Someone steals all the money out of our checking & I'm not the victim!!!

[prolesunited]

I'm so pissed right now. I posted that someone got ahold of our MasterMoney (debit) card number and drained the checking account in the course of a day. I've followed up with the bank and filed a police report yesterday.

The good news is, of course I'll get my money back. The bad news is they won't even try to go after the people who did this.

The detective just called and said they he would take the report, but since the fraud was committed in California, it is their jurisdiction. When I said I would follow up with them, he said I couldn't because I'm not the victim. The bank is the "victim" because I will get my money back and it is the injured party, and the card is not even technically mine because it belongs to the bank.

Because of the small (nearly $1,000) amount, he said he doubts the bank will pursue it and simply write it off.

He said it's not costing me anything, so I shouldn't be upset. But I am so angry that whoever did this just gets to walk away because no one can be bothered with it. And, I'm sure they'll just do it to someone else.

One of the charges was at WalMart. They have cameras at every register. How hard would it be to at least get a pic to run it against known criminals? The incident isn't even a week old yet.

I feel really violated and aggravated right now. This is the second time this month that I've had to go through this crap because someone ran a scam on me (not related, just a 2002 incident that came back). It's caused hours of time and aggravation.

ID theft is NOT a victimless crime. Why don't our laws or businesses go after these people more aggressively?

[matcom]

1. technically he is correct

the bank IS the victim (once you get your $$ back)

this is what Mrs Matcom does for a bank (one of the things anyway) and you're right. they will likely write it off.

sorry. :shrug:

[Left Is Write]

4. It would cost them more to pursue the criminal

than it will to write off the stolen amount.

[matcom]

5. oh easily

Mrs Matcom is very selective about who she takes to court. $1k ain't shit (it is but the bank has MANY other cases far exceeding that amount)

[prolesunited]

10. I know he's right

and I told him I knew his hands were tied. I know it doesn't seem like much, but the money gets tied up until they verify it all.

No wonder ID theft is such a fast-growing crime. It apparently is quite easy to get away with it.

[matcom]

13. not entirely true. it really isn't ID theft

they stole your card and PIN, NOT your personal info. ID theft WOULD allow you recourse but in this case its the same as stealing your property.

[prolesunited]

15. Actually, the didn't even steal my card

just somehow got the card number, and I don't use that online and I shred everything so I don't know how they did it.

BTW, you're really starting to piss me off! :P

[matcom]

16. go ahead and tell me YOU think the sky is blue

go ahead. i DARE ya! :D

:bounce:

[liberalhistorian]

31. They may write it off, but

she needs to be VERY careful that the incident doesn't show up as fraud on one of those damned bank account databases that banks and creditors check periodically. The bank may very well report it as fraud on her account and she will be the one to suffer for it.

When I was robbed and the thug got my ATM card, then got the PIN# from me by moving his gun from my ribs to my neck, he took out $700 in three transactions within five minutes, FIVE HOURS after I'd reported it stolen with the PIN# and you're not even supposed to be able to get more than $500 a day from this bank. They even claimed that they had no record of my calling to put a block on the card when I did it at the police station, in front of the policeman who took my report, and they had a record of it.

When they couldn't get away with that, they then tried to claim the loss was my fault for giving him the PIN# in the first place. Well, golly geez, I don't know, maybe having a loaded gun shoved in my neck and the guy acting like he was going to get in the car and drive to the ATM with me might have had something to do with it. They tried EVERYTHING to avoid having to pay me the money back that they shouldn't have allowed to be stolen in the first place. Had I not had an attorney for a boss, who had his personal and business accounts with them and who got on the phone twice a day to their headquarters every single day for a month, I'd likely still be waiting for my money and that was over two years ago.

And they had the fucking nerve, the unmitigated Bush-like fucking gall, to report it to the credit bureaus and checking account databases as a deliberate fraudulent transaction on my part! Un-be-fucking-lievable. No wonder people hate banks so goddamned much, I know I certainly do. I got it straightened out, but after far too much hassle and aggravation, and after a much longer time than it should have taken. And they never did find my perp, either, even though they have his picture on the ATM camera. So, Proles, be sure to check and make certain there's no fraud report on you, that's important.

[Shell Beau]

2. Yeah, but I don't think the bank is hurting for the money.

With the bank fees they collect, etc. However, I think you both are the victims. Too bad! Sorry! That sucks.

[lizziegrace]

3. I had the same thing happen

several years ago I left my wallet at a restaurant. Someone got my American Express card and went crazy at Target buying electronics. I called AMEX immediately and reported it stolen (Friday night) and the purchases were made on Saturday and Sunday. My card was not "shut off" until Monday. Now, remember a purchase hits immediately. Their response? "You're not responsible for it. You don't have to pay for it." Right. So what is that $80 annual membership fee for? They're not paying for it. We all are in higher fees.

Same goes for banks.

Rant over. Carry on!

:hi:

[Left Is Write]

6. I understand your frustration.

Technically, the bank IS the victim, but I can completely understand your feeling of violation and frustration. I'm sorry.

[LostinVA]

7. Forget the Wal-Mart Cameras

I managed a big box bookstore, and it would be easy to find which register it was used at. I'd call up WM corporate and make them help you -- threaten a civil suit if need be. It's a Visa-backed card, and ID should technically be asked for, and it definitely wasn't.

[prolesunited]

8. But

according to the officer, I have NO right to pursue anything with anybody because I have no legal stake in this. Apparently, I'm just a bystander in all this.

[matcom]

9. he is correct

you are no longer a victim. your 'property' was returned and the bank is now the victim since they are out the cash.

[prolesunited]

11. I know

but can't I still be pissed and vent about it? :D

[matcom]

14. no

;)

[Deja Q]

12. They're write off ID theft but not CC debt.

Lovely "society", ours.

[Lars39]

17. So they would pursue it if the charges had occurred in your city?

What happens if the charges had occurred online at a site you frequent quite often?
Seems like it's still your good name and credit being trashed.

[prolesunited]

25. Nothing is trashed

It's all being straightened out. It's a small local bank, so I think they have a more service-oriented attitude. And, it's really not in my city's jurisdiction.

[Lars39]

29. Glad it's working out.

Sounds like a nightmare. :hug:

[RebelOne]

18. I don't understand how someone could buy something

when they just have your card number. They would also have to have your card and PIN.

[prolesunited]

26. Not necessarily

Its one of those debit cards that can be run through as either as an ATM or credit card. All it would take is a cooperative partner or someone not checking an ID.

[Gormy Cuss]

19. As if "writing it off" doesn't cost you in the long run.

Every time a business writes off something, there's less taxes owed to the government therefore less revenue for services. At the same time, there's some corporate policy writer drafting a new notice to card holders of a new fee to help curb the cost of fraudulent charges.
And chances are good the source problem was caused by an employee of the issuer or one of its vendors.

Sweet deal, isn't it?

[LisaL]

20. Been there, done that.

The police don't investigate crimes such as this.

[MadHound]

21. Suggestion for you, since this has happened twice now

Put your debit card away, and go to a cash only basis. It sounds as though somebody at one of the businesses you deal with is swiping numbers from customers, and then draining their accounts. If this person doesn't have the numbers to swipe, then you can't get hit. Go back to written checks for large purchases.

It is the drawback of living in a plastic economy, your ID can be stolen easily and put to nefarious uses.

[prolesunited]

24. No, the other time was totally unrelated to this

Somebody with a similar last name took out multiple cell phones and didn't pay the bill, and since it was one letter off, they somehow attached it to me. I'm currently trying to get the credit bureu to change my name to my real one, among other issues in process.

[LoZoccolo]

22. Just steal a debit card yourself; that'll make you feel better.

Plus you'll get away with it!

_{NOTE: This post is sarcastic.}

[prolesunited]

27. OK

Send me yours. :evilgrin:

[Beaverhausen]

23. Did you see this column from the LA TImes?

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lopez1jan01,1,7697577.column?coll=la-mininav-california

If a Bank Says Don't Worry, Worry

Don't worry, the bank told me when it froze my debit card after a thief managed to drain a couple thousand dollars from my account.

Here's a consumer tip: When your bank says don't worry, you should begin worrying. What I'm about to tell you is a cautionary tale, so pay close attention, and with any luck, you won't get ripped off like I did.

My bank's friendly customer service rep explained by phone that the stolen funds would be restored to my account while the bank conducted an investigation.

Sounded great, and indeed, the funds were restored. But how had the money been withdrawn from four different ATMs, at $500 a crack, if I still had my debit card?

Someone might have managed to steal my PIN number and create a bogus card, the bank explained.

As I would later learn from the U.S. Secret Service, local police and the Identity Theft Resource Center, the business of ATM fraud is booming. Crooks are using video cellphones, surveillance cameras and old-fashioned shoulder surfing to eavesdrop on you while you punch in your PIN. On top of that, there's an occasional inside job in which a crooked bank employee swipes the information.

SNIP

As instructed, I filled out the necessary forms and even called my bank to say I had a hunch where the original theft might have occurred. I'd had a suspicious encounter at a gas station, where a clerk watched me try to use a pump that had rejected my card. Within a few days, my account was tapped.

Four weeks after filling out forms, my bank sent me a letter.

"After conducting a thorough investigation … it has been determined that … the transaction activity in question was authorized and posted correctly to your account. Therefore, the temporary credit for $2,020.50 that was previously applied to your account will be reversed on December 16, 2005, thus closing this dispute."


**********
More at the link.

I read this because a co-worker had the same thing happen to her. This is just crazy.

[prolesunited]

28. I don't think I'll have the same issues

I've already filed the police report and filed the forms with the bank and talked to the right person and will hand-deliver the report later this week. And, believe me, I will be following this closely. I'm at a small bank, so I don't think you run into the same kind of bureacracy.

However, that's a great cautionary tale. Thanks for the link.

[Beaverhausen]

30. It's just amazing how widespread this is

all the people he lists in that column who also had the same thing happen to them.

Hope everything works out for you. :hi: