Consumer complaint received 2020-03-11
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — International money transfer
Issue: Other transaction problem — 
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION (NY)

I initiated a wire transfer to a venue based in XXXX on XX/XX/2020 through my bank, Bank of America. I had an unfortunate experience with this transfer that involves what seems like negligence to an unacceptable degree, especially if this transfer was for something less trivial than my case of booking a wedding venue. 

I initiated this wire transfer while on a vacation in XXXX. I had attempted to submit a travel notice with my bank before my departure, but when I attempted to do this I was told I no longer needed to by my bank. 

I received an email from my bank on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) stating that I needed to call them immediately to confirm that I initiated the transfer and it was not fraudulent. 

I called the wire detection number provided in the email mentioned above on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) and spoke with a representative. She confirmed that I had a pre-existing relationship with the venue I was transferring my funds to, approved the transfer, and took notes including details on how much I was transferring and that I would be making additional transfers to this business over the next year. Our call ended on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ). 

I received an email on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) informing me that my transfer was declined. I then received an email on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) informing me that my Bank of America account password was reset. 

The next day when I tried to log into my Bank of America account to re-initiate the wire transfer, I was blocked from logging in and had to verify who I was and then create a new password for my account. This involved multiple authentication modes, which is difficult when traveling with limited access to data/wi-fi only access. 

When I finally logged in to make the transfer, there was an error message preventing me from making any transfers because my account is locked. I called the number provided in the error message on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) ; after 25 minutes spent with a representative who also involved a second representative from IT, we were unable to unlock my account. They recommended I call the fraud department for further help. 

I called the fraud department on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time ( XXXX ) ; after 15 minutes spent with a representative, he also could not determine why my account was locked. He recommended I reach back out to Wire Detection ; unfortunately it was outside of their business hours because of the time difference so I could not contact them immediately. 

I called the wire detection department on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX my time XXXX XXXX XXXX. I was informed during this call that while I had spoken with one representative at the department and that even though she noted details around my account and verbally told me my transfer was unblocked and would go through, a second colleague moved ahead and cancelled my transaction without contacting her or me, or without reading details about my account. 

I find this a huge failure in communication and completely unacceptable when it comes to someones finances. What if the situation was reversed and I was in fact calling to cancel a transfer? If there was a similar failure in communication or someone failed to read the notes associated with my account, it would be plausible to assume they would move forward and approve the transaction. 

I have since re-initiated this wire transfer, and the second representative I worked with assured me she would monitor the transaction to ensure it goes through.