I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!!

Kaye

Kaye

Line Up and Wait
Joined
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iPlaneless
Last Saturday, I sent by certified mail my passport, renewal form, and check. Check on the USPS website Wed and was surprised that the envelope was delivered on Monday. Checked the passport site, and I wasn't in the database, but that wasn't surprising. I continued to check daily, but I still didn't show up.

Got home from work today, and my return receipt was in the mail. Guess who "signed" it.........it was stamped by CITIGIGROUP!!!!!

I don't know where to begin.....the freakin' post office moron turned over something addressed to the National Passport Processing to CitiGroup!! So if CitiGroup saw they screwed up, it'd only be a day turn-around back to the passport folks. Or if they opened the envelope, there's phone numbers to call to let me know the oops!

I'm ****ED!!!!! :mad:

And I'm FREAKED!!!! Ya'll can now just run away with my identity now.

So tomorrow I go to the Post Office...file a lost/stolen paperwork, file new paperwork and prove that I'm me.

But what about my identity!!! I'm going to sign up and pay the bucks for a premier credit tracking service, but what else do I need to do?

Kaye.....who's hand is bruised from smacking the wall........
 
Kate, the USPS takes Certified mail very seriously. Go to your local office and file a claim. It could get somebody fired.
 
What the!!!!!! As much as people like to rag on the USPS, they usually do a great job. That is a bungle of colossal proportions! Mikea is right -- you had better file a complaint.

I hope it works out for you (and quickly!)
 
I'll be interested in your follow up on this one.

You can put a "fraud alert" on each of your credit reports. Clark Howard has a short segment on his page among much more on identity theft.

http://clarkhoward.com/topics/identity_theft_guide.html

As for monitoring your credit, I subscribe to Equifax. I pay $60 a year which gives me four free reports along with a score and an alert any time there is an increase in credit on one of my cards, an inquiry or opened account. It's well worth the money for protecting your credit, especially such as in my case where I've spent the last four years busting my butt to pay off debt remove the last of derogatory items and build up my credit.

But now... I'm now dealing with fraud on my Discover card. A couple Saturdays ago, I was sitting in the room yacking with some other pilots. I get a call from Discover Card Fraud Prevention. I'm puzzled. They had called me in the past when I made large purchases that were not in line with my normal trend. But, my largest purchase had been running my cellular bills through as well as cable bills.

They named those off along with a small charge of $18 where I topped off with fuel before a long ride and then another that night when I filled up again. I'm more puzzled... why question these? Then, he calls off $746 to HP and another $1048 to HP. I responded with, "NEGATIVE!!!"

Then I had the hassle of a closed account for a week while waiting for my new card and account number. Meanwhile, both laptops have been delivered and they attempted a third charge of $750 which was declined. That one was odd in that they used the old expiration date.

Discover is doing their investigation but I took a shot and called HP. I managed to get emails of all the transactions, including the model, serial number, the shipping address and email address used along with a name and phone number. I'm gonna be pushing this one to the max when I file a police report on Monday.

I still don't know how they got my card number. I did learn that any time you make an on-line purchase, it's always logged as a keyed number. The card company can only verify when the card was swiped.

Given they could unload these things on eBay, it may not be a bad idea to check the serial number of any machine you ever buy. HP could track it back to it's original purchaser in most cases.
 
KennyFlys said:
I'll be interested in your follow up on this one.

You can put a "fraud alert" on each of your credit reports. Clark Howard has a short segment on his page among much more on identity theft.
Click to expand...


But can you put a "fraud alert" on your SSN?

My head is just going crazy with all the possibilities.

Yes, I'll be filing a complaint with the USPS..and I agree they normally do a good job...but if stuff goes to rat s--t, I'm still the one holding the infamous ball.
 
I sympathize. But it's the government... they acted (stupidly) like I would expect the government to work. Your tax bucks at work...
 
Kaye said:
Last Saturday, I sent by certified mail my passport, renewal form, and check. .
Click to expand...

I NEVER send anything important thru the USPS. They're too incompetent.
I've had too many problems with them thru the years. I almost always
send important stuff UPS or FedEx.
 
Kaye said:
Yes, I'll be filing a complaint with the USPS..and I agree they normally do a good job...but if stuff goes to rat s--t, I'm still the one holding the infamous ball.
Click to expand...

Since they delivered it to the wrong place .. as evidenced by the
receipt .. I'd be talking to a lawyer too.
 
That thing is stuck in the bowels of some huge mail room. Lets hope there is a good soul working there that drops it back in the mail for you. I have done it many a time when I get mistaken delivery.
 
