After this incident I have no trust in banks.
I was standing on a long line waiting to deposit my savings. A Wells Fargo officer advised me that he best way to not keep track of money deposits is to do them in cash. Since I have some problems at home and want to keep my saving private, I did just that. I opened a new account at Wells Fargo just for the little security I needed, just was it really secure?
So I was standing on the long line with my little 3 years old daughter, who is very restless and always wanting to go here and there to explore things, and I was about to leave, go, and return to make the deposit another day.
At that crutial time an officer, who assists the people on the like with whatever they want to do, approached me. He asked me what is the purpose of my visit today and I explained that I will be making a cash deposit. He told me that I don't need to wait on the like but I can depot the cash in the ATM machine.
I was reluctant. I told him I have never done that and it seems it is a big amount of money; more over I was a new customer and did not know the bank and its rules and work habits well. I was scared. He insisted, and told me he will do everything. Promised and done.
He completed the depots slip and asked me to put the cash into the ATM envelope. It was still sealed in my Washington Mutual envelope and he asked me to take it out. I did so and he counted the cash - $1100. I did deposit $200 check as well.
All I did was to put my card in the ATM machine and input my pin. My daughter was going haywire, but I managed to keep an eye on the officer. All was done well, I thought
After 3 days I received a letter explaining how I actually deposited only $900 cash and $200 check. I was enraged. How is that possible? I went back to the branch and talked to few people. They advised me it is not their duty but I have to contact the telephone number provided in the letter. I did so and there was just going around customer service and other numbers none of whom did provide me with a clue what to do.
After the weekend I returned to the branch and meet with the officer who assisted me in the transaction. His name is Erik Martirosyan. He explained he is just hired and according to him ATM is save. He told me I can use his name in any correspondence, and he can testify that the cash was actually $1100, not $900.
I spoke to the manager of the branch as well, but she told me I have no right to ask about testimony from Eric, and should go and deal with the telephone in the letter. I was really disappointed. The same person who was smiling at me while I was opening my account is now almost going to shutter me with words. What hypocrisy!
At last, somehow I managed, after making one dozen phone calls to get to the right number and file a dispute. Few days later I received a letter from Andrea Villavelazques, Agent from Phoenix. I don't know what that location had to do with Los Angeles, but in the letter was a confirmation that she has looked into the physical evidence of my case and she confirms that there is no mistake in the amount entered.
I called her, since there was a phone provided and asked her to explain to me what evidence she has checked. She told me that the evidence is attached to the letter and I looked it. It was EAPD Cash Substitution Ticket with imprint of what I have indicated as a deposit and what the actual amount was. I argued that this confirms their side of the story, but is not an actual evidence for me.
I asked if there are security cameras, and she told me that they don't have security cameras, but the place where the cash is taken out is very secure and people don't even wear their own cloths. I replied that I don't know that for sure because if there are no cameras, even this argument is just on her word.
I said that people working there in this case are not really monitored and anything can happen. Where else the taking of the $200 could have happened? She backfired that even Eric could have taken the cash, which for me doesn't make any difference since he is a Wells Fargo officer.
She said she did her job well. Well I said, congratulations, you did well for Wells Fargo, but the customer is still $200 deprived. Then she became really nasty and started accusing me that may be I did not count my money right, she did have cases like that.
I told her money were sealed in an envelope at the other bank. It took me 10 minutes to come from one bank to the other. I have the time of actual withdrawal. That was my savings for god sake. I was so scared that I did not want to take the money out of the envelope even when asked by Eric to take then out for counting.
Moreover it was easy for play with the amount - $200 check, and $200 taken out by Wells Fargo easy argument to accuse me I have input a wrong amount. But the people who took the money out did not know one fact that Eric from Wells Fargo wrote the deposit slip and counted the money.
It is so ridiculously clear that Wells Fargo's employees and the whole system is not professional, and I have paid $200 for that. I fallowed their advice. I could have used a check, but I took my money out in cash, moreover I listened to a nowise bank officer to put my money in their ATM machine, and paid for that.
Am I supposed to know everything about the cons and pros in the banking to make just a deposit? Why this entire people working for this huge institution are well paid to extend that their comfort makes them not care for people they are supposed to work for? I want to close my account with this bank, but not before this is solved!
0 comments