Consumer complaint received 2023-10-22
Product: Checking or savings account — Savings account
Issue: Managing an account — Deposits and withdrawals
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. (CA)

On XXXX XXXX XXXX I called Amazon for assistance in placing an order, using the same phone number I had relied on for years. A recording informed me the number was no longer in use but didnt provide me with a new one. I XXXX Amazon and clicked on a number that came up on a website, and a supposed Amazon representative picked up the call. He told me that an air purifier had been ordered on my account by an unknown person. Eventually I was transferred to XXXX XXXX who told me a huge spy network had managed to remove XXXX from my Chase savings account. He gave me specific details as to exactly what had taken place and assured me that he and the investigative team at Amazon could get my money back through a method he referred to as a duplicate charge over. I would need to withdraw XXXX  in cash right away, after which he would tell me the next step. I was frantic and felt helpless so never questioned the plausibility of what he told me.

	At the XXXX XXXX branch of Chase Bank, I told the teller that I needed to withdraw  XXXX  from my savings account. She said that normally the bank asked for a phone call prior to a request for such a large amount. I asked to speak to someone else and a woman came from the back and asked me several questions. I explained that I planned to use the money to help my granddaughter who had lost her mother (my daughter) a month and a half before and then XXXX XXXX two weeks later. Both these things had happened, however, I obviously did not intend to use the money as I said. I confirmed that I wouldnt be giving the XXXX to my granddaughter in a lump sum, but would be doling it out, which should have raised the issue as to why I needed to withdraw the whole amount at that time. When I told the representative where my granddaughter lived, she said that she felt better to learn that it was within the country. During the conversation I was presented with the issue that scams were often targeted at the XXXX and I remember that a reference was made in the bank lobby after I had received the cash. I acknowledged that I had heard that this was happening, however, l completely believed that, although I had been the victim of a scam, what was taking place now was in order to fix it. Had the bank described the earmarks of this particular type of scam, I would have been able to recognize that it applied to me. Instead, they allowed an XXXX XXXX XXXX woman to leave the bank with XXXX which had been put in a box that had held penny rolls, and walk across the parking lot to her vehicle, without a bank employee involved to see that everything appeared to be under control. 
 	On XXXX XXXX a courier came to my house in the morning and picked up the money. Soon after, the perpetrator of this cruel scheme called to inform me that the bad guys had now gotten ahold of XXXX more of my savings, so we would have to do another duplicate charge over, this time by a wire transfer. The agent who assisted me at the XXXX XXXX, apparently did not have a problem with the fact that I had just made a large withdrawal the day before or that the money was being sent to a bank in XXXX XXXX When she asked if I knew the recipient (who had a distinct XXXX  name), I explained that he was XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I dont think either my reason, or manner were convincing, however, she completed the transaction. Although she did mention that cases of fraud were often directed at the XXXX, she didnt point out any similarities between any of those and the transaction that I was requesting. I have become aware of actions taken against Chase by victims of scams with the same warning signals as my own. If I know of these other incidents, surely Chase does, too, but turns a blind eye, even though it is in a position to help protect its customers. In fact, a second bank representative actually sent my wire transfer, meaning at least two people at Chase ignored the red flags.

	On XXXX XXXX, Chase confirmed that the wire had been sent that morning. Soon after, XXXX XXXX informed  me that now the balance of my savings account would need to be wired to a different recipient at the same XXXX XXXX bank. 
This was perhaps the turning point in my realization that I was possibly dealing with the real scammers. 
	On XXXX XXXX  I was feeling even more convinced of what had really happened to me. Toward the end of the day, I turned off my phones, went to my neighbors to use hers, and called Chase Bank to report that I was the victim of fraud. I spoke to up to four agents, the last wanting  to make sure I knew that Chase was not responsible for anything in any way, since I had authorized the transactions. I returned to my house, completely devastated to face the weekend and what seemed to be a hopeless future.
	On XXXX XXXX I contacted law enforcement in the morning and made a police report. I also submitted an IC-3 report by email to the FBI. 
	On XXXX XXXX, I called Chase in the morning to ask some follow-up questions about the wire transfer. I learned that by reporting the fraud to Chase I had essentially opened up a claim, so I was put in touch with that department. In an attempt  to get more concrete information, I ended of speaking with several people, the last one finally saying, Well, I guess I could let you talk to Wire Recall. After she transferred me, that agent immediately sent a wire to the bank in XXXX XXXX and then told me that each person I had spoken with at Chase regarding my being the victim of a scam (approximately XXXX), was obligated to tell me of the wire recall process which sometimes resulted in ones money being returned. In a conversation later with the wire research department , another representative confirmed this.
	On XXXX XXXX, I received a call from an investigator from Chase who specializes in fraud cases involving vulnerable adults. When I described my experience in withdrawing the cash, she  responded by saying that she was surprised that a person of my age would be given that much money, especially in a box that was obviously from a bank. Several days later I received a letter from the Claims Department dated XXXX XXXX, which states that my claim was denied since I had authorized the request.
	On XXXX XXXX I returned to the XXXX Branch of Chase for the purpose of changing  my savings account number. The fact that I had been scammed, indirectly via my savings account, was discussed, of course, but not to great length. 
	During the following week it came to my attention that I could check the status of the wire recall through the Wire Research Department and attempted to do so, but was unable to reach it until XXXX XXXX. I was told that they needed a police report number which, if asked for when the wire recall was sent XXXX XXXX I would have given. I dont really know if it was Chase or the XXXX XXXX bank that was requesting  the number. In any case, I then provided it to the agent, and when I asked the date of that request, he informed me that it was XXXX XXXX In a later update I was told that four attempts had been made to recall the wire transfer prior to the one sent on XXXX XXXX However, I dont know whether or not they had included the number. It wasnt until XXXX XXXX that the XXXX XXXX  bank reported that the recipient of the wire transfer had not responded to attempts to contact him. Chase never informed me of any of these things. Im only aware of them through having contacted  wire research on my own. If the wire transfer had taken place as soon as I had reported the fraud to Chase, and if the follow-through had been handled efficiently, perhaps my XXXX could have been recovered.

	On XXXX XXXX  I received a call from the Executive Office informing me that they were investigating a complaint against Chase from a third party. However, the representative refused
to give me that name and when I followed up a few days later, I was told there was no new information and was still unable to find out who had placed the complaint. 
to give me that name and when I followed up a few days later, I was told there was no new information and was still unable to find out who had placed the complaint. 
	Like countless other elderly people, I was duped by a vicious scheme that Chase Bank had reason to recognize. Because of that, XXXX from my savings account is now in the 
hands of people that I was convinced were helping me. The majority of these funds came from my parents who, by making sacrifices and careful decisions throughout their long lives, were able to leave me. One fourth of that total was the result of my having recently sold some small XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I considered my savings an emergency fund that could get me through a month when my  social security check fell short of covering my expenses. It would also be there for things like repairs to my 25 year old car, an occasional trip to visit my grandchildren, and overdue home repairs that would help insure that I could safely stay in my home for as long as possible. And it would  be available for my burial expenses. But besides the financial cost, the effect on my emotional and physical well-being, as well as on my long term health, are incalculable. My life has been impacted in countless ways and will continue to be. 
	Because Chase ignored the red flags, this scam, not an uncommon one, I have been told, was allowed to succeed. I am also pointing to its careless and negligent business practices, for instance putting cash in a conspicuous container, and the delay and inefficiency in handling wire recalls. It may be that Chase did not even follow its own protocols. Obviously they did not adhere to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureaus Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act, created by legislature in1982, which is mandatory in California. Nor did they follow the CFPB Guidance Recommendations established in 2016. I dont know if Chase filed an SAR report, as they were no doubt required to do.
	For my part, I am working to raise awareness, not only with regard to the scam itself, but to Chases failure to intervene on behalf of their clients. On XXXX XXXX, I will be featured on the XXXX podcast, XXXX XXXX XXXX, and I intend to use other venues as well, in order to share my experience with the public. Lawmakers, too, are becoming more involved in how banks handle questionable transactions like mine. Bill SB278, introduced by Senator XXXX XXXX of California and supported by Consumer Attorneys of California and elder rights advocates, is aimed at holding financial institutions liable in situations in which they, knowingly or otherwise, assisted in financial abuse. Through combined efforts like these, elderly people will be better protected against losing their financial resources to scams that could have been avoided with the help of their bank.