Bank of America closed all my accounts. What to do now? *UPDATED 03/01/08*

Neither of those CSRs in the sound bites were what I would consider rude. The both actually seemed to be ready to help you until the issue of recording came up, and they probably have strict instructions (as in they will loose their jobs) not to continue any conversations that are being recorded.

Forget the "I have a whole list of questions" BS, recording the call, and such. You sound confrontational from the begining - esp considering you are dealing with the fraud department, where all they do is deal with people suspected of trying to commit fraud - and get defensive when confronted about the recording. I'll bet that as a whole, when an account is frozen for fraud the phone calls from the truly guilty people sound alot like those you posted.

Call back, give them your account info, simply say "I was told my accounts were being closed, I have no idea what is going on, no one will tell me why, can you PLEASE help me figure out whats going on?" Let THEM lead YOU through the phone call, dont argue with them (the CSR didnt make the decision), dont interrupt, dont demand anything, if something doesnt sound right ask for clarification (as opposed to denying or arguing about it), and ask simple questions like "Can I speak to the person/department that made this decision so we can get this cleared up?" - questions that do not seem like you are forcing the issue and put the CSR on the spot. Make it clear that whatever your account was flagged for was incorrect, and you are willing to jump through whatever hoops they'd like you to to prove it is just a mistake - but you need them to show you where the hoops are.

Thanks for posting your experience. I'm going to stay away from BofA in the future.

curiosity is killing me...

Sorry to hear what is happening for you OP. You should definately contact a lawyer because calling their Customer Service is not working. Bofa needs to train their staffs better. Here is another recorded incident with Bank of America:

link

I'm glad I don't bank with them.

BoA SUCKS! They're like the WalMart of banks. Take a look at Zions Bank http://www.zionsbank.com/

You actually get a DECENT interest rate 5.30 something. The other biggie that BoA lacks becides the crap rate interest is the interest is compunded daily. If you have any doubt of how much money you earn, do a google seach on the miracle that is compound interest. You'll see just how deep the rabbit hole goes.

Successchamp said: Your only option is to seek a competent highly experienced attorney who cares deeply about justice to take Bank of America to court on your behalf. In addition to all damages your have suffered, complete return of your money, an competent attorney can also get punitive damages for you which can amount to millions and millions of dollar. The punitive damage was set up to prevent company from mistreating/abusing consumers and serve as a deterrent from businesses acting recklessly and/or detriment to society.
.

Search FW for the story of a guy depositing a fake cashier's check (supposely he's the victim of a scam), and BofA called the cop promptly and had him arrested. This guy was out of over $10K for attorney fees. Anything bad happened to BofA? Nope, not a thing because they did "according to the law".

Read that story, and think again whether you want OP to take this issue to court.

johnqh said: And at this moment, OP needs to own up to the fact that he doing the AOR/BT - taking "unfair" advantage of the banks, but nothing illegal and certainly not terrorist.
Totally agreed! OP should also 'study' this thread: My bank to bank transfer was suspended by CashEdge. There is nothing 'illegal' or 'against the law' to link 30 banks to your account, but sooner or later, they will do a suspension and label you as HIGH RISK!

SUCKISSTAPLES said: Glitch99 said: Neither of those CSRs in the sound bites were what I would consider rude. The both actually seemed to be ready to help you until the issue of recording came up, and they probably have strict instructions (as in they will loose their jobs) not to continue any conversations that are being recorded.

Forget the "I have a whole list of questions" BS, recording the call, and such. You sound confrontational from the begining - .bingo. Totally wrong way to go about it.


But then, so is this whole thread.

Whatever chance OP had at saving the relationship, or even getting more info, disappeared long long ago.honestly even if everything he says is a lie... the fact that he has posted audio clips for our entertainment sets him apart from 99.99% of all the complaining threads in this forum. This is a step towards the new NET 2.0 FWF... an epic journey first started in the "MY HOUSE IS FULL OF CAT SHIAT" thread and the comedy that resulted therefrom.

If you record a phone conversation without you telling them so, later on if you want to use it in court, it will not be admissible in court.
Now another vein of stupidity regarding recordings...

Admissibility in court is not related to the legality of recording a call, necessarily. ALL recordings are admissible in Federal court, period.

State to state it varies, but generally in a 1 party state you are good. Do some research next time.

glockophile said: johnqh said: I haven't heard the audio. However, I also thought OP's approach is not going to solve the problem at all.

I would have gotten to a local branch, and have the branch manager call their corporation legal department. They are more likely to reconsider this when they hear from their own people that "this is a decent guy, just trying to make a quick buck on the BT, not doing anything illegal". In a couple of cases, I had to talk to their branch manager because their telephone customer service is just not doing the job, and I have got good results.

Many many pages ago, it was already clear that the issue is out of customer service's hand, and OP needs to deal with the legal. And at this moment, OP needs to own up to the fact that he doing the AOR/BT - taking "unfair" advantage of the banks, but nothing illegal and certainly not terrorist.

If OP goes to court, the best he can do is to get his 110K money back, and then the lawyer will take 50K. OP should resolve this with BofA directly if possible.

I actually tried the local branch route as well. The branch manager said there was nothing she could do, and referred me back to the Risk Identification department. What incentive would they have to refer me to or call their legal department? None. As far as the manager is concerned, I've been identified as a fraud risk, which is something they have a whole department dedicated toward handling. Legal only comes into play once I've filed a lawsuit, and we're not there yet.

[Edit] Are you the OP? different name.

1. In one your earlier posts, OP said the CS told him to talk to legal.
2. Whatever department you need to deal with, ask the branch manager to call while you are there. Ask him, beg him, plead with him, whatever.

As others have said, at this moment, OP probably had upset enough people at BofA, and had enough notes on their computer system, that there is no way he can solve this without going to court. In that case, good luck to him, and be ready for a big attorney bill.

OP - Although there isn't much I can do to advise you, there are two ways I see this

I believe what you are saying and the other not.
At this point I believe in what you are saying and would like to follow this to the end. Although I cannot contribute much, I can do my bit in a democracy when I see what finally happens with this. For one I will close my account with BOA. Try as much as I can to convince folks I know to close the account with BOA. An entire review of this episode would help promote that.

A lot of would you think going to another bank would mean the same thing, but I will take that chance & move. Democracy is all about numbers and if some of us can take it to the end, it might matter to the big corps.

In that case, good luck to him, and be ready for a big attorney bill.
Or just sue pro-se and leave all the costs on their side.

There are some people posting redundant advice because they obviously haven't read everything I've posted. I'm going to recap some important facts:

1.) I've been to the branch 3 times, including once again this morning. Each time the personal banker and manager have told me they are locked out of my accounts, there isn't anything they can do, and direct me to speak with the risk/fraud department. They also told me they can't call on my behalf. Going to the branch flat out won't work, end of story.

2.) The majority of my AOR money is from Chase and Citibank and was deposited at Bank of America. Only a little over $12,000 in AOR money, around 10% of my total, is from Bank of America. This money was directly deposited in my Bank of America account on the advice of a CSR. Less than 10% of my account balances is money from Bank of America.

3.) The risk/fraud CSRs are rude and abrasive every time I speak to them. Each CSR also gives me a different reason for the closure of my accounts and whether or not Bank of America will return my money. The only common thread between their stories is that I'm somehow committing fraud. This isn't apparent in the audio recordings because they end the conversation before any explanation of the situation. I was polite, never raised my voice, and asked for a supervisor when the CSR refused to discuss the matter. She told that she was a supervisor and hung up on me. I posted the audio online to illustrate the brick wall I'm dealing with at Bank of America. Also, don't you think it's unfair they refuse to discuss anything when I'm recording the conversation even though Bank of America is recording it? I'm in the right, both legally and ethically, to record the conversation if notification has been provided and Bank of America is recording the conversation too.

4.) I received a letter from Bank of America stating my accounts have been closed as of 11/07/07. This is a different date than what the last CSR told me. The letter also states Bank of America will return my money by cashiers check after they verify every transaction made since I opened my accounts. I need to research the appropriate federal regulations, but I believe this isn't legal.

5.) I tried speaking with the legal department earlier about the situation. They admitted the phone calls are recorded but also refused to discuss the situation if I was recording the call and hung up on me.

I'm in a two-party consent state and my phone beeps when it records. I'm working on getting recording equipment that doesn't beep. And thanks for calling me stupid at least 12 times without even getting your facts straight.

I agree with u on this point.
Recording is not the issue. Make BOA to solve ur case is the key problem here.

codename47 said: Look, I can't be nice about this any more. Stop being stupid and life gets easier.

You are absolutely, completely stupid if you tell them you are recording. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Forrest gump said stupid is as stupid does, and you are doing stupid. Stop doing that if you want people to talk to you. Besides, people say all sorts of stuff if they think they'll never hear it again. Stop being stupid and life gets easier.

What do you hope to gain from telling them? You already said you are in a 1 party state. I know BOA has the standard 2 party notification on their calls (calls may be recorded) so what other reason are you telling them this unless you like getting hung up on? Are you an idiot or what? There is no legal reason to tell them. At all. There is no practical reason to tell them you are recording. Stop being stupid and life becomes so much easier.

Second, they have like 10 days to refund you your money. I'd write up my summons and sue them on day 11. THAT is how you get people to talk to you. You won't have to wait on anyone. They WILL call you, trust me. You WILL have your own designated rep to answer questions and ask questions.

Stop being stupid and life gets easier.

answer a question with a question. "why, are you recording?" or just turn the recorder off, say no, then turn it back on.

Do you check your Fico Score to see if the event was also recorded by the credit report?

JJDD said: 1. How many bank accounts did you link to your BOA checking?
2. How many bank accounts were added after your AOR?
3. Are these bank accounts under your name?
4. Can you list your bank transfers with their ammounts?
5. When you did transfers bw banks, did you start from BOA or the other banks?
6. Did you deposit any check from other people which were bounced back?
7. Was there any suspicious transaction that you didn't recognize?
1.) About 3 before the AOR.
2.) About another 3 after the AOR.
3.) Yes.
4.) Just the transfers I listed before.
5.) I always pull, so incoming transfers are initiated from Bank of America and outgoing transfers are initiated from other banks.
6.) Never.
7.) No.

The only change to my credit report is the closure of all my Bank of America credit cards.

codename47 said: You told them you were recording and had recording gear that beeps which is a telltale sign of recording. That's pretty stupid. Doesn't matter if you are in a 2 party state, they give notification before you even call up, so that is moot.

OP is azy and was likely using grandcentral to record the call. His case could have been much stronger if he just recorded the call by holding a $8 digital recorder to the phone while he was talking. He was acting all tough - shooting into the air. Now he's out of bullets.

Did you make any transfer (some large amount) between the 3 newly added accounts and BOA?

If you did, it may be one thing that all FWers should avoid to do.

theficus said:
1.) About 3 before the AOR.
2.) About another 3 after the AOR.
3.) Yes.
4.) Just the transfers I listed before.
5.) I always pull, so incoming transfers are initiated from Bank of America and outgoing transfers are initiated from other banks.
6.) Never.
7.) No.

The only change to my credit report is the closure of all my Bank of America credit cards.