Kaye said:
But can you put a "fraud alert" on your SSN?
Click to expand...
Yes... Your bureaus are all tied to your SSN. That's why it's so important to protect it, especially when it's on a document along with your birth date.
 
Kaye said:
Got home from work today, and my return receipt was in the mail. Guess who "signed" it.........it was stamped by CITIGIGROUP!!!!!
Click to expand...

Can you determine what address it was delivered to? Is there a CitiGroup office near the Passport office where you sent the package? If so, I'd track down their phone number and be talking to SOMEBODY in their mail room.

Go proactive!! I hope this works out okay for you.

Troy
 
FYI - I work for Citigroup, do you know where (what City) it was delivered?

:dunno:
 
Large volume mail recipients do not get their mail delivered unless they pay the post office for it. Otherwise, it's picked up by a courier.

My experience as a courier, certified mail is signed for by a courier. Sometimes, its signed by hand. If the recipient AND the post office authorizes use of a rubber stamp by a specific courier, that may be an option. I never had a rubber stamp. I very rarely did such runs. The IRS was one of the few exceptions. I'd sign (by hand) for as many as a hundred letters every hour. This was true of most commercial mail recipients.

I never paid attention to who they were addressed to, where they came from or what exactly they were. I had those and somewhere around 20-25 trays of regular mail also going to the IRS. They were actually delivered to a Bank of America office where the checks were removed for deposit and notated on whatever document was being submitted. BA would forward them on to the actual IRS office.

Since mail is sorted by automation, I'd have to wonder about clarity of the address or if it might have been mangled by equipment and mis-sorted. When mail is mangled, they usually stick it in a clear envelope and its manual sort from that point on. Either way, it's most likely the post office who screwed up.
 
tomcat said:
FYI - I work for Citigroup, do you know where (what City) it was delivered?

:dunno:
Click to expand...

It was mailed to Philadelphia and Citigroup has an office there (I've got the number and will be calling). It's just a stamp saying Citigroup on my receipt, so I don't even know if it made it Philadelphia.
 
Kaye,

First off, your biggest hassle will be the lost passport. And that will (really) be the inconvenience of going to a passport agency (it may be the local post office or courthouse), filing a "lost passport" document (which cancels the passport so no one can use it to enter the country or renew it) and applying for a new passport. I assume that your renewal signifies that there isn't much life left in the old one.

If you have an older, canceled passport, it can serve as ID to help you get your new one. Otherwise, you'll have to submit the birth certificate and any other documents required for a new passport.

You will, of course, lose any stamps of interesting countries you visited (a big deal to some).

The chance of identity theft credit-wise is minimal, but exists. The easiest way to address that is to request each credit bureau (there are 3) to put a fraud-block on your account. The blocks alert lenders to contact you personally before granting credit - and in the event lenders ignore it, it makes it much easier to clean anything up later.

Why do I know this? Unfortunately, a few years ago my computer and briefcase were stolen out of my office at lunchtime. Because I had recently returned from an international trip, my passport was in the bag, along with a credit card or two, frequent flyer cards, a "yellow card" documenting immunizations, and some other stuff.

I immediately notified the credit card companies and bureaus, who were more than happy to shut down the cards (in fact, within the hour that it took to get the credit card canceled, it had been used at a couple of gas stations and other stores). The passport was handled quickly with a visit to the local agency - and I had a replacement in 4 weeks. I am annoyed because there were a couple of stamps in there that will not be replaced, but the process was easy. And if the clowns ever try and use the passport to enter the country by replacing the picture, I expect that they will be quickly arrested because the stolen passport was canceled.

It doesn't help your anger much, but the risk to you is minimal (and even less since the document wasn't exactly stolen), especially if you move fairly quickly.
 
Kaye said:
It was mailed to Philadelphia and Citigroup has an office there (I've got the number and will be calling). It's just a stamp saying Citigroup on my receipt, so I don't even know if it made it Philadelphia.
Click to expand...

I'm really sorry this happened to you; know you're getting a lot of advise. My 2 cents is if Citigroup signed for it, I'd sure start with making them produce it first! Call them first. I might send a certified letter informing them they signed for an official document belonging to you and you expect them to immediately return it.

Crazy that they just have a stamp without a location, but, that would appear to be a binding receipt. Of course, go to the postal service and GO POSTAL! That's where the term originated from. Then call or visit the pass post folks and ask them what to do.

Crazy! Hopefully you just make a call or two and the folk at Citigroup are responsive. I had something like this happen with a radar detector. No one ever fessed up; I never got it. Since the company couldn't prove delivery, they sent another.

Best,

Dave
 
I'm a touch calmer this afternoon. I've got the fraud alert out and paid for the premium "watch my credit alert". The USPS has heard from me, and I should be receiving a call from the Philly post office that screwed up (for all the good that will do). I've got the paperwork filled out and the new pictures taken (I do have old passports), but I decided to wait until Monday to go to the post office (yeah, I really want to go there, but it's easier than downtown DC) to turn in all my stuff and prove that I'm me. I couldn't get thru on the passport help desk last night, so hopefully I can on Monday. And with a little bit of luck, they'll have my stuff. I checked to see if the check cleared yet, but it hasn't. And I'll be calling Citigroup first thing Monday morning.

What a PITA!
 
No good dead goes unpunished! Sorry it happened to you. Seems like the nicest folks get the most grief sometimes.

Best,

Dave
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

Talked to the Passport help desk a few minutes ago. Apparently, Citigroup is their bank processing center that processes the payment and enters the data. Then it's handed over to the Passport Agency.

Told the nice lady that it would be nice to put that in the instructions so people like me don't freak out when they think their passport has gone to the wrong place. Her response......."most people don't notice, sorry for the confusion."

What can I say.... :dunno: It's the gubament....

Kaye
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

Kaye said:
Talked to the Passport help desk a few minutes ago. Apparently, Citigroup is their bank processing center that processes the payment and enters the data. Then it's handed over to the Passport Agency.

Told the nice lady that it would be nice to put that in the instructions so people like me don't freak out when they think their passport has gone to the wrong place. Her response......."most people don't notice, sorry for the confusion."

What can I say.... :dunno: It's the gubament....

Kaye
Click to expand...

In cases like this, outsourcing needs to be transparent -- which it wasn't. I hope things move forward smoothly for you!

Best,

-Andrew
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

astanley said:
In cases like this, outsourcing needs to be transparent -- which it wasn't.
Click to expand...
Yeah, once the outsourcing is transparent, you won't even KNOW that your financial information went to New Dehli and your passport went to Bangalore. :hairraise:
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

Kaye said:
Talked to the Passport help desk a few minutes ago. Apparently, Citigroup is their bank processing center that processes the payment and enters the data. Then it's handed over to the Passport Agency.

Told the nice lady that it would be nice to put that in the instructions so people like me don't freak out when they think their passport has gone to the wrong place. Her response......."most people don't notice, sorry for the confusion."

What can I say.... :dunno: It's the gubament....

Kaye
Click to expand...

"Sorry for the confusion? How's about refunding that renewal fee so that covers my new credit watch account?"
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

gkainz said:
Yeah, once the outsourcing is transparent, you won't even KNOW that your financial information went to New Dehli and your passport went to Bangalore. :hairraise:
Click to expand...

No no no! As in, USPS announces in full that they are doing it - i.e. your passport will go to Citigroup, and then to... That is operational transparency.

Cheers,

-Andrew
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

Kaye said:
Talked to the Passport help desk a few minutes ago. Apparently, Citigroup is their bank processing center that processes the payment and enters the data. Then it's handed over to the Passport Agency.

Told the nice lady that it would be nice to put that in the instructions so people like me don't freak out when they think their passport has gone to the wrong place. Her response......."most people don't notice, sorry for the confusion."

What can I say.... :dunno: It's the gubament....

Kaye
Click to expand...

If you'd like Kaye, we can trade issues!!

I pay my mortgage payment annually in advance; third year with this company. Each time, they reduce principal and tell me another payment is due next month. I have to call, go through the voice mail boxes, list account numbers etc. to find none of the choices fit, get on a person--not always easy and explain (after verifying my identity again).

Today, Katie told me I couldn't do that. I asked why; she says my note says I can only pay three payments ahead. So, I pull out he note, get it in front of me and ask where it says that. She'll have to pull the note up-standby, for quite some time. She can't pull the note up. I tell her I've read it again while on hold, it's only three pages long and I don't seen any provision of that nature. She says it must be there; she'll have to get a supervisor to waive the provision. I tell her this is the third year I've done this and it was expressly discussed when I originated the loan.

I tell here I wrote it was one year or payments in advance on the slip that came with the statement and on the check. She says that doesn't matter as it's electrically scanned--a person never sees it. I tell her my attorney informs me that doesn't matter. The instructions on the check clearly state what the payment if for.

She says I have to send the payments to a different address because a person will then read them. I tell her that is her problem, not to make it mine. I send the check in the return envelope they provide. She says she's just trying to solve the problem and if I continue to do that, I will have to call every year and straighten things our or I will be billed late charges and my credit will be affected.

So, one can't just pay in advance (heavens, who would want that!!), one also has to solve the problems of the company accepting the payments.

Best,

Dave
 
And that, Dave, is why I got a loan at the local bank here - it's in their own portfolio. Yeah, there are a couple of downsides, but in general it's a lot nicer to walk into the office and talk to them personally when there is a problem.

Unfortunately, when I finally move, it will be unlikely that I'll have that advantage.... wish I could pay cash outright....
 
Good for you Bill. I don't know of a local bank here that keeps these in their portfolio; most originate pass throughs, as you know!

Have any idea where you may be movin or when? Got to get my Baron in top condition to compete with that VLJ you have your eye on!!

Best,

Dave
 
Dave Siciliano said:
Good for you Bill. I don't know of a local bank here that keeps these in their portfolio; most originate pass throughs, as you know!
Click to expand...

Texas seems to have more local banks than some other places. I suspect the laws are easier here.

I'm with a local group that has about 4 offices - the President of the bank routinely invites some of the customers up for lunch. They may not have the absolute best rates, but the service is very good.... in fact, I refi-ed the house twice since I've been living here, and each time the total cost to refi has been under $250 (the first time was something like $50 for legal fees).

Have any idea where you may be movin or when? Got to get my Baron in top condition to compete with that VLJ you have your eye on!!

Best,

Dave
Click to expand...

More news on that soon enough. It's likely to NOT be in Texas.
 
Dave Siciliano said:
Good for you Bill. I don't know of a local bank here that keeps these in their portfolio; most originate pass throughs, as you know!
Click to expand...
I think that a number of Credit Unions keep their own portfolio, for those that want to pursue that. I could be wrong though!
 
wsuffa said:
More news on that soon enough. It's likely to NOT be in Texas.
Click to expand...

My condolences; I did know you couldn't hold out forever. At some point, we all knew you'd probably get a real job:goofy:

Let us know; I'm sure we can forward some nachos and Huevos Rancheros to you on occasion <g>. (Boy, don't order those in Wisconsin; tried that at my nieces once!)

Heck, might have a new place to fly to and visit.

Best,

Dave
 
Re: I am so frickin' ****ed!!!......and freaked!!!! But all is well now...

Dave Siciliano said:
If you'd like Kaye, we can trade issues!!

Best,

Dave
Click to expand...

Nah, I think mine's done. Yours never will be. :rolleyes: Sounds like when we tried to deposit the joint Fed refund check a few years back. I wasn't on Karl's checking account (but on everything else), so they rejected the deposit. The bank said I had to come in person, show ID, and be thumb printed before the check could be deposited. But if he wanted, he could call the service center and put my name on the account over the phone. Go figure....:dunno: I took the refund check and deposited it at my credit union...end of story.

Kaye
 
Do you feel you spend a lot of time letting folks know how to do what they should already know? I feel more and more like I have to be a teacher in addition to doing business with folks.

We had the deposit thing also. My accountant was going through the drive through at our bank. Tried to deposit several checks. Teller wouldn't accept them because he wasn't named on the account. I called and authorized the deposit of checks from 'anyone'. Then, it was O.K.

Can't believe what I sometimes have to do to withdraw cash; they act like it's not my money! Banks have gotten so big and turnover is so frequent, they don't know their customers any more. I get the third degree and they check signature cards. So now, I withdraw bigger amounts of cash so I don't have to go through the third degree as often!

Opened a Verizon account with three phones for my nieces. So, many minutes a month, no roaming in the states, etc. Asked the sales persons how to get Wisconsin numbers so their friends can make local calls to them. He says no problemo! Just go to any Verizon store in Wisconsin and tell them you moved! They will change the number; piece of cake!

It's been two months now. Girls went to three different stores. So far, still have Dallas numbers.

Anyway, it just goes on. No good deed goes unpunished! I won't go into another thing or two I've gotten into because I did a favor for someone!

Best,

Dave
 
The saga is officially over.....I have new passport in hand!:yes:
 
smigaldi said:
Did you misdirected app ever show up?
Click to expand...

Yep, it wasn't misdirected. It goes to Citibank first for the money part and inputting the initial data. Then goes to the Passport people. Of course, that's not stated anywhere on the forms.:mad:
 
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