Consumer complaint received 2016-10-25
Company: SANTANDER BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: MA
Product: Bank account or service
Sub-product: Other bank product/service
Issue: Account opening, closing, or management

Complaint:
The following is the text of a letter sent to Santander Bank on XXXX XXXX, XXXX : Please be advised that this is a second follow up letter related to the above referenced accounts with your institution. I have discussed the contents with XXXX of my attorneys and adviser, a former bank owner and CEO, and decided to proceed with my claims. I would prefer to settle without a costly and drawn out legal process, but am committed to move forward to recover my reputation and good credit record. 
In XXXX of XXXX, I was placed on XXXX ( Social Security XXXX Income ) by the Social Security XXXX of the United States Government XXXX. I have always prided myself in hard work and my ability to maintain a comfortable lifestyle and an excellent credit rating of over XXXX XXXX. 
At the beginning of this year, I was forced to retire. As you should be able to see from your own records and reporting and that of the Credit Bureaus, my history of credit has been long and above reproach. In spite of all of these difficulties and setbacks, I kept my accounts current and up to date and consistent with creditors expectations and policies. 
After 43 years and millions of dollars in transactions with Santander Bank N.A. and its predecessors, XXXX of my few paper checks that I use, that had already been cashed, franked and marked 'for Deposit only ', was intercepted and reused with a changed check number, amount and payee. It appears that access to those checks was gained, in XXXX XXXX, internally or electronically, since I never had access to the actual checks once they were cashed. Your institution is in possession of numerous copies, all of the exact same check, which were used for fraudulent purposes, and, to my knowledge, have made little attempt to investigate or detain the perpetrators. In fact, I personally did the research and found the original check that had been used in the scam ( copies enclosed ). 
Upon notification, I immediately 'froze ' that account and reported the transgression to the bank and authorities as well as put an alert on my Credit Bureau information. To add to the indignity, having been assured by that bank that all of my other functions ( BillPay, AutoPay ) would remain intact, I left those payments already scheduled, in place. It was not until I tried to use a credit card associated with those payments, that I was made aware that the payments made over a two week period had been reversed by XXXX, an outside payment agency contracted by the bank. You should, by now, be in receipt of the apology letter sent by my bank which indicates that the error was fully their responsibility. This and subsequent events have led to the compromise of my Identity and erosion of my credibility and solvency of no less than XXXX Credit Card Accounts for both my Business and Personal use. 
The events of the past months have taken an enormous toll on my XXXX well being as well as my finances and savings. Santander Bank, and its individual entities, have, for the most part, been less than helpful and understanding of my situation. I find this very troubling since it is your institution, that it would appear, is directly responsible for the downward spiral of my credit and credibility. It has forced me slowly and methodically remove my accounts and access from Santander and all its entities, and to freeze or close affected accounts at other institutions. There are still a large number of questionable fees and charges attached to my accounts that I fully intend to pursue for reimbursement. 
I was asked by you, or XXXX of your representatives, to research and provide a detailed accounting of all of the relevant transactions and charges with your bank and others which were part of my BillPay profile. ( continued )

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