China News Service, September 26. According to the US "World Journal" report, in the United States, what measures will Chinese people take to remedy the theft of their deposits?
The World Daily summarizes typical cases, focusing on Chinese people's self-help methods for stolen deposits.
Case 1: Holding the bank accountable was repeatedly pushed back
Mr. Huang, a Chinese from Houston, Texas, said he had been a customer of Chase Bank for more than 20 years and had 5,500 yuan stolen in June this year.
He repeatedly complained to no avail, and finally decided to take legal measures.
The bank heard that he was going to file legal action, and turned his phone to the bank's administrative office.
This department is an integrated department that spans many departments and handles matters that the fraud prevention department cannot.
"A few days later, I received a refund." He believes that it is a good way to sue the bank. If you don't do this, the bank will not pay attention to it. If you can delay it, you will not actively solve the case.
Mr Huang said he had both a personal and a business account with Chase.
In early 2022, he discovered that someone had withdrawn 500 yuan from his bank account.
He reported it to the bank, and the bank returned it quickly.
One night in June 2022, he found that someone had withdrawn 5,500 yuan from his account, of which 3,500 yuan was withdrawn at the ATM and 2,000 yuan was withdrawn by check.
"I checked online and the withdrawal location is near Chinatown in Manhattan."
He said that he immediately called the bank, and the person who answered the phone said that it was night time, and the employees were all off work, and asked him to call again tomorrow.
So, early the next morning, he called Chase Bank, and the bank stopped paying the check when it got the call.
He later saw that the check was written to a payee named Wang.
"The date on the check is one day earlier, and the signature is wrong." The thief used his driver's license to withdraw the money.
However, the bank refused to refund the stolen $3,500 in cash.
The bank's explanation was that the person who took the money was using a driver's license, perhaps a family member of the account owner.
So he went to the local branch of Chase Bank in Houston, where the local bank said he would submit a letter of complaint.
A week later, the bank declined again.
He then called the bank's fraud prevention department, which rejected his request a third time.
So he told the person who answered the phone that he was going to sue the bank.
He said that to steal money from a bank account, the thief must have the depositor's information, including name, address, social security number, etc.
He analyzed that if the thieves can succeed, they must join hands with people inside the bank to steal the information of the depositors.
Also, some people make fake checks, ID documents, and some people steal deposits from banks.
"This kind of operation can't be done alone, it must be a thief group committing the crime."
He went to the local police station in Houston to report the crime, but the Houston police asked him to report the crime to New York.
Instead of going to New York, he called the New York City Police Department, and the New York City Police Department also asked him to report the crime locally in New York.
He also called the New York City Department of Consumer Protection, who also answered the case.
However, all of this has no effect.
He said the police department could access footage from the bank to find the thief.
However, the police department asked the bank to investigate itself, and the bank wanted the police department to investigate, blaming each other.
Now, he has demanded his stolen deposits back.
After getting the money, he has no contact with the Houston Police Department now, and I don't know what steps they have taken.
He heard that a lot of Asians have been stolen recently, even accounts that have just been opened.
"Americans have a hard time distinguishing Asian faces, and thieves take advantage of that."
Case 2: Complaint documents should be complete
The Chinese in New York, who requested anonymity, said that after her deposits were stolen, she went to the government department to complain to the bank without success.
The federal government has a consumer financial protection division.
After she complained, the government department took the case and then transferred it to the bank, which then called the victim.
"That's it, I want to get back the tens of thousands of yuan that was stolen." She said that it was important to file a complaint with the government, so it took her a lot of time.
The data of the complaint file should be prepared, such as date and amount, and it should be written clearly.
For example, deposits in the bank are withdrawn in various places, not by the depositors, but by theft.
In addition, the number of the bank card held by the thief is not the same as that of the depositor.
Therefore, when filling out the complaint data, be sure to list them all.
She said that money stolen from a bank with an ID card can be recovered, but money withdrawn at an ATM is rarely recovered.
There are two possibilities. One is that the victim took it by himself, and the other is that the thief took it. The bank cannot determine.
She heard from the police that the money thief may have installed a small machine in the ATM machine that can copy the data on the bank card and record the password entered at the same time.
This way, they can recreate a fake bank card and use this fake card to withdraw money.
If a thief is going to start stealing money, be sure to turn off the victim's phone first.
Therefore, if the phone suddenly goes down, it may be a precursor to theft.
Once, her mobile phone suddenly had no signal. She found the company that opened the mobile phone and asked the mobile phone company to check for her if someone had changed the SIM card.
The mobile phone company told her that someone had indeed changed the card at a branch.
She found the branch and asked if someone had asked for a SIM change in her name.
The staff checked and said that someone had just changed her SIM card with her ID card.
She said that she was a girl and the card changer was a boy, but the card change was successful.
This shows that the management of the telephone company is also very loose, so that thieves can easily commit crimes.
Therefore, the prevention of theft can only rely on yourself.
She called the phone company, told her that she was the owner of the call, and asked them to void the newly issued calling card.
Not only does she want her own money back, but she also helps other elderly people get their stolen deposits back.
She said it was impossible for these elderly people to go to many places to withdraw money, and to withdraw so much money at once.
She suggested that if you want to get your money back, you may not be able to wait for the police to solve the case. You should file a complaint online with the government's Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to get your money back.
Case 3: Restoring Credit Scores
In April 2022, the victim organized a WeChat group called “Bank Complainant Rights Protection Group”, one of which was a California-based certified public accountant.
The accountant revealed in the WeChat group that after he suffered the theft, he called the bank’s claims department for three months. As soon as he called, the other party said that he was investigating, and then kicked the ball.
He tried calling the police, the district attorney, the Federal Consumer Protection Bureau (CFPB), etc., but to no avail.
"My credit score plummeted, I couldn't help it, and decided to sue the bank."
The accountant said that before, someone in the group said to sue the bank together, and he also mentioned it, but no one paid him any attention.
"I can't wait, so I'll do it myself." He has hired a lawyer and is about to sue Chase for negligence.
The accountant invited those who were interested to participate, "people are more powerful."
The accountant revealed that the lawyer of his choice had experience in the Supreme Court.
Beginning in December, lawyers and banks will debate.
If someone is interested, they can join; if it is unsuccessful, the lawyer will charge a retention fee of 3,000 yuan.
He felt that he was willing to pay a little money to exhale.
The accountant also said his situation may have been different from the other victims because he "had a Chase credit card stolen".
"My credit card was stolen. I didn't lose anything if I didn't pay, but I lost my points." He has been entangled with Chase for a long time these months.
He said that the bank kept calling him in the past, but he ignored it, but it was annoying.
Now, whenever a call comes, he says to contact a lawyer directly; he has never been harassed since.
(Han Jie)