Consumer complaint received 2025-02-26 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Problem caused by your funds being low — Bounced checks or returned payments
Company: M&T BANK CORPORATION
State: PA

Complaint narrative:
This complaint stems from a scam from which I have already reported to the XXXX and law enforcement as well as the FTC. I have detailed the scam for context of the situation. I received the email about a runway fashion show that needed a dj. I run a DJ/ Entertainment business out of XXXX XXXX. I received an email from XXXX detailing a DJ Gig for a HIGH FASHION runway show. I responded that I was interested on XX/XX/XXXX and the scammer responded with an email highlighting all the details for the event. The " gig '' was a promotional event to showcase items from various designers and create a " commercial character. '' This email also detailed my compensation for the gig stating that I would receive {$XXXX} for an upfront/booking fee and an additional amount for design of custom DJ gear and wardrobe that I would wear on the days of the Event as well as {$XXXX} upon the first day of the event. The email then states that an advance deposit check for {$XXXX} will be sent to my house so I can pay for my custom wardrobe and gear. The email then says I would be the one paying for the gear so they can mark it in their records and ensure a tailored customization for my wardrobe/gear. Date of email XX/XX/XXXX XXXX XXXX. The email also asked for my address so they could send the advance check and the custom DJ gear. So I responded with my full name, address, zip code and age on XX/XX/XXXX so they could send me the checks and gear. The XXXX then sent a follow up email welcoming me aboard the project and said they would send the payments all in one check and that I would have to deduct {$XXXX} for my advance pay and the rest will have to be sent by me to the designers to cover the expenses of my gear and shipping. They then asked for my measurements so that they could design my outfits. I provided them my sizing and then XXXX XXXX responded with an email on XX/XX/XXXX with a XXXX  tracking number for the envelope with the check. The tracking number was # XXXX. The package was sent from a XXXX office in XXXX, XXXX, but the label was created from a stolen business address. The fraudulent address on the label of the envelope containing the check was XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  XXXX. Ship date was XX/XX/XXXX. My check was delivered on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX XXXX  and contained a check addressed to me for {$XXXX} from XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX and the check also had The Northern Trust XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  and the check was payable through XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. Check No. XXXX. The scammer was now contacting me through my phone #. ( XXXX ) XXXX was the number he contacted me under and his new alias " XXXX XXXX ''. The phone # was stolen from an older man in New York. XXXX asked for me to deposit the check at my local bank and send a picture of the receipt after the deposit. I went to my local M & T bank branch in XXXX XXXX and deposited the check in the ATM. I then sent him the receipt of the deposit and waited a day for the check to be posted onto my bank account. The next day XX/XX/XXXX is when I saw the money had been made available in my account. XXXX then asked me to send {$XXXX} to a XXXX user @ XXXX for the wardrobe stylist. However XXXX prohibited my payment from going through and returned my money. The scammer then asked if I could do another method of payment, and I said I could XXXX the wardrobe XXXX. He said that would be good and gave me the information for the XXXX wire transfer. He requested {$XXXX} to be sent to " XXXX XXXX '' - ( XXXX ) XXXX. XXXX was the Wardrobe Designer 's XXXX. {$XXXX} was all I could send within the XXXX hour limit on XXXX so I sent the money, believing that the check he sent was legit. The payment went through and he asked for a receipt of the payment, so I sent a screenshot. The payment was made on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX XXXX  confirmation : XXXX. The XXXX then asked for additional {$XXXX} for the wardrobe and I sent it on XXXX to $ XXXX " XXXX XXXX XXXX '' at XXXX the same day. The scammer also asked for an additional {$XXXX} to be sent to cover the shipping of the entire wardrobe and gear. I sent the money to the same XXXX XXXX account. Finally on Friday XX/XX/XXXX, I checked my checking account and saw that my account had - {$XXXX} and my account before all this had around {$XXXX}. This XXXX not be a lot of money, but for me it was all I had and then some. I had sent a total of {$XXXX} and then the check bounced on Friday. After I had been scammed, the sent me an even bigger check for {$XXXX} from XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  XXXX, but I never deposited that XXXX since my account was now frozen. I first contacted M & T bank, filed a dispute, and then filed a police report with the XXXX XXXX Police Department. I also filed a dispute with XXXX, even though the payments have been already processed. My XXXX assigned to the case had reached some information, and so did I with some digging. What we know : Someone had created fraudulent shipping labels from actual businesses and attached them to the envelopes containing the checks. They then dropped off the checks to have them shipped from a XXXX XXXX in XXXX, XXXX. The scammer has XXXX known phone numbers and can be reached. Aliases : XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX ( XXXX Name ) $ XXXX ( XXXX  Tag ). Phone Numbers : ( XXXX ) XXXX, ( XXXX ) XXXX, XXXX ( Scam Email ). The checks were scanned and brought in sometime around XXXX to the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  and it was shipped out at XXXX on XXXX  XX/XX/XXXX. The XXXX phone # has also been stolen from a citizen in XXXX XXXX. The XXXX assisting me with my case is XXXX XXXX with the XXXX XXXX Police Department, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, XXXX  XXXX. He has also contacted XXXX 's fraud department to see if they can come up with anything. I actually called ( XXXX ) phone number to see if it went through, and what sounded like a XXXX male answered. I asked if his name was XXXX XXXX and the man responded yes. This is all the information we have right now. 

The complaint I would like to submit against the bank XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ) is that the fraudulent check cleared after one day. I waited until the check cleared to actually send money. The check amount showed up on my account " XXXX XXXX '' and " Available Balance. '' My balance ( XXXX ) went from {$XXXX} ( before fraud check deposit ) to {$XXXX} on XX/XX/XXXX, even though I deposited at an ATM not an in person teller. I waited to the next day to send money to the scammer and to make sure that the check had cleared. As far as I knew the check cleared. The check amount was " posted '' to my account and both my Available and Total balance showed {$XXXX}. After I wired the money to the scammer I still had {$XXXX} XX/XX/XXXX. One part of this complaint is that the bank did not sense any suspicious activity at all, and had not called or reached out to both account owners ( My father and I ). I went from depositing low amounts of money from my part-time job to depositing a huge check and withdrawing huge amounts of money for use on third-party wire transfer services. XXXX was the only company that sensed suspicious activity and did not let me wire the money. After the scam had happened I had talked to the M & T branch XXXX, XXXX XXXX, about my next steps. She said I had XXXX  days until the account would be terminated and the remaining balance will impact my XXXX XXXX of not settled before the XXXX  days. I then called M & T XXXX at XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX and spoke to a representative to file a dispute. I asked the representative how this could happen. She said that checks don't actually get verified until they take them out from the ATM and go through them XXXX days later. '' So then why were the funds debited to my account if I never actually had the money? '' I asked. The representative responded stating that M & T has a money next day policy no matter what. This policy is also part of my complaint, because it could lead to thousands of deceptive scams, just like the one I had gone through. About a week after the scam ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I received a call from another M & T corporate representative XXXX ( XXXX ) denying the dispute and saying the funds were already sent and authorized. She also said that I would have only a week to pay off the balance before the account was terminated. I told her that the branch XXXX had told me XXXX  days and she said she would check with the XXXX. I also asked the same questions I have asked before and she responded that checks can bounce up to XXXX  years from when they were deposited. This was crazy to me and does not make any sense. I then filed a complaint with the XXXX and they deferred it to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX  ) case no. XXXX. I also reported the scam to the PA Attorney General 's office case no. XXXX. M & T 's Senior Vice President of Customer Advocacy XXXX XXXX wrote a response to the complaint. In this response, it is said that my " account remains under review ... '' Under the section regarding funds availability " The check you deposited on XX/XX/XXXX, reflected availability prior to the return as applicable law requires banks to make funds available within set time frames unless certain exceptions apply. In this case, M & T was unaware the check was fraudulent, therefore, we had no reason to delay availability. '' I believe that M & T is at fault here because the company should have the discretion to notice the unusually large amounts of deposits and withdraws. Also under this section : " In addition, our Availability Disclosure for Consumer Deposit Accounts, states under Other Exceptions, this availability schedule does not affect our right to refuse to accept an item for deposit or our right to charge your account or otherwise obtain a refund from you for any item that is not fully paid, regardless of the reason for nonpayment. '' however I could not find this exception and only found the disclosure for a mobile deposit, even though my deposit was at an ATM. The response also states that our account is still currently under review. We also just received a letter in the mail stating the M & T will no longer do business with us. The letter states that they do not have to disclose why they are ending business with us. How are they ending business with us if my account is " still under review '' as stated in the last response by M & T XXXX XXXX?

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation