Consumer complaint received 2020-08-03
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem using a debit or ATM card
Company: BANK OF THE WEST (NC)

Bank of West - Attempted to dispute XXXX and XXXX XXXX transactions as a result of their customer who scammed us. I requested them to file a scam report and to recover our funds. 

On XX/XX/2020 - I called Bank of West customer service to inform them of a XXXX Fraud my daughter and I were recently a victim. Bank of the West is the receiving financial institution of the XXXX and XXXX XXXX transactions.The customer service individual I spoke with was named XXXX and he stated he discussed the situation with his supervisor, XXXX. He did not indicate whether they would investigate to help recover these funds nor whether a scam report would be filed. Back on XX/XX/2020, I did file a report with the FTC ( case id # XXXX XXXX. 

Back on XX/XX/2020, we attempted to dispute these transactions through our own financial institution ; however, the information Bank of West provided in response is not valid as we did not receive the intended refunds nor the merchandise ordered. While the funds did complete to the account we sent to, their customer scammed us as we only transferred this money with the intention of receiving a refund for two of the transactions and the puppy was never delivered. I am happy to provide all text messages and email correspondence we have. 

The scam was : 1. My daughter paid {$800.00} ( two separate XXXX XXXX transfers i/a/o {$400.00} XXXX for the puppy. They were supposed to fly the puppy from XXXX, XXXX  to XXXX, XXXX  with a connection flight in XXXX, XXXX. 

2. The day of the flight, ( in the morning ), they sent my daughter an email stating the airline required a pet insurance deposit of {$970.00} and this would be refunded once at XXXX minus {$48.00} for administration costs. I utilized XXXX from my XXXX  XXXX XXXX account. Confirmation : XXXX. Name : XXXX. Email : XXXX. Transfer Date : XX/XX/2020 ; Post Date : XX/XX/2020 3. The day of the flight, ( in the afternoon - supposedly after they arrived in XXXX with the puppy ), they stated the inspector required a crate for the puppy and now requires {$790.00}, but would be reimbursed once at XXXX in full. My daughter utilized XXXX from her XXXX account. Name : XXXX XXXX. Phone Number : XXXX. Transfer Date : XX/XX/2020 ; Post Date : XX/XX/2020 Once I learned of the 3rd transaction, I told my daughter to call the bank immediately, as at this point, I knew it was a scam. Unfortunately, both banks ( XXXX and XXXX ) could not recall the transaction and on Monday we filed the dispute. The total scam was {$2500.00}. We just heard back from both banks they were unable to approve our claim. 

Ultimately, I am not sure if you can recover these funds since its XXXX and does not fall under the Reg E protection. However, I do not feel Bank of West did a proper inquiry nor investigation. Additionally, shouldn't Bank of West be required to file a scam report to block these people from executing future XXXX transactions and prevent others falling victim to their scam. To be honest, I thought utilizing XXXX we would have some type of protection similarly as fraud debit card transactions. 

Please feel free to email or call me with any further questions/information. 
Thank you, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX