Dan got a new job (Congratulations, Dan!) and moved from Chicago to Indianapolis. The move meant he had to close his Citibank account and open a new one. He chose Chase because they have lots of branches nearby.
It’s too bad they’ve accused him of check fraud and even Citibank (who issued the check) can’t convince them otherwise. Now he’s wondering what he should do.
Dan writes:
Hey guys–
This is Dan who gave you the stunning Buffalo Wild Wings chicken fingers fiasco from a few months with a new major ass-frakking I’m getting from Chase Bank.
I recently moved from Chicago to Indianapolis for a new job, and while in Chicago I had a Citibank account. Well those don’t exist in Indianapolis, however there is a Chase Bank every 11 feet and were offering a $100 promotion if you open a new checking account with direct deposit. So on August 20th I went to a local branch, did all that, got the hard sell for every other banking product under the sun, declined but the fella was still nice and set me up with everything. I opened the account with my last Citibank paper check for $200.
So a few days later, using my online bill payment on Citibank, close out the account by mailing myself a check for $1000. I receive that on a Saturday, so Sunday morning I deposit my check into my Chase account. A few days later I received my security deposit on my old apartment back in Chicago for $750 and go to the Chase branch on South Keystone and Hanna in Indianapolis to deposit it. I tried to do it in an ATM machine and it refused my card, so I walked into the bank and spoke with one of the bankers (not the tellers) and said my ATM card was funky. She looks up my account and says my account is frozen because of check fraud. Keep in mind, we’re not in an office, but a desk in the middle of the bank. I told her that’s impossible and she reports that because I had a check for $1000 on a new account that was deposited in an ATM, those are all red flags for check fraud. I was aghast at this idiocy. She then told me that the check number of the deposited check had been flagged as previously used, and thus was fraudulent, so as a result my entire account was frozen INCLUDING the $200 check I had previously deposited and had been cleared with no problems. I told her this was insane, the check was electronically generated BY CITIBANK, it wasn’t ripped out of a checkbook. She called the manager over who looked me straight in the eye, again in the middle of the bank and said loudly “All the evidence points to check fraud, and we need to protect ourselves so I refuse to release any of your money”. I told her I was a brand new customer for all of a week, my first check cleared fine and quite frankly I make decent money and am stunned she is treating me as though I’m some thief. I asked her to just call Citibank to verify that was a good check and she refused.
So, I left to go to the branch I opened the account. The banker, Brian Long, is a genuinely nice guy and seemed legitimately interested in helping me. After I vented, he took me into a private office and said we’ll call Citibank together to fix this. We did a conference call where Citibank thinks Chase are a bunch of idiots. When a check is generated through online checking, the check number is a randomly generated 12 digit number (not the 4 digit number on paper checks) and the odds of that # being the exact number as another check that I had wrote in the past 12 months were astronomical. Brian checked with his manager who said they need some documentation. Now mind you, this is the FRIDAY BEFORE LABOR DAY. Citibank said they were confused because the check was deposited on the 26 and CLEARED on the 29th, so Chase has the money and doesn’t understand why they now want proof of payment. Either way to said that proof and to run a trace on that specific check number would take 3 business days, which means a week before anything is done. So even though we have Citibank telling Chase “you cashed the check, the check is good, why are you on the phone with us?” Chase (via the branch manager) would not unfreeze my account without documentation. Now the problem here is, I no longer have a bank. I closed my Citibank account to deposit everything into Chase. So they now have $1200 plus the $750 I couldn’t deposit today, and I have access to NONE of this money. So Brian felt bad and offered to give me cash to tide me over the weekend until this was resolved and I could pay him back, which is phenomenal to say the least.
So I come home from work today to be greeted with a letter from Chase informing me my account would be closed in 10 days and they would report my fraudulent activity to the credit reporting bureaus. It was after 6 when I got home from work so obviously I wasn’t able to call anyone at Chase and scream at them. Does anyone have any advice what to do?
Dan
Well, Dan. It might be time to complain to Chase’s regulatory agency, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. According to the FDIC, the agency should acknowledge the receipt of your complaint within two days. They also give some helpful tips about what to include in your complaint letter.
You should also contact Chase and let them know what you are doing. Perhaps this will wake them up. If the mistake does end up on your credit report, don’t worry. You can dispute it. Here are some instructions for disputing inaccuracies on your credit report from the FTC.
Anyone else have advice for Dan?
(Photo:Meghann Marco)
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@capturedshadow: Wow, that’s a vortex of suck. Also, Wamu is not a bank, technically.
I worked for Chase for awhile (no longer, thank goodness). The only people I’ve seen with a worse system is HSBC. Honestly, after working with them I will never put my finances in their hands. After this is cleared, find another bank quickly!
First things first, once a bank has paid a check, they only have until midnight on the following day to rescind payment, or it becomes final. So once citibank makes a provisional settlement with Chase, that settlement becomes final on midnight of the following day and they can’t get the money back. Chase has no liability at this point, and they know this. Their just being bureaucratic jack *sses. I’d just send them a letter saying that if they don’t immediately release your funds, you’re going to sue them for conversion, report them to the relevant regulatory agencies, and potentially sue them for slander/false light since they accused you of fraud in front of a bunch of strangers on multiple occasions.
Yikes…I just opened a Chase account and so far have been pretty happy with them. However, I was about to do the exact same thing to change all my accounts over tomorrow. I’ll make sure to take it into a teller to deposit it or maybe close my other accounts in cash (unless Chase might report me for being a drug dealer or a prostitute??).
