SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A Bay Area man says he was scammed out of $6,000 and couldn’t get Chime, a San Francisco-based financial tech company, to reimburse him until 7 On Your Side got involved.
“It can happen to anyone,” Diego Valdez said.
Valdez says he spent at least 30 hours trying to get his money back from Chime, which offers online and mobile banking services through partner banks. But his efforts fell flat.
“I can’t believe I fell for it,” he said.
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A South Bay viewer says his family received a bill for $5,000 after a trip to the ER for his son, who didn’t actually make it past the waiting room.
In August, Valdez says he received a call from someone pretending to be a Chime representative.
“They used my recent transactions, information to verify, to trick me that it was them; they used a fake caller ID acting as the financial institution.”
Valdez says he even looked up the number while on the call. It all seemed to check out, but he still had a bad feeling.
“First, I went to block my cards, as I’m blocking them, I see $1,000 being pulled out,” he said. “I went to cancel the large transfer and it was too late.”
Two transactions got through, one for $5,000 and the other for $1,000, before Valdez could block his card.
The scam had a significant impact on him financially and emotionally.
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“They take advantage,” Valdez said.
He tried to get his money back for weeks before reaching out to 7 On Your Side.
“I spent close to 30 hours on the phone just with Chime. But you guys did it in like 10 minutes and the next day the money was in my account,” he said.
In an emailed statement, a Chime Spokesperson writes, “As the most loved banking app, Chime is committed to ensuring members have control of their money and we are pleased that this matter is now resolved. Chime members can keep themselves protected by visiting our Trust and Safety Hub and staying up to date on the latest safety tips and resources from Chime.”
It’s not clear who was responsible, but Valdez filed reports with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies.
A good rule of thumb is that if you get one of these calls, tell the caller you’re going to call your bank back directly, not the number they give you. Then you can independently confirm whether or not the call is legitimate.
Take a look at more stories and videos by 7 On Your Side. 7OYS’s consumer hotline is a free consumer mediation service for those in the San Francisco Bay Area. We assist individuals with consumer-related issues; we cannot assist on cases between businesses, or cases involving family law, criminal matters, landlord/tenant disputes, labor issues, or medical issues. Please review our FAQ here. As a part of our process in assisting you, it is necessary that we contact the company / agency you are writing about. If you do not wish us to contact them, please let us know right away, as it will affect our ability to work on your case. Due to the high volume of emails we receive, please allow 3-5 business days for a response.
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