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

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I'm about to make a $74k transaction from my BofA account with AOR money.

I have been a customer since I was in short pants but I should probably call them and clear it with them first I guess.

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theficus said:
Also, I want to publicize my situation because I strongly believe I was targeted because of my name. I still don't think this would have happened to me if I had an Anglo-sounding name. I'm writing up an article to submit to Consumerist and other advocacy websites. I'll include some screenshots or some other evidence for those who don't believe me.

I am curious what your name is.
If you have mentioned it in am earlier, I am sorry that I missed it.

Are you going to disclose your name in the article to news sources?

Message edited by: goodspeed on 2007-11-06 18:09:36 CST
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ArbolLoco said:I'm about to make a $74k transaction from my BofA account with AOR money.

I have been a customer since I was in short pants but I should probably call them and clear it with them first I guess.

Depends, Whats your name?

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goodspeed said:theficus said:
Also, I want to publicize my situation because I strongly believe I was targeted because of my name. I still don't think this would have happened to me if I had an Anglo-sounding name. I'm writing up an article to submit to Consumerist and other advocacy websites. I'll include some screenshots or some other evidence for those who don't believe me.


I am curious what your name is.
If you have mentioned it in am earlier, I am sorry that I missed it.

Are you going to disclose your name in the article to news sources?
IT WILL TELL US ITS NAME.

IT IS OBEDIENT.

IT WILL TELL US WHAT THE SLUR WAS.

IT PUTS THE LOTION IN THE BASKET.

IT PUTS THE LOTION IN THE BASKET!!!!!!!!!

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I'm firing off a complaint to Bank of America and the OCC first thing tomorrow. Should I include any other agencies or organizations?

I don't know about a lawsuit. It's easy to say I'll file one but it takes more effort to actually follow through. I don't know if it's worthwhile considering the likely outcome (little to nothing). I'll see how my meeting with the local branch and complaint to the OCC go first.

And I haven't mentioned my name or the slur because it would strip me of the relative anonymity we enjoy here and it would define any of my future postings. I'm sure you can read between the lines and arrive at your own conclusion.

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Gosh, now I'm feeling stupid, because I have NO idea what slur it may have been.

Rumanian ?
Nigerian ?
Indonesian ?
Slovenian ?
Israeli ?

I'm trying to think of countries that have high fraud rates. The problem with that approach is the average american cannot tell french from german, let alone identify a person's nationality by personal or surname.

Joking aside, just hit the bank with a harassment suit. At a minimum it will make them more receptive to indemnifying you for fees you incur. You know, by way of apology.

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EricGo07 said:Joking aside, just hit the bank with a harassment suit. At a minimum it will make them more receptive to indemnifying you for fees you incur. You know, by way of apology.did that guy who deposited the fake check and got arrested at bofA ever get his fees paid by BofA for clearing his name? I dont think so. And he made it to major media.

Message edited by: SUCKISSTAPLES on 2007-11-06 18:46:22 CST
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Don't know. But this is *racial* harassment I'm thinking of. Much better defined, and I suspect with a smoking gun in the form of a phone recording courtesy of the fraud dept.

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theficus said:I'm firing off a complaint to Bank of America and the OCC first thing tomorrow. Should I include any other agencies or organizations?
contact an advocacy group that represents your ethnicity/religion/race (e.g. if you're Muslim, the Council on American-Islamic Relations). They might have more advice, and they might be interested in getting involved and publicly shaming BofA. Regardless of BofA's "right" to close your acct for any reason, I presume your ethnicity/religion/race is not a permissible reason and would be considered discrimination.

And I haven't mentioned my name or the slur because it would strip me of the relative anonymity we enjoy here and it would define any of my future postings.
Even if you're Togolese, I can't imagine revealing that will strip you of your anonymity. How could your ethnicity/religion/race possibly define any of your future posts?

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Martian ?

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Newsflash - just bc someone utters a racist statement doesnt mean aything.

Unless the fraud investigator who made a racial statement during dicussions with OP was the same one who made the account closure decisions, this has nothing to do with why this action was taken.

Im sure a faceless computer program flagged the accounts, the decision was made to close them , and only when arguing with the CSR did they make their racial comment. That person likely wasnt the person making account decisions, just the one listening to OPs rant

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beethovengirl said:Even if you're Togolese, I can't imagine revealing that will strip you of your anonymity. How could your ethnicity/religion/race possibly define any of your future posts?
Not everyone is accepting and loving of their neighbors, not even in the wonderful world of FWF. It's easier to discuss financial matters when we're all nothing more than elves or people with paperbags on their heads.

Well, this day is about done. I'll post an update tomorrow and let everyone know how my meeting with the branch and letter to the OCC went. I should have an article on Consumerist and Digg tomorrow too.

