'Fraud Protection' fails bank customer

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - One Albuquerque teacher learned the hard way that her bank’s “Fraud Protection” plan did little to actually protect her.

Laura Valdez says it all started last week after she wrote five checks, totaling $1200 to pay bills.  Valdez says she dropped the checks in the mailbox and somehow they were picked up and taken out of her mailbox.  That’s when those checks underwent some changes.

“One of the checks was for $70 and they turned it into $700, the other check was for $50 but was cashed for $506,” Valdez tells KRQE News 13.

Valdez only discovered what had happened when someone tried to cash of the checks at Compass Bank, the same bank Valdez had banked at for 13 years.

The transaction didn’t go through because she didn’t have enough money in her account, so Compass called her.  Valdez then called police.

Police told Valdez the checks were more than likely chemically washed and then the pay-to line was changed as was the pay-out amount.

At first Valdez says Compass seemed more than willing to help her recoup the money.  Valdez assumed this would be the case since she had fraud protection on her account.

“At the time the bank official stated that these matters usually take 48 hours to resolve,” Valdez said.

Forty-eight hours quickly turned into seven to ten days, which has now turned into 90 days and no guarantee that she’ll actually get her money back.  That’s because the forged checks were not cashed at Compass Banks.

“It’s been inconsistent information which frustrated me and the complete lack of care or concern for customers,” Valdez said.   “This is the stuff they don’t tell you about.  Until today I had no idea this was the bank’s policy.  None.  I thought with fraud protection I was covered.”

Valdez said she plans to find a new bank, ending her 13-years as a customer at Compass.

Compass Bank did not return New 13’s calls for comments.