Why is a stranger using my address for his checking account and debit cards?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait.

You nearly gave your account number to a bank you are not banking with? Or do you and this man share the same bank?

The stranger and I share a bank. For some reason, his info is coming to my address.

I called the bank (at their real number listed on their website), and they said they want my account number to fix it.

OP

OK, they just want to make sure you are the person who you say you are. You can give them your account number.

I suppose this is either a clerical error on the bank's part, or the man wants a fake address in your state, for some reason.

What if she didn't use WF? How is her concern about the address any different? DO NOT give them your info, OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you take the address change notification to the post office and have it returned to sender?

This address change notification did not come from the Postal Service. It came from the bank.

[Anonymous]

Is your mailbox unsecured? Supposedly there’s a scam against that person named in the letter, where the address gets changed to your address, and then the scammer grabs the mail from the box before you get to it and gets access to that other person’s banking info.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait.

You nearly gave your account number to a bank you are not banking with? Or do you and this man share the same bank?

The stranger and I share a bank. For some reason, his info is coming to my address.

I called the bank (at their real number listed on their website), and they said they want my account number to fix it.

OP

OK, they just want to make sure you are the person who you say you are. You can give them your account number.

I suppose this is either a clerical error on the bank's part, or the man wants a fake address in your state, for some reason.

What if she didn't use WF? How is her concern about the address any different? DO NOT give them your info, OP.

I agree with you. It doesn't make any sense to me that they would want my account number.

Also, the person at the bank (this phone number is on the Wells Fargo website), said they could not find my account under our names. It seems to me that they'd be able to locate this info in their system.

The person didn't seem like a scammer because he wasn't trying to force me to do anything. I encountered a phone tree before I could speak to a real person, who seemed surprised and a bit confused by what I was asking. He wasn't trying to get me to talk to someone about this topic. So I do think I was speaking to someone at the bank.

I am freezing my account at the credit bureaus because why not? While I'm at it, I'm changing all my accounts to be paperless so we don't get important mail any longer. I began reading about different frauds and figured I'd do this now and be prepared of someone tries to redirected my financial statements.

OP

[Anonymous]

PS: I could take this postcard into Wells Fargo, but they'd have my account number!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PS: I could take this postcard into Wells Fargo, but they'd have my account number!

Isn't Wells Fargo your bank? If so, they have your account number. I probably would go to a brick-and-mortar Wells Fargo to straighten this out.

As for the mail-put a label in your box that says 'mail for Lastname Family ONLY' so the carrier knows not to leave mail for other dude.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is your mailbox unsecured? Supposedly there’s a scam against that person named in the letter, where the address gets changed to your address, and then the scammer grabs the mail from the box before you get to it and gets access to that other person’s banking info.

Yes. Unsecured. One of us is usually home and grabs the mail within a short time period.

What would happen if I just directly call the guy whose name is on the mail to let him know? I looked him up, and he's a real estate agent. He would probably think I'm a scammer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PS: I could take this postcard into Wells Fargo, but they'd have my account number!

Isn't Wells Fargo your bank? If so, they have your account number. I probably would go to a brick-and-mortar Wells Fargo to straighten this out.

As for the mail-put a label in your box that says 'mail for Lastname Family ONLY' so the carrier knows not to leave mail for other dude.

Only for my mortgage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait.

You nearly gave your account number to a bank you are not banking with? Or do you and this man share the same bank?

The stranger and I share a bank. For some reason, his info is coming to my address.

I called the bank (at their real number listed on their website), and they said they want my account number to fix it.

OP

They don't need your account number. Your account is fine right? The problem is with HIS account so they need his account number.

[Anonymous]

GO TO AN ACTUAL BRANCH AND SPEAK TO AN ACTUAL PERSON IN PERSON.

Yes, I did mean to yell. SMH.

[Anonymous]

This happened to us. It was an unemployment scam - someone had filed for unemployment using my DH's name and then had opened a bank account using our address.

[Anonymous]

With all the issues with squatting I would be concerned someone is using your home address then is going to download bank statements that have your home address and try to prove they are the owner of your house to take out an equity line, say they are renters, etc.

I would absolutely not want my account number linked in any way to this person’s account so I wouldn’t admit to someone over the phone that you even bank there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:GO TO AN ACTUAL BRANCH AND SPEAK TO AN ACTUAL PERSON IN PERSON.

Yes, I did mean to yell. SMH.

This. Do it tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

I totally would NOT try to sort this out by telephone, too hard to know if one is talking to a fraudster or not.

I would take his papers in person to his bank -- and I would NOT tell them I also bank there -- and suggest their Fraud Dept look into the matter.

[Anonymous]

My googling turned up this article about a woman who had an experience similar to mine.

**

We contacted Wells again, and it said a review of its records showed Steele wasn't a victim of identity theft.

"Wells Fargo has determined an isolated internal error resulted in the wrong address being inserted in the bank's computer system," a spokesman said. "Wells Fargo is identifying the reasons for the internal error and taking steps to insure such an error does not occur in the future for any customer."

The spokesman said for privacy reasons, he couldn't explain what action was or wasn't taken with Jane Doe.

We then turned to West Caldwell Police Chief Gerard Paris.

He said his officers found Jane Doe and determined the wrong address was a mistake -- not attempted fraud -- but that Steele was right to be concerned.

"If someone was using my address and they were doing it on purpose, it could rise to the level of fraud," Paris said. "There's an identity theft concern."

https://www.nj.com/business/2016/06/bamboozled_why_you_should_worry_about_wrongly_addr.html