Consumer complaint received 2023-06-20
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Deposits and withdrawals
Company: U.S. BANCORP (IL)

Chronologically : 1 ) Friday XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notification from my customer XXXX that my consulting fees of {$24000.00} have been ACH transferred to my bank account at US bank ( checking account ) 2 ) Weekend of XXXX XXXX, I tried to check online and found username disabled. I called customer service and was told account has been locked by fraud department. Since this is the weekend, call the fraud department on Monday. 
3 ) Monday called customer service and after a long wait connected to the fraud department. She refused to say what is the fraud and refused to help. On Tuesday, I was told briefly that the reason they see is names do not match. I was also told to go to my local branch in XXXX XXXX, IL and talk to branch manager. I could not since I was traveling. 
4 ) On XX/XX/XXXX my customer XXXX called and asked if everything is OK with my bank. Someone from US Bank called them and asked her if transfer is legit. She told them of course it was. 
5 ) On Saturday, XX/XX/XXXX I went to local US Bank and was told manager is on vacation. He will return next Tuesday XX/XX/XXXX. I reached out to US Bank efraud department who has frozen my account- XXXX XXXX by phone multiple times, she never replied. Called local branch manager XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX, he was the only one who was helpful. I was told that bank suspected fraud since the name on ACH was XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and the name on account is my name XXXX XXXX. 
I told him that is my company name and I and my wife are the only owners and workers in the company. Also, I had been receiving 8-9 ACH payments from XXXX to US Bank this way without any issues. He told me to reach out to XXXX XXXX from XXXX to resolve. I called and emailed him tens of times without a single response from efraud department. 
6 ) On Friday XX/XX/XXXX, I sent my business license XXXX to XXXX, local branch manager by email proving that I am the President and owner of XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
7 ) Tuesday XX/XX/XXXX - response from XXXX - " I received a reply from XXXX, the XXXX manager you had reached out to. After sending the business documents, they are required to send the funds back to the sender and the account be closed. They are not allowing branches to release the funds. I asked him to expedite the process and he was able to submit the request but no time frame. '' 8 ) Time passed, followed up with my customer XXXX if they received any request, they never did and nor did their bank XXXX XXXX bank. From XX/XX/XXXX - XXXX followed up with US Bank XXXX department multiple times and never any response. Received a response from XXXX - bank manager on XX/XX/XXXX - " I apologize that they are unresponsive. There are updated notes stating US Bank has submitted the request to send the funds back to the originator and we are waiting for the originator to respond to the request. '' Again, my customer XXXX said they received no request. I don't know if their bank XXXX received any request. 
9 ) Monday XX/XX/XXXX - email from XXXX- '' I received a response today regarding the account. They gave me approval to release the holds and release the funds to your business name. However, we have to wait until the XXXX in order to create the check. '' 10 ) Went to bank on XX/XX/XXXX hoping that I will see my money. I was told by XXXX that there is a new claim ( from my customer XXXX bank XXXX XXXX XXXX  ) - XXXX ( description in letter that I received says Hold Harmless Request ). US Bank debited {$24000.00} from my account and is holding it. The funds will be held for 15 business days ( after already being held for a month ) before being released to XXXX. The option is to dispute the claim which I was advised to do by the fraud liaison center and the bank manager. Bank manager again submitted my business license papers to US Bank fraud center by email. 
11 ) Today XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notification from customer XXXX that the bank XXXX has told them that US bank has denied the claim and there is nothing more XXXX can do. US Bank will be able to release the funds to my account. 
12 ) I called US Bank fraud liaison center and talked to front office CSR. First issue is front office knows nothing about the case, only back office knows, and they wont speak with me. Front office told me that back office says claim is still there from XXXX. They can not do anything. XXXX already said there is no claim anymore since they received the denial affidavit. 
Back office also said to front office ( CSR I was speaking to ) that even after claim is withdrawn, they wont pay me back. They can only return money to XXXX which anyway they failed to do after more than 1 month. 
13 ) Reached out to XXXX branch manager again and requested that he release the funds now that there is no claim from XXXX XXXX He himself wrote before " I received a response today regarding the account. They gave me approval to release the holds and release the funds to your business name. However, we have to wait until the XXXX in order to create the check. '' 14 ) He responded " Prior to the funds being taken out of your account from our fraud department, that statement was true. Once the funds were taken out, the approval to release funds was revoked. It is now completely out of the hands of the branches as everything has been taken over by US Bank fraud, which is why I have provided you with the case # and phone number to the fraud liaison center. When the funds are returned with no holds on the account, that is when I can obtain a new approval to release the funds. '' I believe that US Bank Fraud department has no intention of releasing the funds to me nor returning the funds to the originator bank XXXX since they did not do this for more than a month.