Consumer complaint received 2026-06-12 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Cashing a check
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: CA

Complaint narrative:
This is a formal dispute regarding a major business check-washing fraud claim summarily denied by Wells Fargo within 3 business days. The case involves an altered payee on a check originally issued to the United States Treasury, intercepted by an active mail-theft ring within the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Wells Fargo acted in bad faith by misapplying a 30-day reporting rule to an altered payee instrument, failing to exercise ordinary care, and refusing to initiate a Presentment Warranty breach claim against the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ), XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX XXXX. Misapplication of California Commercial Code 4406Altered Payee Exception : Wells Fargo is misapplying the 30-day preclusion window. This case involves an altered payee, which falls under a separate statutory lookback framework rather than a simple unauthorized drawer signature. Failure to Exercise Ordinary Care : Under California Commercial Code 4406 ( e ), any time limit imposed on the customer is waived if the bank failed to exercise ordinary care. Wells Fargo breached this duty by honoring a business instrument that bore highly visible chemical alteration and washing marks. Fraud Intentionally Concealed : The fraud was structurally invisible on standard bank statements. The perpetrators deliberately preserved the exact authorized check number and XXXX amount, hiding the theft from face-value statement reviews. Breach of Presentment Warranty Obligations Failure to Seek Recourse : Wells Fargo summarily closed this investigation within 72 hours without contacting the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX. Refusal of Warranty Claims : Wells Fargo refused to initiate a Presentment Warranty breach claim for an altered instrument under UCC 4-208 ( and California equivalents ), despite the drawer providing immediate notice and physical evidence. Procedural Obstruction : The bank has explicitly refused to provide an Affidavit of Forgery, review the physical evidence submitted, or allow the customer to present side-by-side forensic proof. Evidence Submitted to Wells Fargo The following evidentiary packet was served to Wells Fargo and XXXX XXXX XXXX via both email and Certified Mail : Original Check Copy : Physical photocopy of the original instrument retained for forensic examination. Comparative Images : Side-by-side photographic analysis comparing the " cleared '' check image against our high-security check stock. True Check Stock Exemplar : An uncompromised, blank copy of our check stock proving structural, security-feature, and layout mismatches on the cleared image. IRS Form 843 : Copy of our formal submission to the Internal Revenue Service regarding this stolen tax payment and financial loss. Local Police Report : Official law enforcement report filed with the local police department ( Case # XXXX Open criminal case assigned to Detective as this is a criminal ring they are investigating ) .Federal Mail Fraud Report : Formally filed report with the XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX confirming internal interception and theft within the XXXX network. Also sent this detail to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX as this is a Federal crime involving the IRS and XXXX XXXX XXXX as this was an inside job. We are fearful that XXXX XXXX XXXX is used to having accounts open and shut to allow this check to go through without taking the steps to properly verify the legitimacy and ordinary care and instead disregarding the features of a high security stock business check and instead accepting a counterfeit raw document with security features clearly altered showing evidence of it being washed with no other verification if that raw check was real. My checks have a watermark and XXXX features on the front if washed will appear " pink '' and altered. XXXX XXXX XXXX did not verify.

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