Consumer complaint received 2022-08-25
Company: UNITED SERVICES AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION
State: MA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Problem caused by your funds being low
Sub-issue: Non-sufficient funds and associated fees

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2022, USAA allowed 8 fraud charges to my checking account causing a negative balance of XXXX. I did not make or attempt any of the alleged charges that they posted to my account. 
My account had a balance of {$4.00} on the XXXX. On the XXXX USAA created and posted fraudulent charges to my account, resulting in the balance at XXXX. At this point the bank fraudulently charged my account 7 additional times, even though my account already posted a negative balance. I also didn't receive any notification of suspicious activities and wasn't alerted to these charges until I checked my account on the XXXX. Alerting me of suspicious charges is standard operating procedure. For example, on the XXXX of XXXX I received a suspicious activities alert, which I verified was me. This type of notification has happened multiple times this year, in which I get text, emails/notifications on my account page. None of this occurred this time, not a single text or word uttered by the bank during these charges. I got those past notifications with a positive balance in my account, so this was very strange, and not at all in line with their professed standards. 
I called very confused about what happened, and the USAA rep mocked me, and blamed me for not paying them for overdraft protection. 
I followed up with why you would charge my cards 7 different times after it's already negative. I have NOT been able to spend a XXXX, a single solitary XXXX over what I have in my account for food or gas, or electricity. She then said they weren't merchants .... But on the XXXX my bank rejected the charge from my Electrical company because I didn't have enough in my checking account. At the time, I had enough money in my account because my checking held {$500.00}. They have outright refused to process any payments without the full amount being available in that specific account, but because I didn't pay them for Protection coverage, they decided to make 8 separate fraudulent charges, and post them to my account, in direct response to not paying the bank additional fees. USAA created and posted fraudulent charges to my account, directly defying their own policies and procedures for processing payments for a negative account balance. And they not only did it once, but they also conducted this illegal activity 8 separate times. And their response was pay for our overdraft plan, and that I can't overdraft my account, nor can electrically companies, XXXX XXXX, XXXX, XXXX foods, gas stations or any needs of mine, but merchants with no relation to me can charge my account at their discretion. 
Following their own procedures, it should've been impossible to make a charge on my account when it was in a negative balance, but instead they not only allowed but facilitated 8 separate fake charges to an account with a negative balance. My mother transferred me {$120.00} on the XXXX ( unrelated to this event ), in which USAA stole that money, and has outright refused to start the investigation, or return the money they stole.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation