Consumer complaint received 2024-08-14 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem making or receiving payments
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY

Complaint narrative:
I opened a checking account with Wells Fargo XXXX  XX/XX/year> through their XXXX Co office to receive monthly income from my rental property. Money has been accumulating and recently I have tried to transfer money to accounts outside Wells Fargo. I am completely unable to access my money because Wells Fargo requires its online banking customers to receive text messages with one-time PIN codes via a United States XXXX XXXX. I live in XXXX and have only a Norwegian telephone number. Wells Fargo will not send text messages to an overseas number, so I can not access any of my money without physically visiting a Wells Fargo XXXX. 

I discovered this problem in early XXXX when I first wanted to transfer some money. Since then, I have called Wells Fargo customer service many times to try to find a solution. But every solution that Wells Fargo offers leads back to a XXXX telephone number. Some examples : I can not wire money out of Wells Fargo because the wire transfer can only be confirmed by a PIN code delivered by text message. This is true also for their service XXXX. It is a checking account, so i could write checks to access my money. But I have no checkbook. Wells Fargo will not mail checkbooks to an overseas number. They will send a checkbook to me in care of my father who lives in California. But Wells Fargo requires I confirm the check order with a PIN code delivered by text message to a XXXX XXXX number! I obtained a web based XXXX XXXX number through a service called XXXX, and I verified that I could receive text messages sent to it directly from another XXXX XXXX number. But Wells Fargo would not accept my new XXXX number for internet banking on the grounds that it was an internet-based number and therefore less secure. Most recently a customer service agent told me I could order an RSA code device and have it sent to my father in California. I did so, and on XXXX XXXX Wells Fargo sent me an email confirming my order and told me it would arrive in XXXX to XXXX business days. The device ought to have arrived by noew, but it has not. So I called Wells Fargo customer service to inquire, and was told the device order was on hold until I could confirm it using a PIN sent to a XXXX XXXX number! All customer service agents have been very helpful, but none have the suthority to break the cycle. I filed a complaint, and received a response that basically said this is all my fault because their fine print for online banking says you need a XXXX phone number and so I ought to have known. But I did not, because no one ever told me - I had to discover it all by myself. 

Wells Fargo will not provide me with an email or physical address for higher level adjudication. I am basically stuck. 

By not being able to find a solution, Wells Fargo is denying me access to my money. It is, in XXXX sense, theft. The total sum we are discussing here is about XXXX USD perhaps not a lot to a Wells Fargo XXXX, but vety important to me. I will appreciate any help you can provide. 


FYI XXXX customer service case number was XXXX. A second case number was XXXX. I received a letter from XXXX XXXX referring to my formal complaint, which had Wells Fargo case number : XXXX. 

Thank you XXXX XXXX XXXX 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