Consumer complaint received 2023-06-21
Company: REGIONS FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: GA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Problem using a debit or ATM card

Complaint:
I have a checking and savings account with the Regions Bank. Around the end of XXXX beginning of XXXX I received a text message early in the morning stating it was my bank security was I trying to do an online purchase. If no please text back no and it asked me if I wanted a new debit card ordered. I text back no I was not trying to make that transaction and I also stated no I did not want a new debit card ordered. Around that same time I had did a chargeback concerning an attorney I paid a retainer fee to which did not take the case and regions Bank did a e-correction underneath the stipulation that I paid for a service I did not receive. Now over 90 days later, I received a letter in the mail stating that on XX/XX/XXXX {$1000.00} would be taken out of my account to repay the correction refund that I had originally disputed in the funds were given to me by the bank. Which the chargeback was for {$1200.00} and they stated they were only taking {$1000.00} back out of my account. The letter also stated that if I had any documentation to further defend my side of the dispute to please turn it into the bank which I did do so. I took the letter into the branch here in XXXX Georgia, and what was odd to me and the gentleman that helped me XXXX XXXX XXXX was that the card number on the letter was not the card number for my account nor was the one used when the original payment was given to the attorney 's office. Then they said the case had been closed and I couldn't turn in my information and there's absolutely nothing I can do about it that the Visa merchant sent a copy of the authorized payment when I had authorized the original retainer fee in the beginning. That's what they said they decided their investigation on was the sign original receipt of me authorizing the payment to the attorney which of course that would be there they would be no reason to do a chargeback if I hadn't stated that I originally paid the gentleman who didn't take the case and I never received any services on. I turned in the original contact for me and the attorney 's office I also turned in the withdrawal of council and the signed order from the judge stating that he was not the attorney on the case along with the email from the attorney 's office where they had stated that we didn't have to do a chargeback that they were going to refund the money as soon as possible. Not to mention that I was told I they had 35 to 45 days to do a dispute to hold the money in the account that they had given back to me until that time. I did do that and now over 90 days later they just all the sudden take {$1000.00} out of my account leaving me in a hardship and they have no explanation for it they told me they can not give me a merchant ID number of where the money actually went to and on my account it says Original Description REG E CLAIM REVERSAL ACH FORCE PAY DEBIT. Also when I went to look in my online banking on my statements all of the dates for these transactions seem to be rearranged and I can absolutely prove that because there are dates where I had paid to overnight things to the attorney in the beginning for him to review the case to see if he was going to take it but they stated that they refunded me the money for it week or so prior to me even sending the case information to the attorney. In the very beginning when I received that fraudulent text message that look like it was from the bank 2 days after I went up to regions Bank to get a new debit card and to look into it they said they showed no documentation of that but the account had been locked or changed where I was not eligible for a debit card anymore. I went without a debit card until early XXXX when I went in to see the gentleman and another branch in XXXX regarding the letter I had received about {$1000.00} coming out. He stated it was a simple box they had to check and he wasn't sure why the people at the other bank didn't realize that and immediately issued me a debit card. I feel absolutely like the account information has been hacked and that for some reason a couple of the bank tellers acted very weird about wanting to help me like stating that they weren't they couldn't see merchant ID numbers or the numbers like when somebody has a credit card machine and it shows the ID number for that credit card machine so you can prove that that was the machine that actually swipe the card it took the payment that they didn't have that information but I was able to pull it up on my online banking there's never a manager available and when I call they put me on hold for 35-40 minutes until I eventually hang up they refuse to let me speak to a manager when I call always stating that no one 's available and the information that I turned into XXXX XXXX at the XXXX Georgia location he said he gave it to the manager however he said that I needed to make an appointment with the manager and make sure I bring in everything that I have for my side because the case have been closed well what happened to the paperwork that I gave him originally when I went up there to dispute it. I don't believe that that was actually the attorney 's office that did the charge back dispute well over the policy of time frame to do so and I do believe that this account has been hacked into information given out and I'm very scared about my information being out there and I am negative {$700.00} in my account because of this fraudulent negligence really on the part of regions Bank. When I XXXX some of the information that I was experiencing it was all over XXXX about the region bank tellers selling off People 's Bank information and the fraudulent text messages coming in acting like Bank security etc. At this point I would be very weary and extra careful when it comes to dealing with your account already established with regions Bank or opening up an account with regions Bank. This does sadly deeply because I have been a customer of regions Bank for many years they have always been on top of their fraud and have always treated their customers with my experience very well very respectfully and I've had a lot of knowledge and kind of really just looked out for you. What is happening now doesn't seem like regions Bank and somebody definitely needs to look into this financial institution to see if there's a group of employees that are doing this or some third party that's doing this because it is placing a very big hardship on its customers that trusted in regions Bank that once was trustworthy.

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