Consumer complaint received 2024-08-10 00:00:00
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam — 
Company: WESTERN ALLIANCE BANCORPORATION
State: TX

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I received an email from XXXX XXXX of XXXX XXXX, with instructions and screencaps on how to set-up an auto-pay account with Alliance Bank ( see XXXX XXXX ). I cant recall the reason for the abrupt switch, but I honestly didnt care at the time. 

Approximately 5 years later, I received a certified mail with a demand letter from XXXX XXXX for fines and late fees totaling {$200.00}. I was completely dumbfounded, the main reason why I voluntarily signed up for auto-pay was to ensure that my assessments would be paid on time every month and late fees avoided. I had been receiving payment confirmation emails ( see XXXX  XXXX ) from Alliance Bank at the end of every month for approximately 5 years and there was nothing to indicate that anything was amiss. As a paperless household, I use auto-pay to help manage all of my bills. From my utilities to internet, I would basically set them all on auto-pay and be worry-free to focus on other things. Not once have I ever had a problem or issue with auto-pay until I started using Alliance Bank , solely at the behest of XXXX XXXX . We really didnt have a choice, if we wanted to use auto-pay, Alliance Bank was the only option available. 

According to XXXX XXXX, the late fees and subsequent fines were accrued whenever the HOA increased our monthly assessments and I failed to adjust my auto-pay accordingly to reflect the higher amount owed. They had explained that anytime the full amount is not received, its considered late and a fine would be assessed. I still didnt quite understand what the issue was since the balance for some of my other bills would fluctuate month-to-month and auto-pay has been working flawlessly for me. How is it possible to be setup on auto-pay and still accrue late fees at the same time? It was oxymoronic to me, so I decided to investigate and logged on to my account with Alliance to learn more. After the initial auto-pay setup that occurred 5 years earlier, I realized I had never logged back on because how often would anyone need to do that after setting up their auto-pay? After clicking on the XXXX link to the Alliance Bank web portal, I did not recognize the user interface and immediately needed a password reset to gain access to my account ( see XXXX  XXXX ). 

Once I was able to gain access, what I had discovered was really shocking and unlike any other auto-pay service I had ever used or witnessed ( XXXX  XXXX ). My first observation was the {$1.00} fee per ACH transaction, I have never been charged a fee to use auto-pay before. On top of that, this {$1.00} fee was never once mentioned nor disclosed in any of the screen caps from XXXX XXXX XXXX instructional email, nor do I recall ever being asked for my consent. 

Whats even more troubling was the verbiage right under the Fixed Amount box, a sentence and acknowledgement that I found to be highly unusual, impractical, and offensively intrusive to my financial privacy rights. It reads, You acknowledge and agree that your Association may update, however, is not required to updated your payment amount when a new assessment is assigned by the Association. As a grammatical sentence, its completely meaningless, incomprehensible, and misleading. Its only purpose was to inform the account holders that other people or the Association would have access and authority to change the auto-pay amount without their knowledge or consent. This is a completely outrageous, invasive, and patently ridiculous requirement of Alliance Bank for the use of its {$1.00} per payment auto-pay service. As the sole provider of the auto-pay service to homeowners at XXXX, Alliance Bank has a complete monopoly, courtesy of XXXX XXXX and potentially in violation of the United States antitrust laws. In exchange for this quid pro quo arrangement, Alliance Bank has given XXXX XXXX, veily disguised as the Association, unfettered access to its banking customers accounts without prior consent or proper authorization. 

Needless to say, I was livid and felt totally betrayed by Alliance Bank as a client and eventually decided to close my account. In an email exchange with XXXX XXXX, the HOA Support Specialist for Alliance Bank, about unauthorized access, he had indicated ( XXXX  XXXX ) that you logged youre your payment account on XX/XX/XXXX, but the ip address for that activity and specified date was inexplicably and conveniently omitted from their account log. Whereas my password reset request and activity back on XX/XX/XXXX, was logged with my home ip address, the activity back on XX/XX/XXXX was completed XXXX. I have requested proof of prior consent and even emailed associates of Alliance Bank many similar questions to XXXX XXXX. Their responses or a lack thereof, has been repetitive, evasive, and consistent all the way up to XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX  XXXX ). Please refer to your homeowners association appears to be the standing order and standard response for all Alliance Bank associates. The idea that our XXXX XXXX, a non-profit entity located in XXXX XXXX Texas, and its governing documents, would have direct impact, influence, and oversight of Alliance Bank operations is a concept beyond my limited comprehension. Does it also supersede federal banking laws, regulatory compliance, and jurisdiction of XXXX XXXX, Nevada? What does my HOA have to do with an ACH payment transaction conducted at a bank located approximately XXXX miles away in a different state and time zone? What happens if the Association used it XXXX  privileges to adjust the auto-pay amount to {$1000.00} on an account belonging to an XXXX  resident like my next-door neighbor, XXXX XXXX, who is XXXX XXXX XXXX and doesnt own a computer or tech savvy enough to uncover this gross invasion of privacy perpetrated by XXXX XXXX  in cooperation with Alliance Bank? How can we be certain that it hasnt happened already? 