Thanks for all the support in this thread. It's gone surprisingly well considering the topic. A lot of other threads get bogged down in insults and accusations.

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SUCKISSTAPLES said:Unless the fraud investigator who made a racial statement during dicussions with OP was the same one who made the account closure decisions, this has nothing to do with why this action was taken.
If the OP's recent transactions were as ordinary as he described, and a fraud investigator made a racist statement, it's not hard to put 2 and 2 together. However, that's a big "if," and the OP has not been particularly forthright here.

Im sure a faceless computer program flagged the accounts, the decision was made to close them , and only when arguing with the CSR did they make their racial comment.
I wouldn't be terribly surprised if our govt was instructing the largest retail bank in the US to flag accounts with certain names linked to terrorists [i.e. some common Muslim-sounding names]. who knows.

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theficus said:
And I haven't mentioned my name or the slur because it would strip me of the relative anonymity we enjoy here and it would define any of my future postings. I'm sure you can read between the lines and arrive at your own conclusion.

Not sure why you're worried about that, I think knowing a bit more about posters helps in understanding their posts. I can still be anonymous but revealed that I am a Jewish right wing conservative nut living in MA, Heck I probably just blew my anonymity since I think I am only one in this State

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SUCKISSTAPLES said:Newsflash - just bc someone utters a racist statement doesnt mean aything.

Unless the fraud investigator who made a racial statement during dicussions with OP was the same one who made the account closure decisions, this has nothing to do with why this action was taken.

Im sure a faceless computer program flagged the accounts, the decision was made to close them , and only when arguing with the CSR did they make their racial comment. That person likely wasnt the person making account decisions, just the one listening to OPs rant

I agree with you that a computer probably flagged my account. If that's all it took, however, then most of us here in FWF would be facing the same problem. My transactions are on the low-end for an AOR and not anything I haven't done (and still do) at other banks. A more likely scenario is a computer flagged my account, a person manually reviewed my account, and he or she decided to close it based on their personal prejudices. The CSR who insulted me probably deals with irate people all day long and just blew up on me. It still doesn't make her right, though.

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No one is saying she was right. She was stupid and lacked tact. But thats not actionable/

beethovengirl said:
I wouldn't be terribly surprised if our govt was instructing the largest retail bank in the US to flag accounts with certain names linked to terrorists [i.e. some common Muslim-sounding names]. who knows.
you wouldnt have to be surprised bc its true. has been for years, but doesnt make BofA liable. Doesnt make the airlines liable, doesnt make utility companies liable, etc.

Its perfectly OK to have a list of names or surnames to be suspicious of. If my name is Apporama Bin Laden, and you see hundreds of thousands of $$ coming into my account, I should know I will be facing increased scrutiny

Message edited by: SUCKISSTAPLES on 2007-11-06 19:20:23 CST
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scott1961 said:Not sure why you're worried about that, I think knowing a bit more about posters helps in understanding their posts. I can still be anonymous but revealed that I am a Jewish right wing conservative nut living in MA, Heck I probably just blew my anonymity since I think I am only one in this State
OK, I'll use this username for this thread only and create a new name for my future postings.

I wouldn't be terribly surprised if our govt was instructing the largest retail bank in the US to flag accounts with certain names linked to terrorists [i.e. some common Muslim-sounding names]. who knows.
I'm Muslim and I was born in the Middle East. One of my parents is white and I grew up speaking English, so nobody can tell my race or religion unless they know my name. The CSR pretty much called me a terrorist.

I hope everyone is satisfied now.

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theficus said:

I hope everyone is satisfied now.

that's not what we wanted, Just better to know than have people guessing

Message edited by: scott1961 on 2007-11-06 19:22:28 CST
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SUCKISSTAPLES said:

Its perfectly OK to have a list of names or surnames to be suspicious of. If my name is Apporama Bin Laden, and you see hundreds of thousands of $$ coming into my account, I should know I will be facing increased scrutiny

Apporama Bin Laden lol Now that would be quite the threat. Financially and terroristically.

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theficus said:I wouldn't be terribly surprised if our govt was instructing the largest retail bank in the US to flag accounts with certain names linked to terrorists [i.e. some common Muslim-sounding names]. who knows.
I'm Muslim and I was born in the Middle East. One of my parents is white and I grew up speaking English, so nobody can tell my race or religion unless they know my name. The CSR pretty much called me a terrorist.

That's what I thought. Contact CAIR. I'm sure you're not the first Muslim to whom this has happened, so they might have an "action plan."

Your religion *was* relevant -- what if your name is on some govt terrorist watch list? You don't want this to keep happening to you at other banks so you might need to do some more digging to find out the real reason your acct was flagged.

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