Consumer complaint received 2021-10-11
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: WA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Problem using a debit or ATM card

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2020, {$7500.00} was stolen from my Bank of America checking account. I received a phone call from people who said they were with XXXX and that my XXXX account had been hacked. They told me that I needed to complete security measures to prevent my account from being fraudulently accessed by others. They sounded credible and asked for my personal information, which I provided them. They stated that they needed to access my XXXX account and withdraw {$7500.00} from my Bank of America ( BoA ) account, which they would quickly re-deposit back to my Bank of America account. When they tried to access XXXX, they said they needed an access code that was sent to my XXXX, which I provided them. They then withdrew {$7500.00} from Bank of America to XXXXmy BoA checking debit card is connected to XXXX. They then told me that they ran 2 " test '' transactions at {$1.00} each. Finally, they told me they put the {$7500.00} back into my BoA checking account ; however, when I later examined my CashApp statement, they had actually deposited {$7400.00} dollars into an account I do not own and for an individual I do not know. Finally, they tried to carry out two additional withdrawals from my BoA checking account debit cardone for {$490.00} and one for {$2500.00}, both of which failed. 

I have reached out to both XXXX and BoA to report these fraudulent, unauthorized transactions from my BoA checking account debit card. XXXX, in particular, has been extremely difficult to work with. To correspond with XXXX, you must work through their application via text ( there is no option to call XXXX to speak with a representative ) ; however, no record of texts sent is kept on the application. Moreover, even after making numerous attempts to contact XXXX via text, XXXX closed my case stating that I had not responded to them, which is simply false. 

At BoA, I made a fraudulent activity report within 24 hours of the removal of {$7500.00} from my checking account. After BoAs initial review, they concluded that because I authorized the transactions, I was liable for the loss of funds. I next made a police report with my local police department and re-opened my fraudulent activity case with BoA. They closed the case reporting that they did not have sufficient information. 

Under federal law, individuals have limited liability for fraudulent debts caused by identity theft, including debit cards. If someone makes unauthorized debits to a debit card using a debit card number ( not the actual card ), the card holder is not responsible if they report the problem within 60 days. The timely steps I took to alert Bank of America to this fraudulent debt caused by identity theft limited my liability. Specifically, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ), if a third party fraudulently induces a consumer into sharing account access information that is used to initiate an electronic funds transfer from the consumer 's account, the transfer meets Regulation E 's definition of an " unauthorized electronic funds transfer. The police report I provided BoA describes a situation that, according to the CFPB, clearly falls within the category of an unauthorized electronic funds transfer. As a result, my liability for this transaction is limited. 

I request that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau help me re-open my fraudulent activity case with BoA and recover the {$7500.00} funds that were fraudulently stolen from my checking account debit cardthrough the vehicle of XXXX. I have attached the police report and associated materials that I shared with BoA. 

I also want to report XXXX for a clear failure to respond to my requests for consumer assistance. I believe it constitutes a wholly inadequate consumer response, and based on my experience, I am concerned about systemic organizational consumer response issues at XXXX. XXXX is nearly impossible to work with.

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 monetary relief