When I later tried to log back on to my account, I learned that I had been placed on hold ( XXXX XXXX ). When I confronted Alliance Bank about my current status and reminded them of their complete monopoly over the auto-pay service for XXXX residents, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX the HOA Operations Manager , said, You do have the option to mail a check or by using your financial institutions XXXX XXXX ( XXXX  XXXX ). 

Following XXXX XXXX advice, I inconveniently mailed my assessment check to Alliance Bank well in advance of the XX/XX/XXXX due date but nevertheless, I was still assessed a late fee by XXXX XXXX. Learning from my earlier mistake that trust must be earned and not given, I brought the check, stamped envelope, and visited the nearest USPS post office. I asked XXXX XXXX XXXX to mail, sign and bear witness ( XXXX  XXXX ) to the check and letter being sent. Nevertheless, the outcome was the exactly the same and my check didnt clear until well over a month later ( XXXX  XXXX ), providing XXXX XXXX with the perfect opportunity to assess another late fee and fine to my account. Its either an unbelievable coincidence or Alliance Bank was intentionally withholding my check as retaliation for my actions and demand of accountability from XXXX XXXX, an Alliance Bank business partner and co-conspirator against commerce, market competition, and fair trade. Its no wonder why Alliance Bank has earned such high praise and rave reviews from XXXX XXXX ( XXXX  XXXX ). 

According to XXXX XXXX, Chief Operating Officer & Partner at XXXX XXXX XXXX, Alliance Association Bank does what they do better than anyone else because it is their true specialization. So, what exactly is it that Alliance Bank specializes in that gives it a competitive advantage over all of the other banks in Texas? Why would a property management company located in XXXX, Texas, force homeowners of the XXXX community located in XXXX XXXX, Texas, to send money and patronize a bank from the state of Nevada? Well, as it turns out, no other bank can intentionally manipulate the auto-pay option quite like Alliance Association Bank , a subsidiary of Western Alliance Bank , a reputable organization with a sterling reputation and well-established Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that all employees must agree to, as a condition for employment. 

When homeowners and/or consumers sign up for auto-pay, a vast majority of them use the Total New Balance option. Its not an insider secret and this option is practically synonymous with auto-pay. When you say auto-pay, it means paying the total balance or whatever amount is owed on a specific calendar day. No one signs up for auto-pay so he or she can periodically log back in to make adjustments, thats completely nonsensical and counter-intuitive to the whole concept of auto-pay. 

When you access the Alliance Bank portal to set-up a scheduled auto-pay, you will notice they only offer 2 convenient options for a fee of {$1.00} to XXXX homeowners. A one-time payment and a scheduled payment ( XXXX  XXXX ). The XXXX and most widely-used option of any auto-pay service has completely disappeared. Is this the illusion, magic trick, and specialization that XXXX XXXX was raving about? Well, spoiler alert, theres nothing special about deceptive business practices, thats why Texas has the Deceptive Trade Practices Act and the federal government has the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. If you simply scroll down to the bottom of the page ( XXXX  XXXX ) and click on the Online Payment Terms and Conditions, on the 2nd page of their 12-page pdf file titled ONLINE PAYMENT SERVICE END USER TERMS AND CONDITIONS, you will learn that Total New Balance is the 3rd option of their Scheduled Payment Program ( XXXX  XXXX ). Its very important to read the fine prints, I would highly recommend that Alliance Association Bank start with their own. 

Not only is this unethical, Alliance Association Bank is an active participant in a fraudulent scheme and racket against its own paying customers. By intentionally removing the 3rd and most important scheduled payment option, Alliance is creating the ideal condition and confounding environment for busy individuals and unsuspecting homeowners to mess up so XXXX XXXX will have the opportunity to assess its infamous {$25.00} late fees. Its helping to generate an additional revenue stream for XXXX XXXX that may or may not go back to the coffers of the XXXX XXXX, a Texas non-profit entity. Last I checked, XXXX XXXX and Alliance Association Bank are not 501 ( c ) organizations. 

Its not a coincidence for XXXX XXXX to choose a bank in Nevada to open an account for an HOA with an estimated annual budget of {$4.00} XXXX. Alliance Association Bank is located outside the jurisdiction of Texas state laws, district court orders, and well beyond the reach of our community governing documents aka covenant. Alliance Association Bank works with property management companies like XXXX XXXX, not HOAs, its a very important distinction. Our web portal link to the bank is XXXX not XXXX, so there should be no doubt about who has control of the XXXX XXXX bank account at Alliance Association Bank. If I were a betting man, I would have my money on XXXX XXXX XXXX, our former property manager and current property director, a position they mustve created just for her. I would be very surprised if any of the board members actually have access to the bank account as required by the covenant. For these reasons and more, I thought it was only appropriate to file this formal complaint with the CFPB and I hope a referral to US Attorneys Office and/or FBI field office to investigate this matter further will soon follow. Thank you, I look forward to your response and guidance.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation