U.S. Treasury Bureau of Fiscal Services Direct Express Customer Service Call Center CoMerica Bank Card Services Direct Express Fraud Investigation Service Delayed and unprofessionally handled report of fraudulent use of government benefit card of fixed income social security recipient. San Antonio Texas

While moving from Buford Georgia to Cleveland Georgia after many years, I had several friends helping, as I don't drive. I also had four or five guys who were paid to do the actual moving to my new home as well as the storage space I had rented. It was a three day exhausting experience. At the end of the second day, I took everyone helping to Waffle House to eat, which was the last time I used my card until the next morning at my storage.

I went to my sister in law's about five minutes from Waffle House and slept, getting an early start the next morning. I took care of my storage bill, and at first could not find my card in my wallet. I got a little frantic, but found it dropped loose in my pocketbook. I almost always put the card back in my wallet immediately, but chalked it up to being tired the night before, and frustrated with moving.

That irritation turned into a heart pounding, gut knotting sickness when, while my helpers put the rest of stored items in the unit, I attempted to send money to both my sons, something I do every month, and was told that there was only fourteen dollars on my card. I could not believe what I was seeing, and kept saying, "no, this cannot be happening" When I went onto the Direct Express online to search my transactions, I was sickened to see that my card had been charged in total 278. and some odd cents, all at places I had never been and still haven't been.

My first call to Direct Express Customer Service (I should say my first 65 calls, because I could not get through until the next evening, and called over and over) Still, when I got through and explained what appeared to have happened, I tried to be patient and answer the questions I was asked and give the representative the information she asked for.

The end result was that I was advised to destroy the old card, and I would be sent a new card, and that she would get right on working to get things straightened out. At my expense, I had the card expedited through UPS, a company I have never had problems with either in Customer Service or deliveries.

What I had not counted on was that the representative at Direct Express was, even though I repeated it four times and spelled each part of the street name and the city, writing the entire street name incorrectly, the numbers incorrectly, and the city incorrectly. She indicated that I would be sent a fraud form on which I would list the transactions I was disputing, and explain to the best of my ability what happened...The card was to be delivered on Tuesday, and was on track as far as UPS tracking showed.

When it never came, I first tried to call Direct Express. Needless to say, I could not get through, and it was 11 pm before I did reach them. By then I had spoken with UPS. They were showing that the package had been on track to be delivered on time, but the driver had indicated that the entire address was wrong, and he had to take it to the office in Gainesville, Ga. where it would be left for pickup or sent back to sender. I don't drive.

They were very apologetic, and said that they could not deliver it because Direct Express would not let them correct the address, and that I would need to contract DE and they would send out another card. I never got the fraud form and hand wrote my transactions and faxed them. I was on hold for three hours and 16 min.and was told my claim was denied and closed. The ending of this is that I had to shorten the last part of the story. I have faxed them again, and I get paid next week.

I will pull my money from DE and bury it in the yard before I will listen to their rude, apathetic customer unservice representatives and the lousy music. This company or whatever it is is very shadowy, shady, and not helpful at all. But you can always call customer service and complain. If you have vacation time to be on hold. Why can't a government agency do its own job instead of hiring shadow scapegoats that no one can reach and causing no accountability at all by anyone.