Consumer complaint received 2025-08-05 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Problem with a lender or other company charging your account — Transaction was not authorized
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: NY

Complaint narrative:
I mailed a check for {$5000.00} to my lawyer, XXXX XXXX, that got intercepted, altered, and cashed by someone else back in XXXX. I think the exact date was XX/XX/XXXX. I didn't catch the fraud until XX/XX/XXXX because my lawyer asked for the money again. So I went into my online account statements and saw the debit from around that time, and clicked on the check image and saw the forgery. 
The signature looks like mine, but none of the writing on the rest of it is mine. 
I reported this to Chase on XX/XX/XXXX. Started a claim to get my money repaid to me ( Claim no. XXXX ). 
I made a call to the Chase Fraud Dept. on XX/XX/XXXX and spoke to " XXXX ''. He said my claim to receive my money back was denied because it was made past the 65 day time frame. 
I called them again on XX/XX/XXXX because my understanding is that based on federal law, banks and credit unions are required to complete fraud investigations within 10-20 business days. They then have XXXX business day to correct errors, and another XXXX days to report their findings to you. If your bank fails to meet these deadlines, it has to issue temporary credit to you while it continues the investigation. They are also supposed to ask you to complete an Affidavit of Check Fraud. This is a legal document that states the check was forged. A completed affidavit establishes what type of fraud occurred and is an essential document when disputing fraudulent transactions on your account. 
I don't think the law requires the customer to report the fraud within any window of time after the occurrence of the fraud. 
When I called, I spoke to " XXXX '' and asked for an Affidavit of Check Fraud. She would not initiate this process. Furthermore, there had been no investigation into how/where the check was cashed, or how the scammer verified his identity. She just gave me a number to Chase XXXX XXXX XXXX and told me this is the number that law enforcement needs to contact about investigations ( [ XXXX ] XXXX ). 
I filed an FTC report because it is my understanding that the government can compel uncooperative banks to pay back fraud victims. If your bank processed the check as an electronic transfer, federal law XXXX provide you with additional protections. The bank will have to launch an investigation and report its findings to you in a timely manner. 
On XX/XX/XXXX, I went to my local police precinct and filed a report. I spoke to a detective who informed me that by law, they are required to re-open my case. He instructed me to call the Claims Department once a report number had been issued for me, and provide this number to the Claims Department. 
On XX/XX/XXXX, I received mail from Chase Customer Claims Department that included the Affidavit of Check Fraud. The letter, dated XX/XX/XXXX, said that although my claim is currently closed, they would reopen it as soon as I responded by filling in the Affidavit. However, at the same time, I received another notice from Chase, also dated XX/XX/XXXX, stating that my original claim had been denied, and that my account would not be reimbursed. At this time, I don't know if that means never, or if it is possible for reimbursement once the completed Affidavit has been received, or if completing the Affidavit means they will conduct an investigation but will not reimburse me. 
I completed the Affidavit and faxed it to the Claims Dept. on XX/XX/XXXX. 
On Saturday, XX/XX/XXXX, I called the XXXX and obtained my report number, XXXX, called Chase Claims, and spoke to " XXXX '', who told me that they had received the Affidavit, but that the back end team had not yet verified these documents. I will have to wait for the claim to reopen. She told me to call back in 3-5 business days to obtain an update. 
On Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX, I followed up and called Chase claims to see if they had any updates. I spoke to " XXXX '' who told me that they still had not reached a resolution, and that they were still trying to recover the stolen funds. However, I had been previously told that once they receive a fraud Affidavit it only takes XXXX days to reach a resolution. He told me to call back on Friday XX/XX/XXXX to see if there was an update. 
I called them back on Friday XX/XX/XXXX to see if there was an update. The claims representative I spoke to, whose name I did not get, told me that although they received my paperwork, my claim could still not be reopened or processed for the same original reason, that it was made out of the time frame. He said that these were agreed-upon guidelines in bank regulations, implying that this may be the standard lawful practice. I called XXXX time that day, just for good measure to verify, and spoke to an agent named " XXXX '' who reiterated what the person I spoke to earlier had said ; that checks that are reported after the 65 day time frame are not recoverable. 
I reiterated my above understanding of federal law, that bank are required to complete fraud investigations, report their findings to you, and if they fail to do this promptly, must issue temporary credit to you while they continue the investigation. 
On XX/XX/XXXX, I called the XXXX XXXX precinct and spoke to XXXX XXXX who had been assigned my case. He said that he had contacted the XXXX XXXX Attorney office and requested a subpoena to make XXXX XXXX, the bank where the check had been cashed, investigate the illegal activity. 
On XX/XX/XXXX, I called Chase Claims again to see if there was any further resolution possible. I spoke to XXXX XXXX " XXXX XXXX '', to see if the claim could be reopened. He reiterated what I had been told previously, that after the 65 day time frame, they lose any recovery option with the receiving bank.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation