Consumer complaint received 2025-09-30 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Banking errors
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: TN

Complaint narrative:
I received a {$100.00} cash bonus offer through email from Bank of America on XX/XX/XXXX ( with a further follow up email on XX/XX/XXXX ). The terms were as follows : XXXX. Enroll in the offer by XX/XX/XXXX ( I enrolled on XX/XX/XXXX and have a screenshot as proof ). XXXX. Set up and receive qualifying direct deposits totaling {$1000.00} or more into your existing eligible personal checking account within 90 days of enrolling. I successfully hit {$1000.00} in direct deposits on XX/XX/XXXX, well within the 90 day window after enrolling. 

Per the offer, " After you satisfy all of the requirements, we'll attempt to deposit your cash bonus into your eligible checking account within 60 days ''. As today 's date is XX/XX/XXXX, clearly more than 60 days have passed since completing the requirements and I have still not received the {$100.00} bonus. I contacted Bank of America on Thursday, XX/XX/XXXX and the customer service representative told me that while I successfully completed all of the required activities to receive the cash bonus, I was not eligible because I previously received a cash bonus offer from Bank of America when I first opened the account in XX/XX/XXXX. The customer service rep mentioned that Bank of America only allows XXXX cash bonus for the entire life of the account. 

Here is the full text from the offer outlining which accounts are eligible : " Offer is limited to individuals who receive the offer via a direct communication from Bank of America and currently own an existing XXXX Bank of America personal checking account. Fiduciary accounts ( e.g., trusts ), Bank of America XXXX XXXX Banking for XXXX Banking accounts, and business accounts are not eligible for this offer. Offer can not be combined with any other checking offer and is limited to XXXX bonus per account and per customer. Offer expires on XX/XX/XXXX. Bank of America XXXX change or discontinue this offer at any time before this date without notice. '' I received the offer via a direct email communication from Bank of America addressed directly to my name as a Special Offer and I currently own an existing XXXX Bank of America XXXX XXXX personal checking account ( i.e., an eligible account ). 

The crux of the matter comes down to this sentence : " Offer can not be combined with any other checking offer and is limited to XXXX bonus per account and per customer. '' This sentence is unnecessarily vague and does not imply " XXXX lifetime bonus per account '', as mentioned by the customer service rep. 

" Offer can not be combined with any other checking offer '' - there was no combination of offers - my original offer in XXXX was exclusively for new checking accounts ( whereas this offer explicitly states that it is for existing customers ), had different terms ( {$2000.00} in direct deposits in order to receive a {$200.00} bonus ), and had no overlapping direct deposits ( for the original offer I completed the {$2000.00} requirement on XX/XX/XXXX and received the {$200.00} bonus on XX/XX/XXXX. The offer that I am submitting this complaint about was offered to me in XX/XX/XXXX and all of my direct deposits occurred in XX/XX/XXXX. ) These are clearly XXXX separate offers that were completed separately from XXXX another and therefore there was no combination of offers. Combination implies a concurrent redemption - clearly there was no concurrent combination here as the direct deposits that satisfied the terms of the deal do not overlap in any way. 

" is limited to XXXX bonus per account and per customer '' - again, this sentence provides no implication of a lifetime limit of XXXX bonus. This sentence merely eliminates the following XXXX opportunities for abuse of the bonus : XXXX XXXX bonus per account - as the terms provide a {$100.00} bonus for {$1000.00} in direct deposits, you can not redeem this cash bonus multiple times- ( i.e., you won't receive {$200.00} for $ XXXX in XXXX, {$300.00} for $ XXXX in XXXX, or {$500.00} for $ XXXX in XXXX. The bonus is limited to {$100.00} as long as you meet the minimum of $ XXXX in XXXX ) and XXXX. 
XXXX bonus per account and per customer- if XXXX customer has XXXX eligible BoA checking accounts, they can only receive the {$100.00} bonus on XXXX of the accounts. I have only XXXX BoA checking account so this section does not apply to me. 

I have attached the email offers/terms for both the original new account bonus and the subsequent existing account bonus that I am submitting this complaint about, as well as a screenshot of my enrollment. There is no mention in the original offer that acceptance of that offer bars me from further cash bonus offer redemption, nor is there any mention in the more recent offer that my previous bonus bars me from participation. I can provide personal account statements showing successful direct deposits if requested, but am not providing at this time to protect my identity. 

Further, I should not be receiving personalized " special offers '' if I am not eligible for them - I should have been placed on an " excluded from promotions '' list prior to ever receiving this more recent offer if I was truly ineligible. This is clearly a deceptive practice by BoA to entice customer deposits through promotions that they have no intention of honoring.

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 monetary relief