Someone stole reader A’s WaMu credit card number and racked up thousands in fraudulent charges, and now WaMu wants A to pay for it. The fraudsters also made a PIN request for a cash advance over the phone, and WaMu said that phonecall orginated from A’s parents house. Because of this, which A says is impossible, WaMu demands A be responsible for the charges. He’s written letters and called executive customer service and it’s gotten him nowhere. His crappy story, inside…

I have a major problem going on with my WaMu credit card. I had thousands of dollars fraudulently charged in California and now they are saying I owe this money because the call came from the telephone number associated with my account. Do you have any advice? I just don’t know where to start. Each time I try, I hit a dead end.
For instance, I’ve tried to get the telephone records to prove the call was not made from the phone number on the account because this is what WAMU requested from me before they will ever reinvestigate this case with there fraud department. The phone company will not release that information without a subpoena. I’ve gone to the police but they say there is nothing they can since the crime happened in California. Please help me if you think there’s anything I can do im at my wits end.

This is a credit card but they did used a pin number to withdrawal cash from the card in addition to using the card for purchases at Target. The charges happened around November 22 and I reported them as fraud to WaMu in December when I saw them on my statement. It took about a month to process the fraud investigation and they took the charges off my account for January. This month I got a letter claiming I am responsible for these charges because, according to their records, the pin request to withdrawal cash was made from my parents number in Arvada, which is the number on the account. All these fraudulent charges were made in California. My guess is they had my information and made the call from a some type of web site that disguises the actual number they are calling from and makes it look like it’s coming from another number (my parents’ number in this case).

I called executive customer service and they would patch me over to Rosita saying she couldn’t help me but I explained my case to them again, asking to l re look this over. They said they would call me back in two days and its been about two week with no call so I wrote this letter and send it with my last bill:

“With reference To card number ending in

This is to inform you that I have no intentions of paying any charges, interest or penalties incurred in California on my WaMu visa. All these charges occurred over a 2 day period. November 23-24, 2008. The card was and is in my possession. I live and work in Colorado including the dates in question. I have never requested nor used a PIN number. How could this have ever been verified by a phone call? I do not know anyone in the Los Angeles area.

Since August 2008 I have not used that card at all. This is to be reported as identity theft, already reported locally. You as a creditor are entitled by law to report to the collections agency of your choosing as identity theft.

Enclosed is payment in full for all charges for which I am responsible including current accrued interest, consider this my stimulus gift to your troubled institution.

Why did this occur the Monday after your November 21. 2008 layoff of 1600 employees? Certainly your new owners, Chase, and Obama USA, need to be apprised of your sloppy security measures as well.”

I’m betting that the takeover has something to do with the WaMu’s non-responsiveness. A should try kicking this up the CHASE corporate ladder. For privacy reasons, Chase, which owns WaMu, declined to comment on A’s case, but said they would look into and have someone get in touch with A.

(Image: Elton Lin)

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