Consumer complaint received 2021-09-06
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Deposits and withdrawals
Company: U.S. BANCORP (OR)

On XX/XX/2021, someone went into a U.S. Bank branch near XXXX XXXX ( XXXX, Nevada ) and used a counter check of some kind ( Teller Savings Withdrawal ) to fraudulently withdraw {$9200.00} from our accounts. Subsequently, the person or person used a fraudulently obtained debit card ( or similar ) to withdraw a total of {$93000.00} in withdrawals and purchases in XXXX XXXX. 
Unfortunately, the computer on which we normally check/monitor our bank accounts had crashed and it took a couple of weeks first to attempt to have the computer fixed and then to purchase a new one. When we were able to check our accounts, we discovered the fraud and went to our closest U.S. Bank branch to report the fraud at the beginning of XXXX and then, eventually, to close the accounts and open a new account ( XX/XX/2021 ). We told U.S. Bank ( both in person at the local branch and by telephone ) that the fraud started with the {$9200.00} " Teller Savings Withdrawal '' on XX/XX/2021. 
U.S. Bank immediately began investigating the fraud and sent us numerous forms to identify which items on our bank statement were fraudulent. We completed the forms and took them to our local branch to fax to the U.S. Bank Fraud Department. We also telephoned the U.S. Bank fraud department numerous times and reported the fraud both to our local police and to the police in XXXX XXXX. 
Over the subsequent months, U.S. Bank refunded all of the fraudulent charges except for the initial {$9200.00} Teller Savings Withdrawal from a U.S. Bank branch in XXXX, Nevada. These reimbursements happened in bits and pieces, making it difficult for us to determine which of the fraudulent claims were being reimbursed, but they did not reimburse us for the initial fraudulent withdrawal. In XXXX, 2021, they claimed that it was a fraudulent check and we had had 30 days from the fraudulent charge to report the fraudulent withdrawal, saying that the date on which we contacted them regarding the {$9200.00} outstanding reimbursement was the date we reported the " fraudulent check '' ( XX/XX/2021 ). First, the fraudulent charge was not a fraudulent " check '' -- the information they wanted was all about where we lost the check, where we kept our checks, etc., none of which was relevant to the " teller savings withdrawal '' of {$9200.00}. Second, we did report the fraud ( not identifying the first item as a fraudulent check because it was not ), well within the 30 days they said we had to report the fraud. 
U.S. Bank is refusing to reimburse us for the {$9200.00}. 
The second problem was that we closed the original checking account on XX/XX/2021 and opened a new checking account. We notified Social Security of the new account number. The next two payments ( XXXX and XXXX ) were sent to the old checking account, which was closed at this point. U.S. Bank has not put these funds into our new checking account : U.S. Bank claims they did not receive those funds ; The Department of the Treasury, which we have contacted by telephone 4 times over these several months, says that they did send the funds and that U.S. Bank did not return them. We also contacted Social Security four times ; a Social Security person, named XXXX, called U.S. Bank, attempting to have a 3-way conversation. U.S. Bank re-routed the call three times. On the second contact, U.S. Bank told XXXX that the bank did have the funds, but they gave XXXX another number to call ; he was on hold for so long that he could no longer justify continuing the call when he had other Social Security calls to handle. 
Then, Social Security had a question about the XXXX payment ( to be paid in XXXX ), presumably due to the issue that The Treasury Department said that U.S. Bank had not returned those monies to The Treasury Department, and U.S. Bank contacted the Department of the Treasury, who then sent an email to U.S. Bank regarding the XXXX payment ( to be paid in XXXX ). U.S. Bank debited our new checking account for the XXXX payment XXXX {$860.00} XXXX on XX/XX/2021, giving us 15 business days ( by XX/XX/2021 ) to respond with the documents to dispute the claim. Nothing other than that letter ( reference # XXXX ) was in the envelope, and the letter did not indicated what documents or kinds of documents they wanted. Our local bank branch did not know what they wanted, called U.S. fraud department, but could not get an answer as to what documents they wanted. We sent ( by fax from the U.S. Bank branch on XX/XX/XXXX ) a detailed letter with our best guesses as to what information they might want. Subsequently, they rejected our dispute, telling us that the matter was closed and confirming that they had returned the {$860.00} to The Department of the Treasury. We contacted The Department of the Treasury on XX/XX/2021, who said they have not received funds from the U.S. Bank for any of the three Social Security payments ( retirement ) in question : the XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX payments. 
The Department of the Treasury told us that our only recourse was to go to another banking institution. Accordingly, we went to the bank to close the new savings account, put the money into our new checking account, and withdrew two cashiers checks, totaling {$45000.00}. Amazingly, we were not asked for identification for any step in this process, and the cashier who was helping us had never seen us in the past. 
To summarize, U.S. Bank is withholding a total of {$11000.00} dollars, consisting of the {$9200.00} fraudulent withdrawal and three {$860.00} Social Security ( retirement payments ).