Consumer complaint received 2025-08-31 00:00:00
Product: Prepaid card — Government benefit card
Issue: Problem with a purchase or transfer — Card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase or transfer
Company: Comerica
State: LA

Complaint narrative:
My daughter had a XXXX XXXX account with a card indicating it was associated with Comerica Bank. She died in XX/XX/XXXX, leaving behind XXXX children. I am her mother, and I have full custody of the children. I am the representative payee for the children 's Social Security benefits. At the time of my daughter 's death, her XXXX XXXX account had a balance of {$15000.00}. ( I have the receipt. ) In XX/XX/XXXX, I contacted a XXXX XXXX representative to determine the necessary steps to transfer the money in my daughters account to my representative account for her children. I was sent a form letter detailing what was needed to transfer the money. Among the items they stated were needed was an Affidavit of Small Succession. I paid a lawyer to draft that form, and he sent a letter and the Affidavit of Small Succession to XXXX XXXX requesting the transfer of the funds. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notice from XXXX XXXX that there was a XXXX balance in the account. The letter stated I should contact the paying agency, which was Social Security. 

I visited the local Social Security office in XX/XX/XXXX. The Social Security office sent a notice to XXXX XXXX and submitted a Form R-14 requesting that XXXX XXXX transfer the money back to the Treasury so the Social Security office could redistribute the money into my representative account for the children. The Social Security agent told me this could take up to 3 months. She, the SS agent, also found out the account was no longer listed in my daughter 's name, but instead was listed under each of her children 's names with new account numbers. No funds were in any of the accounts, though. 

When 5 months had passed and nothing had happened, I revisited the Social Security office in XX/XX/XXXX. I requested that they resubmit the Form R-14. Other than that, they ( Social Security ) indicated there was little else they could do. 

When I left the Social Security office that day, I tried to contact XXXX XXXX again by phone. Someone from XXXX XXXX returned the phone call and left a message explaining that her office only handled living beneficiaries. She said I needed to let Social Security know they needed to submit a Form R-14 to have the money removed from my daughter 's card and sent back to Social Security XXXX She said the entire process would need to occur between Social Security and the Treasury. At this point the Form R-14 had already been submitted at least twice. 

Then, in XX/XX/XXXX, I talked to someone named XXXX from the Social Security office during a telephone appointment. She stated she had researched the issue and contacted Comerica Bank. She said Comerica Bank stated they were returning payments line by line back to the Treasury. She was told by Comerica Bank that when the Treasury receives all the money from my daughters account, the money will be transferred back to Social Security. After Social Security receives the money, it will disperse the funds to the representative payee for the children, per the Form R-14. That was 10 months ago, and I have still not received the funds in my or the children 's accounts. 

I do not understand how returning payments line by line since XX/XX/XXXX ( when the original Form R-14 was issued ) could take this long. Spending 16 months going line by line to transfer money from a XXXX XXXX account back to the Treasury does not seem necessary or realistic to me. 

My worst fear is that someone involved in the process has misappropriated the funds in some way. 

Please let me know what I should do to resolve this issue.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation