Consumer complaint received 2026-05-07 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement — Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX for XXXX and XXXX - XXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, I visited a XXXX with XXXX two-month-old and six-year-old children. While at the store, I was approached by a man who stated that he and several others were raising money for their brothers funeral, alleging the death resulted from XXXX XXXX. I agreed to donate \ {$5.00} and initially attempted to provide \ {$5.00} in cash. The individuals then stated they needed an electronic record of the donation because they were working with the government, and XXXX of them showed me a binder of purported documentation. They were wearing matching shirts and appeared credible. When I retrieved my credit card, the man took it from my hand. XXXX additional individuals immediately approached me, and XXXX began speaking to me in a manner that I now recognize as a deliberate distraction. They also insisted that I sign up on my phone to confirm the donation. After I unlocked my phone, it was taken from my hand as well. Given that I was alone with XXXX young children, I felt uncomfortable and vulnerable and wanted to exit the situation safely. They displayed a screen indicating that only \ {$5.00} would be charged, and to end the interaction quickly I agreed. I checked my account immediately while driving home and discovered XXXX separate unauthorized charges of \ {$5000.00} each ( totaling \ {$20000.00} ). I contacted Bank of America immediately to report the transactions unauthorized and to request that the charges be stopped. The representative advised that the charges could not be stopped but stated that a fraud claim would be opened and that the matter should be resolved. I asked whether I should file a police report, but I was advised to wait. In hindsight, I believe this should have been handled as a billing dispute under the Fair Credit Billing Act ( XXXX ), including guidance that I had XXXX days from the date of the statement containing the error to submit a written dispute to the creditors designated billing inquiries address. In XXXX, I noticed that \ {$20000.00} had been credited back to my account. I promptly contacted Bank of America and was informed that my claim had been denied. During that call, I was told the original submission had been entered incorrectly and should have been processed as a billing dispute. The representative stated she would correct the claim type and that the investigation would proceed in the same manner. Immediately after that call, I filed a police report. The assigned XXXX attempted to obtain surveillance footage from XXXX ; however, the footage had already been deleted. Had I been advised during my initial call with Bank of America to file a report right away, the footage may have been preserved and could have supported the investigation. The police also indicated that this was a known scam and referenced a similar incident involving another Bank of America client. In that matter, the customers fraud claim was initially denied, a billing dispute was subsequently opened, and the customer ultimately received reimbursement. I have attached my police report and the related news article referenced below. After multiple follow-up calls, I learned that Bank of America XXXX XXXX were unable to view my claim information, which raised concerns about how the matter was being handled. Later, I was advised that an additional error had occurred : the fraud claim had not been converted to a billing dispute claim as previously stated ; instead, the fraud claim was simply reopened. Subsequently, Bank of America opened XXXX separate billing dispute claimsone for each unauthorized transaction. During the process, I was asked whether I had contacted the merchant, obtained a receipt, or attempted to cancel the transactions. I explained that there was no valid phone number, website, or verifiable merchant information available, and an internet search of the individuals name did not yield contact details. I was told this information would be documented in the claim and that I didnt need to do anything additional. After the numerous errors Bank of America made involving my claims, I wrote a complaint letter to Bank of America headquarters. In late XXXX, a lady named XXXX XXXX contacted me via the phone to talk about my claims. She informed me that Bank of America would need to be seen as dropping the ball on something for me to have a good case of winning this. She made it sound like because I willingly gave up my phone and credit card that it wasnt Bank of Americas responsibility since they did send out fraud alerts. She told me she would reach out to me once the case was resolved so we could talk. In my perspective the ball was dropped many times : My claim was initially filed under the incorrect category ( fraud claim rather than a billing dispute ), which delayed appropriate handling. During my initial call, I was advised to wait before filing a police report or taking further steps. As a result, XXXX surveillance footage was deleted before it could be obtained, and I was not directed to contact XXXX XXXX being the platform to which the funds were sentwhich may have provided an opportunity to intervene sooner. Although I was told the claim would be converted to a billing dispute, it was instead reopened under the original fraud claim, creating additional delays and confusion. I was repeatedly told that no additional action or documentation was required for the billing dispute claims after I explained that the merchant could not be contacted because no legitimate vendor information exists. I was not instructed to submit a written statement until after the disputes were denied, and the denials cited a lack of submitted information. I am requesting clarification on how I can provide documentation or contact details for a fraudulent merchant who can not be reached. After consulting with an attorney, I was advised that this incident constitutes credit card fraud and unauthorized use of an access device. While I consented to a \ {$5.00} donation, I did not authorize any charges beyond \ {$5.00}. Consent to a \ {$5.00} transaction is not consent to XXXX separate \ {$5000.00} transactions. I also understand that Bank of America has encountered this scam previously and reimbursed another affected customer after the matter was processed appropriately. My family and I have been loyal Bank of America customers for many years, and my father maintains substantial investments with Merrill Lynch. I respectfully request that Bank of America XXXX this matter and provide a better resolution than claim denials. I hope to resolve this without retaining legal counsel ; however, being held responsible for \ {$20000.00} in fraudulent charges would be financially devastating to my family. With XXXX young children and significant childcare expenses, this loss would create an extraordinary hardship.

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 monetary relief