Consumer complaint received 2023-06-21
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account — Transaction was not authorized
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION (NY)

XXXX XXXX, a personal trainer and principal owner of XXXX XXXX and XXXX, contacted me on XX/XX/2023, to let me know that he was crediting me for services I had not used prior to the pandemic. I initially asked if I could come in an train to use up the credits but XXXX informed me that he was no longer operating in XXXX XXXX. So, I asked him to send me a check and documentation for the sessions. He said he could not do that and said he needed the card I had initially used to pay for his services. I no longer have that card and have since paid off its balance. Initially, I had no reason not to believe him so I gave him my debit card info to credit my account. He then said there would be a debit to verify the account, but the amount he quoted was way more than a standard amount for verification. I told him not to do it and asked him to check with his company/accounting department/software manager to see if a check could be issued to me. He said he would get back to me. After I hung up, I had a sense that something was wrong so I called him back and left a voicemail, asking not to process the transaction and to send me a check instead. He didn't call me back. Since the transaction didn't go through ( I locked my card for a week for extra protection ). 

Last Wednesday, XX/XX/2023, I awoke to find alerts on my account asking me to verify {$8000.00} ( {$2000.00}, {$3200.00}, {$2800.00} ) in debits made by XXXX XXXX and XXXX on my account. I called Bank of America ( three times ) to tell them that these charges were not authorized, only for them to tell me that the {$2000.00} and the {$2800.00} went through ( the {$3200.00} was reversed, probably because I didn't have enough money in my account. At the time I called BofA and while I was on my mobile app, all three charges appeared as still processing. If they were still processing, and I verified them as not authorized, why did BofA allow them to go through? What's the point of having alerts for fraud, if the alerts do not come through timely enough for me to respond. I have no protection here. I have complained to BofA in the past that their system for calculating balances and processing debits and credits are delayed. This puts accounts in jeopardy for overdrafts, which leads to accrual of unnecessary fees. In my case, it didn't allow me to see debits on my account, that were noted as processing, but on their back end had already been processed. 

A few years back, I had debit card fraud on my account and I received temporary credits for the amount that was debited. This time around, BofA did not offer temporary credits. Why not? Because it's not their money that was lost? 

Currently, I have a fraud investigation and complaint with BofA re : how this was handled currently pending. I also filed a police report and am awaiting the report number. I also have found information about how this person has been able to defraud two other people within the last two weeks, so I will also file a complaint with the NYS Attorney General 's office. 

I want BofA to credit monies to me as I responded to alerts that were not sent timely to prevent my my loss.