Consumer complaint received 2021-08-15
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: TN
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: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
I had a XXXX ' XXXX gift card that was linked to my Wells Fargo credit card. When the gift card balance dropped below {$5.00} or {$10.00}, the account was set up to automatically transfer {$15.00} over from my credit card. Toward the end of XX/XX/2021, I noticed that there were an unusually high number of {$15.00} XXXX ' charges on my credit card back to back to back. I immediately contacted XXXX ' to close the gift card and see what could be done on their end. They provided me with the online transaction history for the gift card which showed purchases made over and over within the same day across a number of states I've never even been to. They also provided me with a detailed spreadsheet of financial details for all the activity on my XXXX ' account. 

I immediately took this information to Wells Fargo to report the fraud. The banker I was working with assured me that this was very standard fraud and would be handled quickly and easily. Within a few days, my Wells Fargo account was showing a bunch of {$15.00} reimbursements, which I thought meant the fraud claim had been resolved. Then, a couple of weeks later, I was hit with a charge for a little over {$1800.00}. I called to find out what that was about, and was told my claim had been denied. They were unable to give me a clear reason for why. I asked to appeal their decision and was told how to begin the " reconsideration '' process. 

I returned to the bank the next day with all of the paperwork from XXXX ' again, and they helped me fax all of that information to the fraud department. I was told it would be around 15 days for the decision. Meanwhile, I received a letter in the mail saying Wells Fargo had been unable to reach me for 10+ days. They called me several times and I immediately called back every time to provide them the information they needed. Never once did they ask me anything specific about the fraud. Their only questions were things like wanting to confirm my billing address. 

I called the fraud team again to make sure they had all the information they needed, since apparently they hadn't been able to contact me ( which wasn't true at all ). I was told they had what they needed and I would hear the decision within a week or two. We got the letter in the mail a few days ago saying the appeal was denied because the charges were consistent with my typical card usage. I understand that a {$15.00} charge for coffee here and there might seem typical when looked at individually, but there were dozens of these charges being made daily. Additionally, I had proof from XXXX ' themselves that my account had been hacked ( they were able to trace it back to some specific incident in Georgia, even though I hadn't been there ) and the transaction history showing that " I '' was traveling to different cities and states every few hours. 

Needless to say, I am done with Wells Fargo. Throughout this process, I have learned more and more about their flawed business practices and extreme lack of clear communication and customer support. I will be closing my accounts and moving to another bank as soon as I'm able. I am fortunate to be able to cover the {$1800.00} of fraud charges, but only just barely. On a XXXX XXXX salary and needing to spend my own money to purchase lab supplies for my XXXX  XXXX, I do not have the means or time to continue fighting for myself with Wells Fargo. I don't know if anything else can be done to remedy the situation, but I at least want to make sure that others are aware of the lack of adequate fraud protection associated with Wells Fargo 's credit cards.

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