Consumer complaint received 2023-05-19
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Closing an account — Funds not received from closed account
Company: PNC Bank N.A. (RI)

After my mom passed away on XX/XX/2023, on XX/XX/2023 I contacted PNC Bank customer service and spoke with someone in their decedent department about the required documentation needed to have her checking account funds distributed to me. The total amount in her checking account was just over {$2000.00}. They instructed me to send an original death certificate, a copy of her last will naming me as the sole heir, a letter of instruction outlining how and where to disburse the funds, a copy of her drivers license, my drivers license and a voided check from her account and mail them to their document review department. I mailed the instructed items to PNC 's document review department on XX/XX/2023 from my location in Rhode Island. On XX/XX/2023, I received a letter dated XX/XX/2023 from PNC stating that they required an original or certified copy of the letters of testamentary/administration/short certificate or small estate documents. I contacted an attorney on XX/XX/2023 and was directed to PA Statute 31.01 Paragraph ( e ) which states the following : ( e ) Unclaimed property. -- ( 1 ) In any case where property or funds owned by an individual who has died a resident of this Commonwealth have been reported to the Commonwealth and are in the custody of the State Treasurer as unclaimed or abandoned property, the State Treasurer, at any time after the death of the individual, shall be authorized under this section to distribute the property or to pay the amount being held in custody where all of the following conditions are present : ( i ) The amount of the funds or the value of the property is {$11000.00} or less. 

( ii ) The person claiming the property or the funds is the surviving spouse, child, mother or father, or sister or brother of the decedent, with preference given in that order. 

( iii ) A personal representative of the decedent has not been appointed or five years have lapsed since the appointment of a personal representative of the decedent. 

On XX/XX/2023 I contacted PNC 's customer service line and asked to speak with their Document Review department regarding this matter. I was transferred to a supervisor that spoke with their document review department and stated that the only way to speak with a representative from document review was by responding to the letter ( further delaying disbursement of funds and potentially causing additional delays of back and forth responses ) or visiting a branch location ( my current residence is more than XXXX from the nearest PNC branch ). The customer service supervisor stated that there was no option to speak with the document review department directly to resolve the matter at which time I submitted a complaint formally with PNC and additionally am documenting one here as PNC 1 ) is not following PA state law statutes and 2 ) is unwilling to provide reasonable method to speak to their document review department and is making little effort to work with me to resolve this issue. Additionally, I had no issues receiving funds from two of her other accounts at competing banks. I believe PNC is intentionally making the process difficult as a means to not release the funds of which are needed to settle my mother 's expenses.