Consumer complaint received 2024-06-03
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Getting a credit card — Card opened without my consent or knowledge
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION (NC)

On XX/XX/XXXX, my parents received a Capital One credit card in the mail to their home address in Nebraska that was opened in my name, so they notified me via text the same day about the credit card to see if I opened a new account. I have lived in North Carolina since XX/XX/XXXX. I did not open the account, so I called Capital One right away on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX ( XXXX  ) & the call lasted XXXX minutes. I was connected to a Capital One agent who I explained to that I was a victim of identity theft and that I did not open this credit card account. At the time of the call, the account 's balance was {$0.00} and I asked the agent to close the credit card completely so no one could access it or use it and to put a fraud alert on my account. When getting my personal info, the agent revealed that a different address & phone number were used to open the account, but the agent would not give me that information. I gave the agent my personal information in order to be contacted about the investigation. The agent confirmed that he put the fraud alert on my personal information with Capital One and that he closed the account & told me I would receive a letter in the mail after Capital One investigated the account letting me know their findings. I never received that letter. My parents shredded the Capital One credit card. I put a fraud alert on my credit through XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX ( which I subscribe to ) alerted me that I had exceeded my credit limit. I called XXXX first who instructed me to call Capital One again. XXXX informed me that someone had spent {$10000.00} on the Capital One credit card ( limit was {$10000.00} ) that I had not opened. I did not make these transactions. XXXX also informed me that the Capital One account was opened on XX/XX/XXXX. I called Capital One again on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX ( XXXX  ). I explained what happened to the agent and asked how it was possible that the credit card was used after I closed the account & she said the fraud alert was on the account but that the account was never closed. She wouldn't provide me with any information from my first phone call with Capital One. I told her to close the account again and she said that she closed it & refused to send me an email confirmation but gave me a case number. She said they would investigate and send me a letter. I then received a letter from Capital One in the mail that was dated XX/XX/XXXX saying that Capital One found me to be responsible for the account claiming that I opened the account and had activity with the account, meaning they spent no more than 1 day investigating my claims. The letter says nothing about the fraud alert or identity theft. XXXX suggested that I file a police report and FTC report and call Capital One again to reinstate the claim. I filed the police report on XX/XX/XXXX and the FTC report on XX/XX/XXXX. I also froze my credit reports with XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX as advised by XXXX. I then called Capital One on XX/XX/XXXX to reinstate my fraud claim and gave them the police report information. The agent would not take the FTC report number to add to the case. When confirming my contact information, the agent said they have a different email and phone number on file but that she could not share that information with me. I was connected to a different agent to update my phone number and email address for them to contact me. I have received no calls or emails from Capital One. I have only received the letters in the mail mentioned in this complaint as the only form of contact with Capital One. I then received a letter in the mail from Capital One dated XX/XX/XXXX ( the same day I called ) stating the exact same findings as the first letter : that I was responsible for the account. Capital One took less than XXXX hours to investigate my claim even after providing them with a police report. My agent with XXXX then joined me on the next call to Capital One on XX/XX/XXXX to reinstate the claim again. We made sure the agent put the police report number, the FTC report number, and my correct contact information in the complaint. Additionally, we asked the agent to make sure that Capital One actually made an effort this time to investigate the claim since the previous investigations took 1 day or less, which the XXXX XXXX put in the complaint notes. Again, I received no calls or emails from Capital One. I then received a letter from Capital One dated XX/XX/XXXX stating the same thing as the previous letters : that Capital One found me responsible for the account due to activity on the account indicating that I opened and interacted with the account. I have no access to the Capital One account at all and I did not open the account. Additionally, the charges listed on that letter now amount to {$10000.00}. After receiving this letter, XXXX advised that I file a complaint with the CFPB. My credit score has decreased substantially and I now have to file disputes with all reporting agencies in order to try to resolve this since Capital One refuses to investigate my identity theft claim. I have proof of address in North Carolina since XX/XX/XXXX.