Consumer complaint received 2022-09-03
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: AZ
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
Bank of America published policy within the Deposit Agreement contains language explicitly stating the ability to cash third party checks is discretionary. All times given are for Arizona  ( Mountain Standard not in observance of DST ), all dates given are XXXX 

1 ) I arrived at BoA location at XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX AZ  XXXX on XXXX approximately XXXX XXXX, with a third party check drawn on an attorney 's trust account payable to his client and sent in an envelope clearly addressed to me at my address in my state ( client is XXXX in another state XXXX miles away ), my mother, currently unsigned to do that before bank staff, on behalf of my mother, for whom I have an active, signed and notarized, General Durable Power of Attorney ( hereafter PoA ) along with all other pertinent forms of state-issued identification as well as BoA debit card and log in with the kiosk to confirm my account. 
2 ) Teller at window doesn't know what to do, calls over manager and has me leave window. 
3 ) Floor manager won't provide name or card, claims BoA does not allow deposit ( not cashing, deposit ) of third party checks. This is contrary to published language within Deposit Agreement furnished to employees. Furthermore, unnamed female " manager '' does not understand PoA and says will speak to Legal and for me to wait for 20 minutes in Lobby. 
4 ) I am pawned off to XXXX XXXX, a " credit specialist '' and taken back into her office, where she parrots the same words, verbatim, as the unnamed " manager '' did. XXXX  does give me her card and pretends to call " legal '' -- I am not allowed to speak to " legal '' nor be provided with their contact information. It is clear to me that nobody in this bank understands third party check DEPOSITS ( rather than cashing ) nor how Power of Attorney. 
5 ) XXXX  provides me her card and has your system send me a text message. Am told the actual Financial Center manager is a man, and clearly not the woman presenting herself before XXXX  as " manager. '' 6 ) XXXX, on phone with legal, misrepresents my issue to other end of call, nods her head, says goodbye. I ask for " legal '' phone number, am not given it. Told I can call the Customer service line. 
7 ) Over next 24 hour period, XXXX and XXXX, am on hold with BoA ccustomer service line roughly three hours. On XXXX at roughly XXXX get a callback from BoA and speak to " XXXX XXXX, he promises to " notate my account so this can go to a supervisor ''. 
8 ) I call back at XXXX, having been told by XXXX bank is open until XXXX ( XXXX XXXX ) on hold until XXXX, get woman who requires a moment to read my file, reads back the note on my file, it does not contain the full issue with PoA and third party checks, and no note to refer me on to supervisor. At XXXX, mid-sentence, the phone " disconnects '' 9 ) At approximately XXXX on XXXX, I call the same XXXX number for customer service, spend roughly fifty minutes on hold, get " XXXX '', explain briefly the problem, he realizes it needs a supervisor and puts in a request for one. Request is put in to supervisor solely that I need to " complain about a location. '' 10 ) Supervisor is a " XXXX XXXX '' ( with a B, not an M ). She will not give me contact information for anyone in the bank who is actually aware of policies. She tells me it's in my deposit agreement that I can't do it : yet, when I have her read me ( word for word ) the pertinent part, the phrase is " may not. '' 11 ) XXXX XXXX tells me that not a single location will allow deposit of a third party check. This is known to be false from past experience doing so, and in contradiction to the language in the deposit agreement ( " may '' language making it discretionary in the negative rather than " must/shall '' language ). This apparently is the point of confusion for most of the employees, including " managers '' and " supervisors. '' 12 ) I request copies of the recorded phonecall in which she stated a physically XXXX person must be present in person despite a signed/notarized power of attorney being held by an identified person in order to do anything with the power of attorney. I inform her that requiring this, in addition to incorrectly denying to honor a valid PoA, amounts to discrimination on the part of disability. She will not send me the recorded phonecall. I ask to whom do I direct a request for copies " there is no one. '' 13 ) I inform " XXXX XXXX '' that she, on behalf of BoA, is on notice that upon identification of the proper party to disclose those recordings, that if the Bank is to have, by that time, destroyed the recordings even pursuant to a standard records destruction in course of business, will be grounds for a further spoliation suit, aka " destruction of evidence. ''

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