Consumer complaint received 2017-01-06
Company: UNITED SERVICES AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION
State: OR
Product: Bank account or service
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I went to lunch and attempted to pay with my USAA debit card. It was declined, I paid with cash, but immediately called USAA to find out why my account was not working, since I should still have money left in my account. I was redirected to their fraud department, and they determined that my account had received a $ XXXX check for deposit and withdrawal on the same day. Keep in mind, I was not expecting a payment of any kind for that amount, and when I have made large deposits or withdrawals in the past, I notified them, so there would be no issues. They then accused me of fraud and said they would not change their mind. I asked them how they came to this determination, and they said they " saw this type of fraud all the time '', and that there was no way that a hacker or scammer had all of my mobile security information to log in. They further told me I had XXXX days to pay the $ XXXX back or risk not being able to open another account with them or any other bank. They took my payroll check of {$2300.00}, which resulted in me having to cancel my XX/XX/XXXX vacation with my family, of which I was supposed to see my XXXX grandfather and mother who had XXXX. I could barely pay my rent for XX/XX/XXXX, and I am now behind on all my bills. I have since switched banks for direct deposit to avoid having to lose more income, and I even did an allotment for the remaining balance for the next XXXX pay periods. What is the point of being protected and insured and keeping my money is a shoddy banking institution when they are accusing me of defrauding my own account? I was a faithful USAA customer for over XXXX years. I even asked them if that was normal behavior for someone who has never had any suspicious activity on their account, that had multiple lines of accounts ( Checking, Savings, CD 's, Investments, Youth account, Spouse account, Auto and Rental insurance ) to purposely commit fraud against myself? Then the investigator asked me what type of phone and carrier I had, because the alleged fraudsters used a XXXX phone that was an XXXX from XXXX, IL. He fell silent when I told him I was with XXXX and I had an XXXX Plus in XXXX, OR, and had been an XXXX and XXXX customer for years. But they maintained that I was still responsible for the $ XXXX against this account. To date, I have opened a new account with XXXX, I have closed my CD to pay off my unrelated Secured Credit Card with USAA, and they sent me the remaining balance via check for {$16.00}. My husband and daughter will be opening new accounts this weekend, and to date, I now owe them {$600.00} of the $ XXXX that I 've already paid. Their XXXX department is a joke, their banking and insurance products are a joke, and they do not take care of veterans and their family 's financial information or security. They insist they are the industry standard when it comes to security, but I ca n't tell. When I spoke to some of my friends that had USAA, they begged me to leave the bank immediately, as there has been ongoing internal issues with employees committing fraud from within, as well as scammers using social media to defraud veterans and service members because USAA 's security is n't as tight as they advertise.

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