Consumer complaint received 2023-04-29
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: VA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
I am an account holder of a Walmart Rewards Credit Card, which is issued and managed by Capital One , National Association, a subsidiary of Capital One Financial Corporation ( Capital One or the Company ). I have reason to believe Capital One is allowing fraudulent activity on my Walmart Rewards Credit Card account. The initial amount in dispute was {$690.00}, but the remaining amount in dispute is {$610.00}. 

Background On XX/XX/2023, at XXXX, I made a {$690.00} purchase from XXXX XXXX XXXX, a travel brand of XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  or Merchant ). The purchase price included {$610.00} for a hotel booking at The XXXX  at XXXX  XXXX in XXXX XXXX, NV and {$80.00} for travel insurance from XXXX XXXX XXXX  ( XXXX ). Prior to checkout, a blue box appeared providing the hotel details, price, and other policies ( Pre-Checkout Notice ). Importantly, the cancellation policy stated, Free cancellation until XX/XX/XXXX XX/XX/2023... Cancellations made on or after XXXX XX/XX/2023 will result in a XXXX USD fee. ( XX/XX/XXXX Pre-Checkout Notice Attached ). 

Moments after making the purchase, I received a XXXX  Confirmation Email. The Cancellation Policy area was blank and made no mention of a Non-Cancelation, No Refund Policy. ( XX/XX/XXXX Confirmation Email Attached ). 

Resolution Attempts with Merchant About Fifteen minutes after the purchase, I discovered an error and requested that my purchase be cancelled, which the Merchants representative, XXXX, granted and confirmed. 

On XX/XX/2023, having seen no change in status regarding the purchase, I called the Merchant again and a different representative, XXXX at XXXX, and supervisor XXXX at XXXX, stated that my purchase was nonrefundable due to a Non-Cancelation, No Refund Policy. Which was completely opposite of what the XX/XX/XXXX Pre-Checkout Notice stated. 

Transaction Dispute Filed with Capital One On XX/XX/2023, I filed a dispute over the {$690.00} charge with Capital One, which opened Dispute Number XXXX. 

On XX/XX/2023, while awaiting the Merchants response to my dispute, I received a Cancellation Confirmation Email from the Merchant which stated that XXXX has processed [ my ] cancellation and have begun the refund process to your original Form of Payment. ( XX/XX/XXXX Cancellation Confirmation Email Attached ). 

The travel insurance amount has been refunded by XXXX via the Merchant, leaving {$610.00} in dispute. 

On XX/XX/2023, in spite of the XX/XX/XXXX Cancellation Confirmation Email from the Merchant, Capital One provided notice stating that XXXX had provided Confirmation showing no cancellation per policy was received. 

Upon calling Capital One 's Transactions Dispute Department that same day at XXXX and speaking with Transactions XXXX XXXX and Dispute Supervisor XXXX, I learned that XXXX had submitted documents noting a no-refund policy from XXXX. In shock, I explained ( 1 ) that I did not use XXXX for this reservation, ( 2 ) was NEVER informed of XXXX having any involvement with the purchase, and ( 3 ) that NOTHING in the documents that I received from XXXX even mention XXXX. Capital One Supervisor XXXX attempted to call the XXXX, the listed XXXX, via a three-way call, but upon answering, the XXXX Representative attempted to transfer XXXX & myself to a different department, which did not answer nor, to my knowledge, return our phone call. 

On XX/XX/2023 and XX/XX/2023, I submitted detailed dispute letters noting all the steps I had taken to remedy the issue with the Merchant, and provided all the TAW documents I had received, including the XX/XX/XXXX Pre-Checkout Notice, XX/XX/XXXX Confirmation Email, and XX/XX/XXXX Cancellation Confirmation Email. 

On XX/XX/2023, as if no one bothered to read my detailed letters or review the TAW documents, I received a generic letter stating While we have received your response to this request, it lacks all the previously requested information needed to validate your dispute. Unfortunately, the letter made no mention of what items were missing. 

Oddly, even in the face of an actual XXXX document stating that I had free cancellation until XXXX and a TAW email stating that my purchase was cancelled and a refund was being issued, several Capital One Supervisors blindly accepted documents from XXXX WITHOUT establishing any discernable connection between XXXX, the actual Merchant that charged my Capital One Credit Card and was responsible for proving the validity of the purchase, and XXXX ; a third-party company that the customer never interacted with, and of whom, there was no mention in the TAW documents provided to the customer. 

Capital One Disputes Supervisor Re-opens Dispute On XX/XX/2023, I spoke with Capital One Disputes Supervisor XXXX, who examined the documents and recognized that XXXX was never mentioned in any of TAWs documents, and submitted the dispute for a reinvestigation and issued another provisional credit. 

On XX/XX/2023, I received yet another form letter from Capital One stating While we have received your response to this request, it lacks all the previously requested information needed to validate your dispute. Later that day, at XXXX, I spoke with Capital One Disputes XXXX XXXX . I asked XXXX what was missing, and she stated that a dispute is a battle of documents and then noted that XXXX had resubmitted the exact same document, and Capital One again accepted that document and closed the case. It was if XXXX and several other representatives and supervisors were willfully ignoring documents I submitted from the listed XXXX, in order to close the dispute. XXXX has no connection to this dispute and no document has ever been put forward establishing that XXXX XXXX  XXXX informed the customer ( myself ) of XXXX 's involvement or policies. 

Capital One Disputes Supervisor Requests Override On XX/XX/2023, I conducted a lengthy call with Capital One Dispute Supervisor XXXX beginning at XXXX, who also recognized the issues with the fact that Capital One had accepted XXXX documents, when they were not the merchant and had provided no documents connecting them to XXXX. XXXX then escalated the dispute to the XXXX XXXX Department requesting approval to override the charge, explaining that I should hear something back by Monday, XX/XX/2023. ( I have a recording of the conversation ). However, as of XX/XX/2023, there has been no contact from the XXXX XXXX Department. I called to check the status on XX/XX/2023 at XXXX, speaking with Capital One Dispute Supervisor XXXX, and XX/XX/2023 at XXXX, speaking with Capital One Dispute Supervisor XXXX . Each explained that they could not see the record since Capital One Dispute XXXX XXXX escalated the matter and only she would receive notice of the outcome. 

I have now exhausted the administrative dispute resolution process.

Conclusion At the heart of this matter, I made a purchase from a Merchant ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ), was told that my purchase was refundable until XX/XX/2023, and, after exercising my right to cancel the purchase, was provided a cancelation confirmation email noting that my refund was in process. Only to have my credit card issuer, Capital One accept documents from an entirely different company, with NO CONNECTION to the purchase and NO DOCUMENTED CONNECTION to the named Merchant. This appears to be a textbook case of fraud on me as the customer and my card issuer has been on notice of it since XXXX, but has refused to provide a resolution. 

I should be refunded the remaining {$610.00} in dispute.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation