Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/02/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  American Eagle Title's job was to provide me with secure wiring instructions to close on a house. Instead, they sent the wiring instructions to my broker as an unsecured email attachment. Several days later, someone impersonating my escrow officer at American Eagle Title (who somehow knew exactly who I was in contact with at their offices) reached out to me with false "updated" wiring instructions, and as a result I lost the house and my ******* money. If they don't change their processes and start using secure systems to share wiring instructions, ordinary homebuyers like myself are going to continue to fall victim to fraud with tragic consequences. Additionally their corporate office did not apologize or admit their negligence. A reasonable resolution would be to refund my lost ******* money and promise to change their processes going forward.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/12/2023

  
  

  **************************

  *****************

  Consumer Protection Unit

  313 *******^st Street

  *************, ** 73105

   

   

   

              Re:     ***************************

                          Complaint No. **********

   

   

   

  Dear Sir or Madam,

   

              This office was retained by American Eagle Title Group, LLC (the Respondent) to respond to the consumer complaint filed by ********************************

   

              In general, the Respondent provides abstracting, title and closing services in relation to real estate transactions. These transactions often require the transfer of funds by wire. In providing instructions for wire transfers, the Respondent provides a warning to its customers regarding possible fraud:

   

   

  Inquire before you wire! WARNING! WIRE FRAUD ADVISORY: Wire fraud and email hacking/phishing attacks are on the increase! If you have an escrow or closing transaction with us, and you receive an email containing Wire Transfer instructions, DO NOT RESPOND TO THE ****** Instead, call your escrow officer/closer immediately using previously known contact information (NOT information provided in the email) to verify the information prior to sending funds.

   

  We care about your financial security and have safeguards and services set in place to combat wire transfer fraud. We trust and use the leading Lender industry recognized *********** (symbol) to protect your funds and private information.

   

   

              It is our understanding that **************** entered into a contract to purchase a home. She was represented by *************************** as her real estate agent. As part of the preparation for the closing, the Respondent provided wiring instructions to ********************. The wiring instructions provide the correct information on where the funds were to be sent. The instructions were forwarded by ******************** to ****************. In response, ****************** contacted the Respondent and informed the representative that she wanted to make 2 separate wire transfers.  The first wire was in the amount of $50,000.00 and followed the instructions provided by the Respondent. The first wire was received by the Respondent. Prior to sending the second wire transfer, **************** received different wiring instructions from an unknown third party. The fabricated wiring

  instructions directed the funds to be wired to an incorrect bank. These fabricated instructions indicate that they were sent by the Respondent, but in fact were forwarded by an unknown third party. The email from the imposter contains slight variations in the email addresses of the Respondent and the real estate agent to create the appearance that they originated from the Respondent:

   

  1.)   The email address of ************************* is listed as *****************************************************.

         The correct email is *****************************************************.

   

  2.)   The email address for the real estate agent is **********************.

         The correct address is **********************.

   

              Copies of the wiring instructions and miscellaneous correspondence are enclosed. As indicated, the Respondent clearly warned **************** of potential fraud regarding wire transfers and directed her to call your escrow officer/closer immediately using previously known contact information (NOT information provided in the email) to verify the information prior to sending funds.

   

              Fortunately, **************** was able to recover all of the funds that she wired. Unfortunately, she was unable to close the purchase of the subject property and lost her ******* money.  Although the Respondent is sympathetic to the situation of ****************, it does not believe that it is responsible for the failure of ****************** to confirm the wiring instructions as directed.  In addition,  the Respondent does not believe that it is responsible for the criminal acts of a third party.

   

              We look forward to working with the Office of the Attorney General to resolve this matter in an expeditious manner. If you have any questions, please contact the undersigned.

   

   

   

   

   

   

                                                                                      Respectfully,

   

   

   

   

   

                                                                                      ****************************

  MWK/dh

  encl.

   

   

   

  cc  *******************

        American Eagle Title Group LLC

   

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 06/14/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I would like to dispute American Eagle Titles Group claim in the attached correspondence that We care about your financial security and have safeguards and services set in place to combat wire transfer fraud. We trust and use the leading Lender industry recognized *********** (symbol) to protect your funds and private information.
  
  In fact, American Eagle Title Group did NOT send the wiring instructions via ************ to my broker, **********************************. The representative of American Eagle Title Group sent the wiring instructions as an insecure PDF attachment, leaving all parties vulnerable to hacking. Thus American Eagle Title Group failed to comply with the protocols stated in their own email signatures for how they will send wiring instructions in a secure format.
  
  Please see as reference the enclosed copy of the email from a representative of American Eagle Title Group to ***********************************
  
  Sincerely,
  ***************************