Consumer complaint received 2022-07-23
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: OK
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Traveler's check or cashier's check
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a job offer from XXXX XXXX XXXX On XX/XX/XXXX, the company informed me that to start my training I needed new office equipment because the company forbid the use of personal computers. XXXX told me they would send me a start-up check of {$8900.00} so I can acquire the equipments. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a check for {$8900.00} from XXXX XXXX XXXX. I was told to deposit the check into my account at any ATM, which I did because Bank of America was closed by the time I received the check. By XX/XX/XXXX, I checked my online bank account and the check had cleared. I tried to purchase the office equipment online from a website provided to me by XXXX ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ). Bank of America did not permit the online transfer, and Bank of America told me I would have to go to a physical bank to be able to send the funds to XXXX XXXX. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I went to the Bank of America location closest to my house ( XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  XXXX, Oklahoma XXXX ). I asked the bank teller assisting me if the check for {$8900.00} from XXXX had cleared and if the funds were available to me, and they said yes. XXXX told me to get a cashier 's check in the amount of {$8600.00} to pay for the office equipments and make it payable to XXXX XXXX ( an alleged supervisor for XXXX XXXX ), and deposit it into her account at XXXX XXXX  XXXX So, after getting the cashier 's check from Bank of America, I proceeded to XXXX XXXX  to deposit it, as instructed by XXXX. 

A few hours after depositing the cashier 's check at XXXX, Bank of America had notified me that the original check from XXXX for {$8900.00} had been put on hold and the funds were no longer available to me. I called Bank of America to inquire about why the check was suddenly being put on hold after the bank teller told me the check cleared and the funds were made available to me in a cashier 's check. Bank of America told me that the reason why the check was being put on hold was because the check was large, so it would take a few more days to go through. I questioned Bank of America, asking why they would initially clear a check and make funds available without verifying the check first. At this time, the cashier 's check Bank of America had issued to XXXX XXXX had already been cashed by XXXX XXXX, leaving my bank account with a negative balance because the funds from the {$8900.00} check were suddenly no longer available. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, Bank of America closed my account without notifying me first. I called them to find out why my account had been closed, and they told me it was because I had deposited a fraudulent check from XXXX for {$8900.00}. I explained on the phone that I had no clue it was a counterfeit check, and I deposited the check into my account under the assumption it was legitimate. I questioned the representative I spoke to, asking again why Bank of America cleared the check and made the funds available without verifying the check first. The representative I spoke to was unable to give me a direct answer. 

I then pieced together that the job offer I received from XXXX and the XXXX XXXX website provided to me was a scam. 

When Bank of America closed my account, they took all the money that was in checking and savings account, which totaled to {$6700.00}. They then proceeded to go to my mom 's savings account ( because my account is linked to hers ) and they took out {$1800.00} as a transfer to overdrawn related account. In total, Bank of America took {$8600.00}. 

I filed a police report about the job scam. I sent a copy of the police report and other related documents, including specific information about the job scam, the name of the account holder and the account number of where the cashier 's check was deposited into at XXXX XXXX, to Bank of America so they could conduct an investigation. 

I have been calling Bank of America about the ongoing investigation for almost 3 months, asking whether they have been able to retrieve the funds from XXXX XXXX  ( where the cashier 's check was deposited ). Every time I call, Bank of America tells me the investigation is still ongoing. 

In actuality, Bank of America is no longer investigating the situation because they have already collected my money. This situation could have been avoided if Bank of America had verified the check from XXXX before making the funds available to me. A check for such a large amount ( {$8900.00} ) should have been verified before being made available to a customer.

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