Consumer complaint received 2026-01-02 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Closing an account — Can't close your account
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: OR

Complaint narrative:
This email serves as formal notice of Bank of Americas deceptive practices, predatory account-retention mechanisms, and deliberate obstruction of lawful account closure. What follows is not a customer service complaint. It is a record of systemic misconduct. 
Bank of Americas rewards system displayed a balance of {$390.00} associated with my Visa Signature card. That figure was presented as real, available value. Any reasonable consumer would understand this to represent transferable funds. Acting on that representation, I opened a checking account for the sole purpose of accessing what Bank of Americas own interface indicated I possessed. 
Only after the account was opened did the truth emerge : the {$390.00} figure was illusory. The actual balance was XXXX reward points, effectively worthless. This is not a misunderstanding. It is a deceptive presentation of value embedded in your systems. Had Bank of America accurately represented the nature of those rewards, the checking account would never have been opened. 
What followed escalates this from deception to coercion. 
Bank of America has constructed its systems so that a checking account can not be closed through any normal, modern channel. Closure is impossible via the mobile app, desktop banking, chatbot, or email. Customers are forced into only two options : visiting a physical branch or calling by phone. 
There are no Bank of America branches in Oregon. 
Phone access, meanwhile, is functionally denied. I have now spent over five hours across multiple days attempting to reach a human being. Calls related to account closure are routed into endless hold loops, dead air, or abandoned queues. No callback is offered. No written alternative exists. The conclusion is unavoidable : this is intentional. 
While trapped on hold, customers are subjected to repetitive, intrusive marketing scripts, broadcast at a volume that cuts through even when call volume is lowered. This is not passive hold music. It is aggressive upselling that hijacks a callers environment. Many customers, myself included, are calling from work or public spaces. This design creates professional risk and social pressure, clearly intended to force customers to hang up rather than persist. 
This is not inconvenience. 
This is psychological pressure engineered into your retention system. 
Further, Bank of America provides no accessible written channel for account closure. There is no public email address. The so-called secure message system is inconsistently available and inaccessible to many users. This is a deliberate elimination of paper trails and accountability. 
This is not my first encounter with these tactics. I previously attempted to close a savings account and experienced the same obstruction. Complaints were filed at that time. The continuation of these practices demonstrates a pattern of behavior, not an isolated failure. 
Let me be clear about what is being demanded : Immediate closure of this checking account without further obstruction Written confirmation of closure and a XXXX balance A written explanation of why Bank of America denies customers the ability to close accounts through standard digital or written means A formal compliance review of your rewards representations and account-closure policies This matter is being documented with federal and state regulators and will be shared publicly. I am no longer seeking assistance. I am creating a record. 
Additionally, after remaining on hold for approximately four hours, I was explicitly told that a supervisor would call me back. No call ever occurred. This was not a missed call ; there was no attempt made. Providing a promised callback and then failing to follow through is a known tactic used to end consumer persistence without resolving the issue. This constitutes further obstruction and misrepresentation and reinforces that Bank of Americas systems are designed to delay and exhaust customers rather than provide lawful account closure. 
I also want to document a recurring tactic used by Bank of America during prior and current escalation attempts. After extended time on hold, I have been told that a supervisor would call me back. In practice, Bank of America has previously placed a single voicemail instructing me to call back, which is then logged internally as a successful contact attempt. When the customer calls back, they are routed into the same inaccessible phone system, effectively resetting the obstruction while allowing the bank to claim it attempted resolution. This is not a genuine callback and should not be represented as one. I am documenting this in advance to prevent any such mischaracterization in this case. 
Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX, Oregon 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 non-monetary relief