Consumer complaint received 2023-11-04
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem using a debit or ATM card
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY (CA)

On Fri, XX/XX/23, XXXXXXXX XXXX I received an automated call from Wells Fargo fraud stating that someone had tried to change my password. If I hadn't done that, I should select 1. I did select 1 and was transferred to a woman named XXXX XXXX. She said an IP address in Florida had been identified as trying to change my password. She used messages exactly like WF messages to verify me, then changed my password. She said she was going to install security measures on my account while I was on hold for XXXX min. In retrospect, what she said was suspicious, but because the call came from the number I'd recently received calls from with regard to fraudulent transactions, I trusted that it was WF. 

While on hold, I called WF fraud, as I was suspecting a scam. I was getting messages that new debit cards had been ordered from personal and biz checking and the numbers had been added to XXXX XXXX. I had not authorized personal checking to be reordered, nor do I use XXXX XXXX. Immediately, messages poured in that ATM charges were being denied. I told her that someone was using my account from XXXX XXXX, Florida, with a card number I didn't recognize. I caught the scammer in the act ; she disappeared. 

In the meantime, trying to get help from what I guessed was the real WF was even worse than the shock of being scammed in real time. The AI phone tree is frustrating ; there should be a simple FRAUD command to slice through everything. I wasted time trying to get someone. I could tell that XXXX, who answered the phone, was a XXXX call center employee. He showed XXXX empathy, was totally disengaged. I told him I felt no empathy or concern & didn't trust him. Called again, another call center person, XXXX, who was incompetent. I shared my story & he didn't take in a word of it. I asked to escalate to a manager. While this was happening, I was seeing {$950.00} in fraudulent charges hitting my account in real time from Flordia. And the WF fools in the call center seemed to have walked in off the street, oblivious as to how to provide customer service in such a scary situation. 

I finally spoke to an intelligent person, XXXX, in Escalation, who shut down my online account access. I asked to have my new debit cards expedited. WF used to do this. Now they're cheap ( though they gave their CEO a 20 % raise last year, to {$24.00} XXXX ) and won't. XXXX said he'd transfer me to the Online Fraud dept for help in setting up my accounts again. I spoke to XXXX once transferred & learned he wasn't in Online Fraud ; they were closed and wouldn't open again till Monday. I asked for a provisional credit, which they did in past rare occasions of suspicious activity, but was denied. 

This is why I'm filing this complaint. I'm a XXXX customer of WF. I'm disgusted by the level of incompetence and lack of empathy of these call center employees & the unhelpful systemic responses to a scary scamming situation. I spent XXXX hours on the phone. I had XXXX XXXX and the whole time was afraid that the stress late at night would trigger my XXXX XXXX. It was an incredibly stressful situation. 

I imagine that hiring call centers is cheap for WF. When I filed my internal WF complaint today through the Escalation Dept, the person helping me ( who I could tell wasn't able to say too much ) revealed that he spends a lot of time cleaning up the messes made by the call center staff. Being scammed as I was is a frightening, violating experience. I do not trust WF at all because of their abysmal response. 

Having an Online Fraud department that isn't open on the weekend? 

Having untrained, oblivious, unconcerned call center employees? 

Setting up systems that make it harder for the customer? 

The only thing I need WF for at this point is to protect my money and they have failed. 

Like millions of Americans, I am disgusted and completely fed up by the greed and incompetence in banking. What are they doing to actually help customers? If this is a common scam, why aren't they communicating about it? I was doing more to figure out that it was a scam than they were, for XXXX 's sake! 

The way WF has handled this situation is just wrong. I wanted to alert others to this incompetence by filing formal complaints about this before moving to another bank. I hope that the CFPB will be able to help.