Chex paid CO with Chase - 623 request; mail undeliverable

[HoustonLynne]

I had a checking account with Chase that charged off in 2009, and it was due to a bank error. The Chase ATM malfunctioned and never credited my deposit, yet the check I deposited cleared the account it was drawn on (at BOA) in a timely manner. Long story short, I had to fight with Chase for months, and eventually the CO amount was dropped from roughly $217 to $73. It was NOT a settlement – it was the amount they came up with, after they adjusted for THEIR error. I paid the $73 in March 2013, and it was reported as paid to Chex. (I really don’t think I actually owed anything, but I stopped fighting and paid the lower amount.)

 

Fast forward to January 2014 – I requested a copy of my Chex report, since I’d never reviewed it for errors. The Chase item is still listed with the original WRONG amount of $217, and is classified as “paid in full.” I disputed this, since it’s wrong – the CO amount was NOT $217, it was $73. Chase verified and updated nothing.

 

So I sent a 623 investigation to the Chase address listed on my Chex report. It is the exact same address on both my original report (FACTA disclosure in January) and the “updated copy” I received from my Chex dispute in March – nothing changed. My 623 investigation request to the listed Chase address was returned as “undeliverable as addressed” – it was sent CMRR.

 

Since I’ve disputed the info w/Chex, and I followed-up with a 623 request to Chase – mail returned as undeliverable – should I dispute AGAIN with Chex, or should I go to the CFPB or some other regulatory board…?

[tmcgill]

For national banks, you file a complaint with the Office of the Comptroller. Chase is a national bank, so you can file a complaint online. (If it was a local state bank, you would file with the state agency that regulates banking)

 

The OCC is very pro-bank, so you have to have your ducks in a row when you file and be able to submit proof of your claim, and clearly outline their violation.

 

Chase will have 30 days to respond to them. I've filed in the past, but did not have documentation. Also, the OCC very politely told me to go back and read my account agreement with the bank I was complaining against. (Lessons Learned)

 

After the 623 letter, Chase did not remove the inaccurate info from your Chexsystems file, as required by FACTA, so I would detail that in your complaint.

 

Here's the online complaint form:

https://appsec.helpwithmybank.gov/olcc_form/

Edited April 12, 2014 by tmcgill

[HoustonLynne]

Thank you so much -- excellent info! Just a couple of questions:

1. I haven't yet received the returned mail -- it's en route to me, but the online status says it's "undeliverable as addressed" and that it's being returned to sender. Should I wait for it to arrive so that I can include a copy of the envelope, or would a copy of the online status suffice, at this stage of the process? The issues, so far, are these:

• CO amount reported is inaccurate -- I have my copy of the money order for $73 that was the pay-off amount in March 2013
• I properly disputed via ChexSystems, and Chase verified
• Contact address for the data furnisher is wrong on my Chex report -- my 623 letter could not be delivered and is on its way back to me

 

2. Honestly, I really want those 623 docs, because I sincerely don't think I owed them anything last March. Is there a way I can phrase my complaint, so that I get the account docs from Chase? I want to see the debit & credit history from the day before it overdrafted (8/20/09) until I paid it off in March 2013 -- shouldn't be too many transactions, really. I want to see what adjustments were made when they finally "fixed" their error.

 

I still have a photocopy of the check that was deposited at the Chase ATM, and it shows their own date stamp on it as 8/20/2009. It cleared my account at BofA a couple of business days later, but they didn't credit it to my Chase account at all until I opened a claim on it a week later They gave me temporary provisional credit pending the completion of the investigation. I can't recall all the events, but I have fax confirmations dated in DECEMBER of that year where I was sending THEM the photocopies (front & back) of the check they processed and never credited to my account. They failed to receive my fax 2-3 times, and I got disgusted and gave up. When I finally decided I wanted to resolve the matter and pay any valid balance, I called for a payoff in March 2013 and they said it was $73.

 

Apparently someone finally received one of those faxes that were mysteriously not showing up...or my check finally surfaced in some write-off account, and they did the best they could. But I THINK I suffered 3 overdrafts that night that would NOT have happened if the $100 had properly credited, and it sounds like they only made credit adjustments for the $100 check and ONE fee.

[tmcgill]

Should I wait for it to arrive so that I can include a copy of the envelope, or would a copy of the online status suffice, at this stage of the process?

You already have supporting documentation; (1) Proof of payment (2) Proof of dispute (3) Proof that the entry was not updated after "reinvestigation".

 

Is there a way I can phrase my complaint, so that I get the account docs from Chase?

I don't think the OCC will require Chase to provide documentation to you. What is on your final statement from Chase?

[HoustonLynne]

Is there a way I can phrase my complaint, so that I get the account docs from Chase?