@SuperShawn:
Holy crap. I’ve had some nasty run-ins with banks, but nothing like that.
I have never made a deposit at an ATM since my landlady lost my rent check that she deposited via ATM in the very early 1990′s (at BayBank, for those who recall the institution). I concluded then that ATM deposits were not worth the potential danger, and ever since have either done bank by mail or deposited items in person.
I find that using a small-town bank is very good. Smaller banks are a lot like Credit Unions in that they tend to offer great customer service and decent prices / fees / rates. If you have your mortgage with them, they’ll treat you like royalty. (We have 5 accounts between the hubby and myself: one each checking, one joint checking, mortgage, and HELOC).
They don’t have all the ATM’s or branches of a large bank, but mine doesn’t charge a fee for POS transactions, so instead of paying $2 for a withdrawal at a BofA ATM, I’ll buy a candy bar or an apple and do cash back on the purchase at a nearby CVS or supermarket. Even if I didn’t want the purchase, I’m still ahead. It means planning a little more before going out (get your money when you buy groceries), but it’s simpler and makes life SOOOOOO much more pleasant.
I will never have an account at a large bank ever again.
To file a complaint with the Federal government – go here: [www.sec.gov] You might also want to contact your state Attorney General’s office.
Oops – here’s the banking reg link – [www.sec.gov]
@SuperShawn: That’s is the WORST BofA story ever. I am shocked to hear that. It’s almost worth going to the newspaper with, isn’t it?
People! This is why you never use an ATM! ATM is simply a mugger by proxy! In the old days, we used checks, and real people and we were happy! Go to a credit union!
[www.helpwithmybank.gov]
@mbrutsch: Credit unions are nice, as long as you never actually travel anywhere…
You must not travel much or have a CU account. I was in Europe for over a month and had no problems withdrawing cash from ATMs and using my check card as payment in London, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, a little town in Provence, and Paris. My credit union is a 10-branch affair in California.
I use the ATM 99% of the time for all transactions, get free bill pay (without direct deposit) and have had access to check deposits over $12K (via ATM) in 3 days.
Credit unions aren’t the universal answer to bad banks. The biggest problem I have with credit unions is that they’re not capable of handling large transactions properly. Fees for wire transfers, not able to withdraw more than a certain amount without calling ahead, etc. Credit unions are friendly, but no thanks.
@consumerist11211: obviously every credit union is going to be different, but the 2 i belong to rarely place even a day hold on a check & have completely free checking (no min. balance, no per check fees, no monthly fees, no debit card fees, etc.). to be honest, i encounter more of the issues you are speaking of at banks. i have yet to see a bank offer FREE checking. it’s always FREE**** checking, & those asterisks = fees. for example, my BoA checking is only free IF i have direct deposit OR make 2 bill payments per month. if i don’t meet those guidelines, they charge me $7/month ($84/year).
@FLConsumer: a note on large cash withdrawals: this is standard practice even in large commercial banks – i’ve encountered it at virtually every financial institution i’ve done business with personally & professionally. i think most people don’t realize how little money tellers have in their drawers these days to mitigate risk in case of a robbery. the “call-ahead” is designed to make sure a drawer is funded for your transaction, otherwise (depending on the amount), they may not be able to accommodate your request.
That’s what happens when normal people move to Indiana. What would ever possess a person to move to Indiana of all places?
Welcome to my world. J.P Morgan, Chase, Formerly Bank One decided to close my Wife’s accounts recently. This lady has been a faithful customer for over 10 years and I’ve been a client as well for 6 years with a $75K home equity line that pays them religiously monthly.
Herein lies the rub…
We received a check for the sale of a grandfather clock of which we deposited. The bank stated (North Ave branch in Chicago) there would be a 7 to 10 day hold on the check. All is good there and understood. We started getting emails from the buyer repeated asking why it was taking so long to get the check to clear. We explained and after a couple messages like that we notified the branch in Daley-Town (Chicago)we started smelling FISH!. The attitude from the clerk was extrememly passé (didn’t give a load of drenn).
A few days later we found our savings and her accounts set to -$9,999,999.99!!! We immediately addressed the issue. We were immediately treated like frelling criminals. Too set things worse the idiots also killed by debit card (a.k.a. lifeline). They still owe us around $350 for funds that were posted prior to this crappy dealy and the fancy-boy managers avoid us like the plague.
One of two thing will happen soon…someone from Chase will be burning in HELL or be confronted by a major lawsuit under Torte law for all the crap we’ve gone through. I’m pretty easy going but today I’ve become a “BIG BANK BASHER”.
I’m surprised nobody commented on this:
I just love the subhead for this article (“BANK ERROR NOT IN YOUR FAVOR”).
(That’s a reference to one of the cards in the game of Monopoly, folks.)
@Spooty: Probably no one commented on it because we all got the reference.
Under the direction of my parents lawyer We placed my parent $142,000 into Chase bank. That was 30 days ago. They have accused us of fraud even thought we have proven otherwise. My sister is a signer for my parents account.The boa account from which the funds where drawn from have no issues with the transaction. Everytime I talk with Chase they have a different story on what they are doing. Boa can not convince Chase that there is not problem on their end. This 142,000 is needed for the care of my parents who reside in an Alzheimer and memory center. I have tried to resolve this matter and now have turn the matter over to my parents attorney. Hopefully he can get this resolved before what money they have in their boa account run out. Chase will be responsible for their lack of care if they do not return the money to us. I am waiting to file a complaint to see what the lawyer can accomplish.