Consumer complaint received 2025-05-30 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem using a debit or ATM card
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
Hi, In XX/XX/year>, I opened a claim ( a dispute ) with Wells Fargo, which was my bank at that time. I used my debit card to pay for XXXX housing deposits, each worth XXXX, to XXXX XXXX- XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX. 

On both occasions, the housing fell through. Thus, I filed a dispute with Wells Fargo to recover my money. XXXX XXXX XXXX advertises on the website that the deposit is fully refundable. The contract states that the deposit is refundable as long as I do not cancel or refuse the housing. When I filed the dispute with the Wells Fargo Claims department, I eloquently explained what happened multiple times to the customer service agents working for Wells Fargo and to the agents working for the Claims Department. I stated that the manager canceled the contract. Thus, I am entitled to a refund. Shockingly, my claim was denied, and Wells Fargo closed my claim without asking for evidence, such as a signed contract. 

Wells Fargo prematurely rejected my claim without sufficient evidence, thereby perpetrating fraud on my account. I closed my checking account with Wells Fargo today because I don't want to bank with a company that has a history of fraud. When Wells Fargo refused my claim and backcharged me the money ( temporary credit ) without listening to the recordings of my conversations with the bank, I had to close my account to prevent fraud in the future. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX acted maliciously by conducting fraud and retaining the money without providing me with the service I was entitled to. XXXX XXXX XXXX refused to refund me. When I requested refunds via email, they never responded. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX poorly communicated with me. For example, when my husband and I called with questions about housing, they never answered the phones. We left voicemails, but they never returned our calls. Regardless of what time of day we called, they never answered the phones. They never responded to emails promptly, and I ended up paying the housing deposit twice. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX did not provide clear and timely instructions on how to complete the second part of the housing application with the XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX The XXXX XXXX replied to my email very late, after the manager at XXXX XXXX XXXX had canceled my contract, and I lost the studio I had reserved. Thus, the service was not rendered. When I requested a refund, I received no response. Instead, the manager asked me to resubmit a second housing application and pay a second housing deposit of XXXX. Because I had to find housing to attend XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX in the XXXX starting this fall, I spent the second deposit, thinking Wells Fargo would protect me if I needed a refund. 

I paid both deposits to a foreign country, thinking my bank had my back. Instead, Wells Fargo denied my claim without evidence. After I received the denial letter in the mail, I called Wells Fargo, and the customer service agent lied to me that she reopened the claim. She also asked me to submit the contract so she can reopen the claim. I emailed both the contract to Wells Fargo claims and the email from the manager, demonstrating that she had canceled the contract. However, when I called Wells Fargo claims a few days later because I noticed that the bank had backcharged me XXXX twice and denied my claim, I realized the customer service agent had lied to me about reopening the claim. 

The bank made a false closure of the claim without evidence. The bank did not have a contract, but it decided to close the claim without reviewing the contract terms. When I called to reopen the claim, a new agent told me it is not possible to reopen the claim. I want the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to interfere because Wells Fargo does not listen to me. I feel powerless. The bank does NOT respect women 's voices. The bank ignored all my conversations and decided without considering my situation to refuse my claim. 

The bank acted unfairly, so I closed my account today and opened a new one with XXXX XXXX, a XXXX XXXX. I hope the XXXX XXXX will serve me better than the American bank. I hope to remain with XXXX XXXX in the long term. XXXX advertises humanism ; I hope to be treated as a human being with XXXX XXXX. 

Wells Fargo never listened to me ; instead, they recorded conversations without reviewing the content before making a final decision on my claim. I can no longer bank with American banks. I find that American banks often lack humanism and treat customers like commodities. I explained myself very well to Wells Fargo, but the customer service representatives never seem to listen. All they do is apologize, but they don't make the right decisions. Every time I called, someone new answered. There is no one responsible for my claim to talk to. No one else knows what I'm talking about. They pretend to listen, but they lie and protect the fraudsters, such as those on XXXX XXXX XXXX. I had the second housing contract reviewed by the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX who called me from the XXXX. I was advised not to sign the second contract because XXXX XXXX XXXX acted without conscience and in violation of the law. But Wells Fargo supports the fraud and allowed XXXX XXXX XXXX to keep the money. Thus, I will never bank with American banks again. 

I have XXXX more comment to make about XXXX XXXX XXXX. When I requested to schedule a phone consultation with XXXX XXXX XXXX, I received no response. After the XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX advised me not to sign the second contract, and after XXXX XXXX XXXX failed to respond to my email requesting a phone consultation about the housing contract terms, I realized that XXXX XXXX XXXX is a scam. That's when I stopped communicating with XXXX XXXX XXXX. Wells Fargo backed up XXXX XXXX XXXX. Thus, I left Wells Fargo. My money and transactions are not protected against fraud with Wells Fargo, so I stopped banking with them. The only detailed email I received from XXXX XXXX XXXX was a day or XXXX after I talked to the XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX on the phone. The XXXX  XXXX XXXX must have contacted XXXX XXXX XXXX and informed them about what happened to me, and that's when XXXX XXXX XXXX emailed me the answers to the questions I had requested weeks earlier. The email came late because I had already paid the second housing deposit. 

Thank you for listening. 

Sincerely, 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