Consumer complaint received 2023-05-17
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: IL
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account
Sub-issue: Transaction was not authorized

Complaint:
On XX/XX/23 and XX/XX/23, I called Chase claims and filed disputes for a very large number of charges from Amazon ( among a few other various online charges ) that all occurred in an incredibly small span of time in late XXXX and in to XXXX of this year. I was receiving package after package after package to my apartment without ever ordering the items-yet they were all addressed to me. I was severely ill from the first few days of XXXX up until a month ago, and thus did not notice these charges until I went back and looked at my transactions on my Chase mobile banking app. I specifically mentioned to the claims associate that I spoke with on XXXX what was happening with Amazon, and that they needed to take that in to consideration. The total for all of the charges was over {$3000.00}. 

After the call on XXXX I was informed that I would receive {$3300.00} and {$270.00} in temporary credits while these claims were being investigated. 

This claim was broken up in to several smaller claims without my knowledge, either by phone or written communication. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, it was determined that an amount that was being disputed was already being disputed in another claim ( even though I received no information on which claim, when, or other amounts ), and that {$160.00} was to be removed from my account. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I was again informed that after an investigation that {$850.00} of transactions were deemed to be approved by me, and that amount was to be removed from my account. 

I called Chase claims again on the XXXX, and learned that none of the information that I had provided regarding my claim was written down or taken in to consideration. And that I would need to take the time to again gather any supporting evidence and send it to Chase. 

Lastly, on XX/XX/XXXX, I received two separate letters that additional amounts were approved by me and that {$1400.00} and {$140.00} were to be removed from my account. 

That very same day, I called Chase was informed that the information that I had again provided was not taken in to consideration, and the charges were deemed approved by me because they were delivered to my address. 

I visited a Chase branch in XXXX, IL, and was informed that I could use the secure message center to communicate with Chase claims, and that they could not do anything else there to help me. 

I sent in a very large amount of evidence through the secure message center, including : 1.Two active police report numbers with the XXXX, IL Police Department regarding online impersonation of me on multiple occasions, phishing, and identity theft 2. Direct communication with Amazon confirming that they did not see the activity in question on my account XXXX. Records of orders that were continuing to be attempted using my name and email, but were not made by me or listed on my Amazon account 4. My active report number with the Federal Trade Commission regarding impersonation and identity theft 5. Records of online harassment from my alleged impersonator, 6. My Amazon order history showing that I did not have any of that activity on my account 7. An explanation of a Brushing scam, how it is conducted, and how it makes the transactions appear to be the original user to make it harder for the victim to get their lost funds back. 

I received communication back through the secure message center repeatedly asking for any Amazon return information, even though I explained multiple times that I can not generate return information for items that I never ordered. Additionally, I communicated with them that per the FTC, I was within my legal right to keep these packages. 

I visited the same Chase branch in XXXX, IL, and received little to no help, and was told to just call Chase Claims yet again. 

I called Chase claims multiple times, and was informed over the phone that, not only was I lied to when someone told me that the information I provided was attached to all of the claims that had been filed on XXXX, but that that information was nowhere to be found. I specifically mentioned multiple times that that was what the support I uploaded multiple times was to be attached to, but I was also informed that Chase is aware of this type of brushing scam, that my claim would be escalated, and that I should hear back from someone soon. 

A few days later, the amounts were removed from my account-despite submitting multiple forms of concrete evidence that it was not me that made the purchases, making my account negative by almost {$1800.00} dollars. 

I called Chase claims, again, and discovered that not only was my claim escalated incorrectly, but that I had received no information regarding a new claim that was opened up associated with these claims. I was urged to send in paper copies of all the information that I had now provided theee times, and that my claim would get escalated yet again. 

I printed out almost 30 pages of support showing that I was the victim of a brushing scam, and brought all of this to the Chase branch in XXXX so they could directly fax it to the Claims department. 

Yet again, I heard no updates or information for almost two weeks, and then received one letter right after the other. First, that one of the claims ( which were for the amounts of {$1400.00} and {$140.00} that I previously mentioned ) was deemed to be approved by me, and that the removal of the credits was final. After this, I received another letter stating that, in fact, Chase agreed that the above charges were indeed fraudulent, and that the credits in my account would be finalized. The problem with this is, Chase removed those amounts from my account previously, so they needed to be placed back in my account, along with all of the overdraft fees that I was charged while my account was in the negative. After I received that communication and noticed that Chase had not placed the funds back in my account to correct for their previous removal, I again called chase claims. 

I was informed that, without my knowledge or written communication, that multiple claims had been closed and another claim was opened, to which I was never given the claim number for, either by word or written communication. I asked repeatedly if I would get verification that all of the support that I had now sent to Chase claims three times would be attached and included to this new report to ensure that it would be taken in to consideration, and was assured multiple times that it had been. 

Now, the timeline is at last week. On Thursday, XX/XX/XXXX, I again returned to the same Chase branch to get any information or additional help. I again provided all of my supporting evidence for a fourth time to Chase, and they faxed it in again. Another claim was opened, for which I never received any information for, and I was told that I would hear from someone by Monday ( yesterday ). 

Around XXXX yesterday morning ( XX/XX/XXXX, I visited this same Chase branch again to see if there were any additional updates. The branch manager not only tried to say that there was nothing she could do ( even though another associate had helped me the week prior ), but that she would again escalate my claim, and that I should hear back from someone within two business days. 

The last time that I returned to this Chase branch was today, and someone from Chase called claims on my behalf. I was again told that this claim was denied due to evidence from the merchant. Both the bank employee and I, along with my partner, all witnessed this letter in my account that Chase agreed that these charges were fraudulent. 

The claims teams response was that he had no evidence of that letter on his end, even though it had already been delivered to me, and that there was nothing more he could do. 

Due to this identity theft and online impersonation, I have had to get multiple debit cards, change my Chase banking information multiple times, close and open an entirely new Chase bank account, and even had to purchase an entirely new phone due to my phone being cloned. 

Not only have I been harassed online by my impersonator, but now I also have to try and manage that I have been tossed around the Chase claims department multiple times with little regard or care to my situation, have been told that nothing could be done to help me multiple times, that I have had my claim broken down, incorrectly escalated, closed, and reopened multiple times often without my knowledge, or little information to go off of, and that I have had {$2600.00} plus overdraft charges removed from my account after providing substantial evidence four times, through two separate platforms that I was not the one that made these charges. Additionally, I have not had any of the funds that were deemed by Chase to be fraudulent placed back in to my account.

It has been clearly demonstrated through the actions of both the Chase claims department and the branch that I visited multiple times for help, that Chase is not taking me seriously, not concerned with my wellbeing, not concerned with getting this claim resolved as quickly as possible, not clearly investigating my claim ( s ) in a thoughtful manner that actually takes the details of my situation in to consideration, and not concerned with the severe emotional and mental distress that this situation with Chase has caused me now for a month and a half.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation