Late last year, a man named Todd wrote a $10,000 check to the Internal Revenue Service. Months later, the government reached out, wondering where his payment was.

After following up with Wells Fargo, his bank for decades, Todd discovered he'd been a victim of "check washing," a practice in which thieves wash the ink off of checks and write their own names in the recipient line.

"Instead of the United States Treasury, it was the individual's name," Todd said.

He filed a fraud claim with Wells Fargo. They rejected it, since it was more than 30 days after the check was cashed.

"We never want to see anyone experience a financial scam or fraud," Wells Fargo told CBS News California Investigates. "We continue to raise awareness to help our customers avoid, detect and quickly report incidents

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