I don't think the OCC will require Chase to provide documentation to you. What is on your final statement from Chase?

I don't have a final statement -- I would imagine I got SOMETHING from them back then, but those months were a blur with several hospitalizations and chronic medical issues. The account was used VERY minimally, and I only opened it for the sign-on bonus in 2009. (I kept it open long enough to avoid the bonus charge-back.) That's why I requested the 623 info, because it has always nagged at me that they still came up with a balance due last year. But I'll reiterate that I was plagued with medical crises over the better part of 18 months around that time, so I was never really certain what exactly should have been the bottom line.

 

The only thing I am certain of is that it is currently not being reported accurately.

 

Ironically, the thing that prompted me to pay the balance last March (2013) was ANOTHER offer for a $150 bonus to open a checking account, and I wanted it. So I paid the balance, because I had just started my credit repair and figured it was something I needed to deal with, eventually. But I've learned so much over the past year, and I wish I'd verified the balance due before paying it off. I didn't yet know the power that comes with being an educated consumer, and it's one of those things I'd do very differently, if I could turn back the clock. (The newer account was kept open for 9 months with no overdrafts, and I closed it a month ago.)

[HoustonLynne]

I filed a complaint with the OCC. I kept it focused on the inaccuracy of the data that was "verified" as accurate, with regard to the contact info and undeliverable mail. I pointed to FCRA § 623(a)(8)(D). Submitting a notice of dispute. A consumer who seeks to dispute the accuracy of information shall provide a dispute notice directly to such person at the address specified by the person for such notices...

 

Of course, I was careful to mention that this impedes my ability to dispute the info regarding my initial problem (wrong amount for the charge off) -- thus, my rights under the FCRA are being violated. I only mentioned that part in passing, though.

 

Looks like turnaround time is expected to be 48 hours for a case number to be emailed to me, so we'll see what happens. This paid CO hasn't been a problem for me, yet, but it did come up when I joined Logix. Manual review was needed. And I'm planning to apply for membership with DCU soon, as EQ will be clean. I'm told they can be fussy about Chex.

 

Thanks again for the guidance and suggestions, tmcgill. I absolutely LOVE this place and you folks! <---- "I love you, maaaaan!"

[tmcgill]

I must agree . . . there are some awesome folks who post on this forum. I learn new strategies and perspective everyday.

No one individual knows everything, so putting our collective brains together is a win-win situation.

 

Good luck with your complaint.

[HoustonLynne]

Haha...interesting update. The OCC forwarded my complaint to the CFPB.

 

Yesterday, I read that the CFPB handles complaints about national banks and deposit accounts, but I had just sent a Procedural Request to ChexSystems regarding the matter. (My OCC complaint was about Chase...not Chex, per se.) Depending on what Chex does with my follow-up request, I was going to file w/CFPB.

 

A couple of hours ago I checked the status of my OCC complaint online, and it said something along the lines of "Review complete. Letter mailed to address on file."

I figured they'd made it an open-and-shut case and told me to pound sand, since the complaint was just filed on Monday.

 

I just got an email a few minutes ago from the CFPB which states, "We received your submission from the OCC and will review it as soon as possible to determine if it involves a Federal consumer financial law within our authority."

 

I would like to upload additional docs to the CFPB, but I may just wait for their initial review findings.

[tmcgill]

Interesting update . . . the OCC and FTC have both been slammed for years with consumer complaints. Offsetting to the CFPB helps share the load. I was impressed with their follow up, as they'll send updates on the progress of the complaints.

 

Keep us posted on the progress.

[HoustonLynne]

Will do. I also got the aforementioned letter today from the OCC. Odd, because the reason for the referral was that my complaint was on an entity over which they have no jurisdiction. I'm not certain if they're referring to the fact that my complaint does INVOLVE ChexSystems, or if they're referring to Chase. The reason I say that is because, when I was filling out the OCC complaint online, there's that drop-down or pre-fill function when you list the party you're complaining about. JP Morgan Chase wasn't an option...but that's what's on my ChexSystems report! They DID have "Chase Bank, N.A."...but I wanted all my documentation to match, so I filled in the box with JP Morgan Chase, even though no match came up.

 

As you mentioned, they probably welcomed the opportunity to pass along the extra work, even if it was on some technicality.

 

Yesterday when I saw that I might be filing with the CFPB at some point, I started drafting the complaint and putting docs together...just in case. In the process, I realized I had the old claim numbers with the Chase Claims Department, and their direct number. I called to see if they had any records of the TWO separate claims I had to I open on this issue in 2009. Long story short: Two different internal departments had no records, other than a couple of notes on my main customer profile. All account details are long-since purged, so they tell me. Of course, I imagine they're in archives somewhere, but no one offered to fetch those for me, even when I asked about archiving. They just sidestepped the question and reiterated that the records were purged. Yet they were happy to assure me that "the account is paid in full!" Yeah...I know that, Mr. Big Bank. I'm worried it's paid TOO "full"...and I'm also irritated that my FCRA rights are being trampled.

 

Okay, off the soapbox now. I'll update when I know more.

 

Again, thank you SO much for all your guidance!

[HoustonLynne]

I wanted to wrap up this thread, since this was finally resolved, and I wish I could tell you the exact contact attempt that did the trick. But I guess that's the moral of my story -- I "asked enough people" some very "specific questions" about my situation that raised enough question marks on Chase's end to finally delete the Chex entry.

 

I want to be very clear for anyone who reads this down the road: I never would have accomplished my goal, had I not worked WITHIN the proper channels and escalated it one step at a time. I remained respectful while being tenacious. I was fully prepared to go to arbitration, if this last process through the EO didn't end fairly, although I never threatened anyone with my willingness to do that. I simply knew it may have come to that eventually.

 

What I learned after all available docs were assembled, was that I DID have a balance that should have been (and was) charged off. But I KNEW the amount being reported was wrong all along. And I actually received the confirmation of that from Chase in their response to my CFPB complaint midway through the process. They didn't know it was the piece I was missing...I didn't even know it existed. So I could not have asked for it specifically. But as I followed the process through each escalated step, I stumbled onto info they already possessed -- info that I needed. And they thought it was just another benign fact of record.

 

While the CFPB complaint fell completely flat, I got their "supporting documentation" that confirmed they were wrong. For good measure, I disputed their response to the CFPB, but I have no real reason to think that made a difference, based on timing and on what I know of the whole CFPB dispute process. But I wanted it to go on record, in case this went much further than it needed to.

 

The new info I received from Chase was news of a mysterious credit to my account 2 years after it was charged off, and the purged records prevent anyone from being able to tell me what it was for. Not coincidentally, the "Mystery Credit" just happened to equal the amount of my "missing deposit" and the fees I was charged as a result of said Disappearing Deposit. I also received the last 4 statements from this account, and I did not have those before -- this was everything I needed for my case...a case that Chase was certain was squashed BECAUSE they sent me these documents.

 

In a stroke of "luck" (if you believe in that sort of thing, and I don't) I made a new friend right at that time who works for Chase. This friend isn't in the specific area I needed to reach, but he suggested two avenues to try getting my voice heard. One of them was Telephone Banking Center Escalations (TBC Escalations) and the other was Twitter. Chase, like most huge companies, has turned to social media for managing their "public-opinion stock", if you will. Specifically, a contact @ChaseSupport is the one my friend suggested. That helped me get referred to someone in the EO for research. But in the meantime, I didn't stop asking questions of various departments.

 

I kept my questions focused on this Mystery Credit in 2012 (account CO: 12/2009) and simply kept searching for someone who could tell me WHAT that credit was for...because it wan't made by me. I paid the remaining balance in 04/2013.

Mystery Credit (03/2012) + balance I paid (04/2013) = CO amount (12/2009)

Mystery Credit = $100 (missing deposit from 08/2009) + OD fee I incurred night of deposit + Extended OD fee (final statement)

 

I had clear documentation of SOME details about this debacle from 2009; Chase has purged their records and only retained the final disposition of the account and the CO amount. So it was REALLY hard to get anyone to consider that their numbers may be wrong and to even LOOK at my documentation with remotely objective eyes. But I wasn't going to go away, and I wasn't going to catch any flies with vinegar, either.

 

Ironically, when I found out today that "The Committee" had chosen to delete the Chex entry -- specifically, because NO ONE can "un-purge" the records to confirm what the ACCURATE CO amount SHOULD have been, so accurate reporting isn't POSSIBLE -- I found out it had been done almost 2 weeks ago. That's why I really have no idea WHO made this decision, who influenced it, what department I asked about this Mystery Credit at the right time...etc. I asked the Claims Department twice (including a supervisor); I asked a Collections Department ("Deposit Recovery") rep. & a supervisor; I asked a TCB Escalations rep & a supervisor; I asked anyone I was handed off to (and there were MANY) along the way, because NO ONE could answer my very relevant and simple question, because the records were purged.

 

And now it's history. It would have come off Chex in December of this year, but I want to join DCU sooner than that, and I know they're very particular about Chex entries.

 

Thank you, tmcgill, for your support and guidance -- you are a VALUABLE asset to this forum and community!

[dvd]

Im glad it worked out!

Edited June 3, 2014 by dvd

[tmcgill]

Good strategy info, I learned some new things about Chase. Glad the outcome was successful.