Consumer complaint received 2023-10-06
Product: Checking or savings account — Savings account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account — Transaction was not authorized
Company: U.S. BANCORP (MN)

On XX/XX/2023 I received a phone call on my personal cell phone that I recognized as the U.S Bank Customer Service phone number, as it is printed at the bottom of all of my credit and debit cards. 

I answered the phone due to recognizing the phone number and the male identified himself as a member of the U.S Bank Fraud Team. I believed him due to recognizing the phone number. He stated that U.S Bank has recognized some transaction on my account that they feel could be fraudulent. They read off some of my recent transactions. Some were not transactions of mine or my spouse, but some of them were. Because he has actual info from my account, I believed him to be a legitimate U.S Bank representative. 

The caller stated that if I wanted to provide some information, they would work to have the fraudulent charges reversed from my account. He asked me to provide some information that I normally would not provide, such as online username and security question response. He then said that he would send me texts to verify it was me and to read back the number on the text. The texts had actual U.S Bank type logo on the texts so I considered them to be legitimate and I read back the confirmation number. The caller ended by providing me what he said was a U.S Bank Fraud Dept Claim # and Case Number.

When I got home from work, I decided to contact U.S Bank Fraud Dept to verify if the Case Number they had given me was legitimate and I was told that it wasn't and that someone has already committed a fraudulent {$9900.00} wire transfer from my Savings Account to a bank in another state. 

I stayed on the phone line and made a legitimate fraud claim with U.S Bank Fraud Dept and U.S Bank Wire Fraud Dept. I was told that a form was going to be mailed to me and that I would need to fill it out and send it back to them to begin the investigation. Even before ending the call, and prior to even receiving the form, the female from the U.S Bank Fraud Dept was already telling me that my claim is likely to be denied because when I responded to the phone call and provided answers that I believed I was giving to U.S Bank, that I gave my permission for the money transfer. I argued that I did not authorize any transfer of funds and that I am the victim of fraud by a suspect/s who purported to be members of U.S Bank Fraud Dept . The member of U.S Bank Fraud Dept that I spoke to refused to answer my questions and instead continued to scold me for being the victim of the fraud, which only made me feel victimized yet again. 

After completing the call with U.S Bank Fraud Dept, I contacted my local police and made a report with them. The police investigator stated that she would attempt to file search warrants to recover the funds from whatever bank the fraudulent wire transfer funds were sent to and would provide any updates. 

After approximately 7 days and not receiving this form that I was told was being mailed to me, I contacted U.S Bank Fraud Dept again and they admitted that they forgot to send out the form and would again mail it out to me. 

Approximately XXXX days later, I received word from my personal banker at U.S Bank that my case claim had been deemed closed because no funds could be recovered from the fraudulent wire transfer. Upon learning this, I contacted the U.S Bank Wire Fraud Unit and spoke to the investigator assigned to my case who told me that her part of the investigation was only to attempt to recover the funds that were fraudulently sent to this bank in another state, and because she could not recover any funds, she has closed the wire fraud portion of my case but that I could still potentially recover the {$10000.00} fraudulently taken from my Savings Account if I complete the form mailed to me and send it back out. I told her that it has been XXXX phone calls and almost XXXX weeks and I have yet to receive this form. She transferred me back to the main U.S Bank Fraud Department who stated that they did not understand why I had not received the form, but they confirmed that they had closed the investigation. 

How can U.S Bank close an investigation that they themselves admit begins when I receive and send back to them the form to begin the investigation? To date, I have yet to receive this form and I have confirmed my mailing address with them repeatedly. This is nothing more than a complete scam by U.S Bank to avoid having to reimburse me for a scam that they know they are partially culpable for since this scammer was able to spoof their phone number and logo. U.S Bank has a part to play in this fraud and I would like to be reimbursed for the {$10000.00} that was fraudulently removed from my account. I have been a loyal U.S Bank customer for over 40 years. I have used their services for bank accounts, car loans, home loans etc but I am ready to pull my money from U.S Bank and file complaints with every agency that I can find to make others aware of their bogus and unethical practices.