Consumer complaint received 2024-12-06 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Closing an account — Funds not received from closed account
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: NC

Complaint narrative:
I own a funeral home company and Chase Bank is the financial institution that the company account is set up with. On XX/XX/year> a check was deposited into the account. The check was made out to the beneficiary of the deceased which is in our care. It's normal procedure for a payee to sign the bank check and the funeral home to deposit the signed check into the funeral home account. This has been done many times before without any inconvenience to the business or the payee. The check was put on a XXXX  day hold and once the XXXX  days were up the check was cleared Into the business account. I received a message from Chase Bank informing me that I needed to contact customer service support. Once contacting them I was told there was a restriction placed on the account and all funds were frozen. I can't even access funds not associated with the check! Customer support stated that a verification process was needed to release the freeze on the account and the ONLY way to do this was by phone verification. I provided the bank with the check holders phone number and I was told that the number provided wasn't an identifiable number for the check holder. Due to the sensitivity of there being a deceased person involved, this verification process should've been done prior to cashing their check which would've been easier to return and at least the family could make other arrangements for providing payment to the funeral home instead of tying up their funds. When a person passes away an insurance company doesn't just issue a check to the beneficiary, there is an extensive verification process between the funeral home and the insurance company ( social security number, date of birth, signature, address, full name and notarization ). I was confident that the requested information was and should be identifiable as there were no issues with the insurance company to verify with the funeral home and issue the payment to the beneficiary. Now we have a deceased person in our care and because the phone number isn't identifiable to the check holder I can't even return the check to the family to move forward with purchasing merchandise and services for the deceased. Everything is at a standstill while their deceased mother lies in limbo. 

I have requested escheatment information and status updates for my account Account ending in XXXX. This account was suspended/closed and, to my knowledge, holds unclaimed funds. I am contacting you to obtain all necessary information for ensuring these funds are processed according to legal escheatment requirements and to facilitate the claiming process. 

Requested information : Escheatment Compliance Timeline Please provide a detailed timeline for how and when the funds from my account will be transferred to the states unclaimed property division. 

Process for Claiming Funds : I would like to know the process and requirements for claiming my funds, including any forms or verification steps needed from my end. 

Documentation of Account Status and Compliance : I request any documentation Chase holds regarding the closure of my account, including notices or actions related to escheatment compliance.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation