Consumer complaint received 2025-10-26 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem using a debit or ATM card
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
State: NJ

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX I caught a couple fraudulent charges on my account. After looking into it and ensuring these were not done by me I reached out to the bank. I spoke to probably XXXX different people over a week span and a couple supervisors also. I pleaded with them that I had never been to XXXX New Jersey and I had never heard of XXXX XXXX  which is located only in that area not in mine. I repeatedly told them that I was certain this was an error or fraud and more than XXXX person basically told me I must be mistaken and was the XXXX in that city taking the money out. It is a couple hours from me and I'm certain I've never been. I also just started driving after recent car accident and explain to them that I'm certain I haven't driven more than XXXX minutes from my house in months. Nothing I said seemed to matter and twice they denied my claim and would not refund me. I did however get XXXX supervisor who agreed he believes my card is cloned canceled my card due to this activity but the actual claim got denied and would not refund it. Because of this I also started racking up fees as it bounced my account. It's over {$200.00} and none of them seem to think that that was a big deal nor did it seem like I was believed as they all said well it had to have been you your chip was used and your claim was denied because you told us that you have not lost your card and it's still in my possession. And I did tell them all the facts including that my card did not leave my side yet it's showing it's taking money out hours away. It was clear to me that my card was compromised somewhere but for some reason every agent I spoke to over the hours of time in the past XXXX weeks made me feel foolish like I was lying or that I'm just that stupid and maybe forgot I went to XXXX New Jersey. It's absurd for more than XXXX person to try to convince me that I made this transaction all three of them. It was 2 days exactly a week apart XXXX for the same amount of XXXX a {$60.00} withdrawal with ATM fee XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX the other on XX/XX/XXXX. There was a third transaction on the eighth directly after for XXXX. So another XXXX bucks was pulled out with the {$3.00} fee right after the second {$60.00} withdrawal same day. I did my research to ensure this was not showing as XXXX but really something else and confirmed they were absolute ATM debits made in XXXX XXXX. The only explanation would be a cloned card as it was showing my chip was used. After XXXX weeks of calling and XXXX denials I spoke again to another XXXX who informed me there was nothing he could do that basically because I admitted to having my card I'm the one who caused this claim to be denied. He told me to find my own proof and call this bank myself. I advised him I will not be able to get my own proof as they will not just hand over ATM footage so I now have to file a police report. Possibly have XXXX XXXX a couple hours away to do so. I'm going to try to file the report in my area as there's only XXXX stores that I would have used my chip and I am assuming this is where my card was compromised. XXXX told to do my own investigation on this and repeatedly by many people that I must be mistaken and had to be the one who made these transactions was really insulting. In my 5 years of banking with them these are the only transactions that take place in that City. That would be a clear indicator to me that maybe I'm telling the truth. So basically I was told my claim is no good because I admitted to No One stealing my card. They have to be educated on card cloning as the one manager I spoke to immediately thought it was that seeing is that the transactions were under a XXXX each time and a week apart exactly. After speaking to him I thought this would be resolved but then received a letter that my second review of this was denied and they did not deem it fraud. The time and hours I spent trying to figure this out with them is insane. And I mean hours and hours over XXXX week period. Being told to get my own proof is also crazy no one is going to hand over anything like that to me. I just recently had a really bad car accident and not back to work yet so me being out over {$200.00} is big I'm a single mom I'm my only income. I mean I cried to these people out of frustration of repeating myself over and over and I either got transferred given completely false information or was told I must be mistaken. When I did visit the branch they would send me back to the XXXX number and I was even told by a gentleman at the XXXX heights branch of citizens Bank he did not have the XXXX hours to explain anything like this to me. This whole experience has made me want to stop using the bank and I am going to open up a new account somewhere else and use it strictly when I need to because this has been such a nightmare. The time I have spent on the phone and repeating is enough to make anybody go insane I mean that honestly the stress was eating me up and it felt like XXXX people XXXX person believed me. The fraudulent transactions were done the first week of XXXX going into the second and that is when I noticed it on the XXXX of XXXX. Saw the transactions from the XXXX and found the third transaction from the first. These were all reported and I started claims on XX/XX/XXXX. I stayed on top of this since and had it reviewed twice I emailed the review team I spoke to supervisors and my last phone call was that to go find my own proof. So in XXXX weeks and all that time I literally got nowhere except left without my debit card since my claim was good enough to cancel that but not good enough to refund my money. Its absolutely asinine that my conversation with the supervisor in which my card was canceled and he gave me some info on cloned cards meant nothing as far as my claim went. I can't even see how they would come up with the fact that that is a transaction typical for me besides that it shows a chp was used. Like I said everything else was very out of the ordinary the bank the city never ever in my history of transactions so I am not sure what they base this on it seems nothing and they looked into nothing except for the fact that a chip was used.. I can't afford to just lose {$200.00} so I have to see this through even if that XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX hours to XXXX New Jersey and report it to that police station which I'm hoping I don't have to do. I'm sorry if this is a handful it's a lot of information my brain is feeling the pain honestly the stress of this is insane. I had someone hack my account a few months ago and it took me a month to get it worked out. This time around has been XXXX times worse and I've gotten nowhere.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation