Wells Fargo Bank ripoff Credit Card Check Process Questionable Midland Texas

On Nov. 26, 2004, I entered my local Wells Fargo branch to deposit a $1200.00 Discover "convenience" check to my personal checking account. I was asked by the teller if I had my card with me to swipe. I advised that I didn't. She told me I would have to take my check to the collections dept and that my funds would have to be collected through that dept.

I proceeded to "collections" and the clerk filled out the paperwork and advised that the process takes a little longer than depositing the check the usual way, approx. 7-10 days, but the credit card companies takes a few days to fund the checks so it makes better sense for Wells Fargo to handle the checks this way.

On Dec. 6th, I hadn't received my $1200.00 funds. I contacted the WF branch and they advised that Discover still hadn't sent the funds. I contacted Discover and they advised that the check had been presented for payment that day (1 week and 1 day after deposit.) I asked Discover how soon the money would appear in my account. They advised as soon as it is released electronically. I contacted WF again and the clerk advised that the money would not go into my account electronically. Discover would have to issue a cashier's check and mail it back to Wells Fargo's Portland, OR office.

I called Discover back and they advised that WF had verified the funds days earlier. I asked for their assurance that the funds would be released electronically. I asked this point blank and was transferred to someone else when they could not tell me specifically when; each time the response was all they knew is that it was done "electronically" which is the only way Discover pays the checks.

Monday, December 13th arrives; still no money. Bills are due to be paid from Bill Pay on my checking account. I called WF and the clerk could not tell me where my money was except that it wasn't rec'd from Discover so I should call them.

I called Discover and they assured me the funds had been released to WF on Dec. 6th. I called WF back and asked the clerk where the fund were since Discover assured me they released the funds to WF a week prior. The WF clerk adamantly claimed that Discover had not released the funds. Then she advised that the process that WF uses to collect the funds could take 30-90 days and that the initial clerk that took the check should have told me 30-90 days instead of 7-10 days. (So much for "convenience" checks!) I then asked for the number to the OCC to file a complaint...I obvioiusly would not have agreed to wait 1-3 months to get my funds, as the whole point of a "convenience check"is "CONVENIENCE." She transferred me to her supervisor, Gwenn Burns.
Ms. Burns came on the line and I explained the situation to her after being on hold for several mins. I told her I would start having NSF fees and late fees due to WF's delay in putting the funds in my account and Ms. Burns started grilling me as to why I would write checks against uncollected funds. (I assume a ploy to get the monkey off of WF back and on mine.)

I explained that the checks were set up to pay on Bill Pay months earlier and that I had assumed Wells Fargo would act prudently in depositing my funds. Ms. Burns seemed to not want to address why the funds were not in my account and seemed more interested as to why I would pay bills against uncollected funds.

After being railroaded down that path a few times, I told her Ms. Burns that I understood her question and she understood my question, but that wasn't getting the problem resolved, so once again, I asked for the number to the OCC so I could file a complaint. Ms. Burns placed me on hold for several mins coming back intermittently to tell me she is trying to get the number. (You would think a bank, especially a bank as large as WF, would have that number handy.) Ms. Burns finally took my number and offered to call me back with the OCC number.

I accessed the internet after hanging up from Ms. Burns and found the OCC number immediately. I contacted the OCC and they were very helpful in taking my information, assigning a case number and telling me how to file a formal complaint.

I then hired an attorney to try to recover my funds. After spending all day on the phone between WF and Discover, he was unable to find my funds. He told me that Wells Fargo's excuse for handling this transaction in this manner was to save me $15.00. (I was NEVER given an option to pay $15.00 to avoid the WF roller coaster ride!) TODAY, December 14th, I finally got a response from Discover NOT WELLS FARGO, acknowledging that the funds were sent to WF on DEC 13TH via Cashier's Check and NOT DEC 6TH.

While Discover was providing me with inaccurate information all along, Ms. Burns NEVER responded to any of my phone inquiries as to the status of the funds since yesterday, I cannot help but hold Wells Fargo responsible for the stress I endured as a result of their incompetence.

They will probably continue to maintain that it was Discover that messed up and not Wells Fargo. HOWEVER
I have talked to other local banks and Discover, they all advise that the way Wells Fargo handled the check was NOT A STANDARD BANKING PRACTICE.

If Wells Fargo would have followed normal procedure, I would have had the money in my account within 3-4 days instead of 1-2 days like a normal check. Ms. Burns time, the other WF clerks, my time, Discover's time and my time would not have been wasted trying to find my funds.

Secondly, had Wells Fargo advised me initially that this process would take 30-90 days, I would have gone back to my office a few blocks away and retrieved my card.

That is why so many people hate Wells Fargo; they are trying to change the banking environment by using these cumbersome practices that nobody else in the industry understands. Wells Fargo thinks they will save or make them a few dollars in fees choosing the more archaic approach, but in reality they spend more time trying to fix things because they choose to do everything the "Wells Way!" I realize this problem is not the fault of Ms. Burns, but Wells Fargo's management. I'm sure she is just doing the best she can do with the limited authority she has in her position.

I have discussed this issue with others and they advised that Wells Fargo can collect merchant fees by swiping my card as opposed to depositing the convenience check...so in a sense they are trying to punish the consumer since they are not able to collect percentage fees if the consumer does not present the actual card for them to swipe in their credit card machine. They are punishing their employees too. Ms. Burns was probably tied up for several minutes in her day talking to me, my attorney and Discover representatives.

Needless to say, I probably will not receive my funds now until at least Friday the 17th or Monday the 20th which MAKES NO SENSE, although WF has verified the funds and knows that they are available in my Discover account.

WORD TO THE WISE. Don't ever, ever deposit a credit card check with WELLS FARGO. Better yet don't bank there. I'm moving my account ASAP!!

Cindy
Midland, Texas
U.S.A.

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