Consumer complaint received 2021-02-02
Product: Credit card or prepaid card — Government benefit card
Issue: Trouble using the card — Problem using the card to withdraw money from an ATM
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION (NV)

HELP! I have been laid off since XX/XX/XXXX and received UI benefits the whole time until someone in XXXX New York withdrew {$100.00} from my card at a Bank of America ATM XXXX XXXX. I discovered on the XXXX and called number on back of card to let them know. Opened an investigation, was told if I participated in investigation, I could get my money back at the end. Bank of America sent me an email saying they had mailed a new card. That night, at XXXX, I got another email about the staus of my card had changed and I thought okay, fraud case. But no, my account was closed. I could no longer access my account with Bank of America. I continued to file weekly claims, and applied for and was approved for the SEB, the link was in my account with UI and my Federal claim, as you know, had expired. On XXXX XXXX, I called DETR to say my card was closed and where is the money, they directed me to call the frauddepartment, and they said to send copies of my Drivers License and Social Security cards, fronts and backs, to their email with a specific message in the subject line, and then to wait for them to upload these to my claim. I kept checking and waiting and filing my weeks. I started to call everyday to see whats the hold up. No one at UI Fraud knew anything and they basically just tell you to wait. Meanwhile, I am not receiving any weekly benefits, I missed week 5 of the LWA payment, and have still not received any payments since. It's been 7 weeks. NO MONEY. Not a single dime. On Friday, XXXX XXXX, I called again, and the fraud departemnt told me to email my documents again with a different subject line, I did. At some point before XX/XX/XXXX, I got the BPC Quenstionable Identity in person verify Pending Resolution on my claim. I call every day, I need the money! Wait time on hold is usually between 2 and 3 hours before someone in Fraud picks up to tell youn the same thing, nothing they can do, just have to wait. On or around the XXXX of XXXX I check my claimant home page and the message was gone, but then popped back up later the next day. So, on Friday, the XXXX, they told me to call Bank of America to lift the freeze on my account. When I did, Bank of America told me there wasn't a freeze, just had to activate the new card they sent. So, I did and changed my pin, placed locks on the card for any transactions for more than {$1.00} and so forth so no one could access the money I was expecting UI to deposit there. I was then able to see for myself my acount activities and saw that on XXXX XXXX someone here in XXXX was going to Bank of America ATMs and checking my balance. They have to have my pin number to do that. When I had left {$100.00} on the card to pay a bill, they saw the balance as being {$100.00} on XXXX XXXX. On XXXX XXXX, someone in XXXX New York also checked my balance at a Bank of America ATM, and then withdrew the {$100.00}. Up until then, XXXX XXXX, I was unable to see this activity as my account had been closed and I was so worried about my weekly deposits and where they were going while I was waiting for DETR to verify my identity. So, Monday, XXXX XXXX I called DETR again to let them know my card was active and what is going on? Why did my pending resolution message disappear and then go back on? Whats going on? DETR then told me I had to wait for an XXXXnvestigator to call me to verify my identity and the debit should not be open yet without the phonecall. I said I call everyday, you have told me you see my identity documents uploaded to my file, why do I need to speak to an investigator? How long until they call? I was informed it could take up to 2 weeks for that call and another 2 weeks for my funds to start depositing again and an additional unknown amount of time before they issued back payments in the form of a check. So, I continue to call everyday because sometimes these people tell you something different, or trickle out a small detail no one else has previously disclosed. So, last Monday, XXXX XXXX, someone named XXXX at DETR said she would email her supervisor to remove the Questionable Identity message as she, XXXX, saw that someone named XXXX had cleared me on XXXX XXXX and that this new message was a duplicate. She actually put me on hold to ask her supervisor for me how long to clear this up and came back and told me the supervisor said later that day or Tuesday by the latest. Nothing. Received the XXXX debit card today, activated it, BofA also sent DETR the freeze tracker form today, and the complaint for fraud was re-opened yesterday, Sunday XXXX XXXX. I need help to start receiving monies again!