Consumer complaint received 2022-08-23
Company: BARCLAYS BANK DELAWARE
State: CA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Card was charged for something you did not purchase with the card

Complaint:
I am writing to report that I have been the victim of unfair business practices by XXXX XXXX for XXXX account ending in XXXX during the months of XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. XXXX has chosen to forgive some of the charges during this period of fraudulent activity but maintains that some are legitimate charges that I am responsible for, despite my repeated efforts to explain the situation to the company and resolve the issue in a timely manner by reporting fraud as soon as the first unknown purchase was made on the account. 

I maintain that it is unfair and unjust to forgive most of the charges, which suggests the company agrees that the charges were fraudulent, and then make me pay any remaining amount. 

In this communication, I am including the following sources of supporting information to demonstrate that I am the victim of identity theft, the charges on this account were fraudulent, and that XXXX XXXX has demonstrated unacceptable negligence in the handling of my accounts that has compromised my credit standing and put my public record at risk. 

To support my claim I have the following information : A list of the dates and the associated charges that I contest on account ending in XXXX - An Identity Theft Report filed with the FTC on XX/XX/XXXX ( already provided to XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX ) - A recounting of my interactions with XXXX XXXX over the past XXXX and a half months that shows clear negligence in handling fraudulent activity in XXXX and XXXX of XXXX which enabled ongoing purchases by an unauthorized actor after I had already reported fraud ( included in the following sections of the docuemnt - Documentation that I was not physically present in the United States at the time and place the purchases in question were made for account ending XXXX, including : XXXX ) airplane ticket receipts, XXXX ) passport stamps and passport, XXXX ) government issued ID with my actual address ( not the fraudulent one added to my credit report ), XXXX ) credit card statements from the credit cards I actually do use that show I was making legitimate purchases in XXXX at the time the fraudulent XXXX XXXX Charges were made ( already provided to XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX ) I did not use a XXXX XXXX for any purchases in the year of XXXX, as the account had stayed unused. 
The unauthorized actor used multiple accounts to make purchases, and was activating cards using compromised online access to my web account. The accounts used by the fraudster were those ending in XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX List of charges that I am contesting for account ending XXXX as fraudulent activity XX/XX/XXXX - {$6.00} - XXXX XX/XX/XXXX- {$300.00} - XXXX XXXX Co. 
XX/XX/XXXX - {$10.00} - ABJ Cash Advance XX/XX/XXXX - {$6.00} - XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - XXXX - XXXX XXXX Co. 
XX/XX/XXXX - {$310.00} - XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - XXXX - XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX XXXX {$10.00} - XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - {$63.00} - XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXX/XX/XXXX - {$15.00} - XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - {$800.00} XXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - $ XXXX XXXX by XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - {$130.00} - XXXX XXXXXXXX XX/XX/XXXX - {$200.00} - XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX - {$17.00} - XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX - {$10.00} - XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX - {$24.00} - Cash Advance If there are any other charges on account ending in XXXX during the time period from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX, that I have not documented above, I contest these as well. 

Timeline of My Interactions with XXXX in Response to Fraudulent Activity and Identity Theft XX/XX/XXXX I was in XXXX XXXX, XXXX, and received a notification on XXXX saying that my XXXX XXXX credit card account number XXXX was used for purchases in XXXX XXXX, XXXX. I attempted to block the card on my app, since I did not have the card on my person and had not made any purchases using the card online since arriving in XXXX, and so immediately knew these charges were fraudulent. I attempted to log into the online account but did not remember my password to this account because, as you can see from statement histories, I had not used the account for XXXX months. 

In light of this, I called XXXX XXXX to warn about fraud at XXXX XXXX ( I got the number from the contact XXXX section of the app on the phone ) at XXXX pm until XXXX pm, and again from XXXX to XXXX pm ( XXXX XXXX ). The person who I spoke said their systems were down and I would have to call back to report fraud tomorrow, as there was nothing he could do right now. This call should be recorded, as I have been informed that all calls with a XXXX representative are recorded for compliance and quality assurance. 

XX/XX/XXXX I called XXXX XXXX again at the same number as above at XXXX pm ( local time in XXXX XXXX ) and warned them about the fraud I had identified the previous day. I let them know that I was out of the country, did not have the card on my person, and therefore couldn't have been using the card in XXXX XXXX. The person claimed to register my complaints, saying that they blocked the card and started a fraud investigation placing a hold on the account XXXX. 
After this call I thought the problem was solved. 

XX/XX/XXXX On this date I was in XXXX de XXXX, XXXX, and received another notification from XXXX saying the card for account ending XXXX was used again in XXXX XXXX after I had reported the card for account ending XXXX as compromised and previous activity on this account as fraudulent. 

I called XXXX XXXX at XXXX XXXX XXXX, which was provided to me as the direct line to the fraud department, from XXXX pm until XXXX XXXX ( XXXX time ). On this call, we discovered the person committing fraud had obtained access to my online account profile. I noticed I had received a notification saying that my address and phone number were changed for the account XXXX and all associated accounts with my name, without my authorization or knowledge. The address was changed to XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX. 

I again tried to report fraud and was informed that there was no active fraud investigation on my account from the XX/XX/XXXX call. I again requested to initiate a formal fraud complaint at this time. I also requested that my accounts with XXXX XXXX be closed because I was extremely concerned at the unauthorized access to my account that enabled changing contact information and enabling continued purchases on the account. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received a notification that a payment was being made on the account ending in XXXX that I had already reported as fraudulent without my consent using my linked Capital XXXX bank account. I immediately called back XXXX to inquire about the payment and they said they could not stop it. This call to XXXX XXXX was made to XXXX XXXX ( from XXXX pm to XXXX pm ( XXXX time ). On this call I requested to speak to a XXXX and I was assured the account would be closed and no further purchases could be made on the account. However as you can see above, purchases were made on XX/XX/XXXX even after all my attempts to stop activity on the account ending XXXX. 

My next course of action was to call XXXX XXXX and put a stop payment hold on the debit. I was successful in doing this. 
Again, I was left with the impression that the problem was solved by XXXX XXXX at this time. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received a surprising notification on XXXX and XXXX that my credit rating was downgraded XXXX points due to a missed payment. I had no idea what account this was for as I had received no notification of upcoming due payments from any financial institution. I called XXXX to inquire which account this was for and was informed that it was for XXXX XXXX mastercard. 

I called XXXX XXXX and requested to speak to a XXXX to get an explanation of the situation. I was informed that I had been sent a letter on XX/XX/XXXX that outlined the results of my previous fraud investigation and the company found that the charges were deemed as valid because the purchases were done with a chip and thus had to be on my person. 

This argument is illogical and is an unfair abuse of my rights as a consumer because I stated in initial calls with XXXX I did not have the card and can document that I was out of the country at the time these purchases were made. If the XXXX XXXX in question were on my person, I would be making purchases in XXXX as you can see from my active credit cards, plane tickets, and passport. 

Furthermore, this letter was sent to an address that was added to my account fraudulently on XX/XX/XXXX, after I had already alerted the company to the fraudulent activity. The letter was sent to the XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX address. I have never lived at this address, never received the letter, and received no notice of any missed payment deadline. Had I received this notice, I would have immediately contested the companys improper conclusion that there was no fraud. However, since the company sent the notice to an address that should have been flagged as potentially fraudulent, I was not given the opportunity to make my case. 

On this call I re-initiated the fraud investigations on activity on my accounts in XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. I called to notify XXXX of the fraud and immediately dispute the late charges posted to my account by XXXX as fraud. I then filed a FTC Identity Theft report. In this report I detailed the events already outlined above relating to identity theft and fraudulent purchases using my name. 


XX/XX/XXXX I called to ask where to send the FTC Identity Theft report that I filed on XX/XX/XXXX. I was given a fax number and sent it to XXXX XXXX. 

XX/XX/XXXX I called in response to repeated calls from XXXX. On these calls, upon answering, the person on the other end would abruptly hangup. The number the call was coming for was XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX. I requested that the company stop calling me in this manner because it was causing me distress and I am contesting the charges. I was informed that they can not stop the system from calling me automatically and there is nothing that can be done. I felt like I was experiencing abusive debt collection for debts that I had already documented I did not owe and that accrued in large part due to the companys own negligence. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received the XXXX attached letters relaying the fraud determinations for accounts ending in XXXX and ending in XXXX. The XXXX letters referencing account XXXX said that I was responsible for the charges. I will note that XXXX of these letters misspelled my middle name, further indicating the disorganization of XXXX XXXX. The other letter about account XXXX said that they had deemed these charges as fraudulent and I was not responsible for the charges on this account. To my knowledge, I did not know that there were multiple accounts under my name and it was at this time unclear why the company was investigating both of these accounts for fraud. I did not get an explanation for this until XX/XX/XXXX. 

No charges made under my name with my XXXX XXXX accounts were authorized by me and they were all fraudulent charges. All of the charges during the month of XXXX, XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX were made in XXXX XXXX when I was in XXXX and I did NOT have any XXXX cards on my person. I have been trying to plead my case that I did not authorize any of these charges for months at this point in time. 

In response to these letters I called to inquire about what the rationale for these determinations was and was informed that the system is down and I cant receive any information. 

XX/XX/XXXX I called XXXX XXXX back and requested to speak to a XXXX to understand why they decided charges on account XXXX were not fraudulent. I was on hold for XXXX to XXXX hours waiting for a XXXX. When I spoke to a XXXX they listened to my story and told me to fax in the documentation showing that I was out of the country. 

I was given a fax number and address. 

Fax : XXXX Address : po box XXXX XXXX, DE XXXX I received no explanation about why the charges were not deemed fraudulent. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received a call from XXXX XXXX about collections on charges on account ending in XXXX. I explained the saga again and they informed me to send the documentation to a different fax number and address. 

This time it was : Fax : XXXX Address : po box XXXX XXXX, DE XXXX XX/XX/XXXX I attempted to fax my formal dispute, summary of events, and supporting documentation to the fax number provided over the phone and it did not go through. I believe that XXXX XXXX XXXX have been giving me incorrect fax numbers to inhibit my ability to advance my case with a formal written complaint in a timely manner. 

After the numbers they provided during phone conversations did not work, I faxed the above statement with associated documentation to XXXX at ( XXXX ) XXXX ( the fax number on their website ). 

XX/XX/XXXX I called XXXX at XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX to confirm that they received the fax and had reopened the investigation. They confirmed that they had and the investigation was still open. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received XXXX letters in the mail. XXXX dated XX/XX/XXXX that said the charges on account ending in XXXX were deemed accurate. I received another letter dated XX/XX/XXXX, stating that the charges on account ending in XXXX were deemed fraudulent. I had no knowledge that this account had been created and was under investigation. 

Considering I sent my fax at XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX, I believed that the letter about account ending in XXXX was sent before my supporting documentation and formal written request to reconsider the charges on account XXXX as fraudulent. I called XXXX at XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX to confirm fraud investigation was still open. They informed me that the dispute was still open.

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