to resolve, but that after 10 business days a temporary refund of the lost money would be issued to my account.

After 10 business days, they did issue a " temporary '' credit to my accounts. I called numerous times but was told the bank had no updates for me on the progress of the investigation, nor was I told that I was able to provide proof that I did not commit the fraud ( either on purpose or through negligence ). Finally, on XX/XX/2020, I received a digital letter from the bank stating they had " completed their research and determined we're unable to approve your claim. '' Further they stated : " Our investigation found that the transaction in question was validated using an authentication code sent to a valid phone number belonging to a signer on the account '' and " that the transaction in question was completed using a device that is consistent with previous valid account activity. '' I immediately contacted Bank of America again to request another investigation, which they agreed to do. I reiterated to them again that I DID NOT receive the XXXX text to authorize the transfer, and that if I had, I would NOT have authorized the transfer as I did not recognize the recipient which was an email address out of XXXX. Further, I informed Bank of America that I believed my cell phone had been compromised because there are numerous texts which my XXXX account says was sent to my phone, but which my phone never received ( spoofing ). This also happened to the two other cell phones on my XXXX account, and all of these texts ( that went through my XXXX account but were NOT received by my phone ) began the day before the fraud occurred. Not a coincidence. 

Bank of America finally told me that a letter from XXXX on company letterhead would serve as evidence in my favor, and that I could fax this to them. I have requested this information from XXXX but have yet to receive it. 

However, I requested that Bank of America provide me with proof that I committed fraud myself, or that I was negligent. They have refused, even though the burden of proof lies with them. If they want to hold me liable for the fraudulent charges, they must prove that I was either negligent or that I committed fraud. I do not have to prove that I did either of those things. 

Also, I complained to Bank of America that my previous XXXX transfer limit was {$1000.00}, and that I wanted to know how someone stole {$3200.00} in one day. They could not or would not provide an answer to this question, despite repeated attempts by me to get this answer. 

I have been informed by Bank of America that they will take the account credits back out of my account on XX/XX/2020, even though I have asked, and they have agreed, to reopen the investigation. I asked them not to do this until after the second investigation is completed, but they have refused, citing " company policy. ''

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