Consumer complaint received 2023-11-28
Company: BARCLAYS BANK DELAWARE
State: FL
Product: Credit 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 originally purchased a XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX design XXXX XXXX online from a company named XXXX on XX/XX/2023, for a total transaction price of {$85.00}. The actual XXXX XXXX  website was sold out of this design shirt. The XXXX website states the products are 100 % authentic. The website also states that orders are processed and shipped with XXXX business days. After placing my order, the website stated I would receive an email confirmation of my order. My credit card was charged, though I never did receive an order confirmation. I then reached out to XXXX on XX/XX/2023 after not receiving any information regarding my order or a shipping confirmation. After not receiving any response, I reached out again on XX/XX/2023 for a status update on my order. After XXXX of no response and no product, on XX/XX/2023 I filed a payment dispute with Barclay Card for the purchase amount of {$85.00}. Surprisingly I then received a plain white plastic wrapped bag direct from XXXX with no labels, tags or paperwork included in the mail. The shirt that was delivered resembled the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX that I had ordered, though was an obvious poor imitation. I immediately emailed the customer service email at XXXX in order to initiate a return, though I never received a response. 
XXXX was able to provide the shipping information and delivery confirmation to Barclay Card and my non-delivery dispute was denied. Barclay Card mailed the denial letter along with the information provided by XXXX to me. 
The response from XXXX showing that I had received authentic merchandise was flawed for several reasons : XXXX. The tracking information shows the item came from XXXX, though XXXX XXXX XXXX  is made in XXXX XXXX and shipped to the customer from the XXXX headquarters in XXXX, Virginia. XXXX is in no way involved. 
XXXX. XXXX included supposed email communication, though there is no communication from me in those messages? The XXXX email I have from XXXX following the dispute does not show my email address in any of the previous emails. I have all my emails stored in the cloud so even if they arrived in my spam box, I would be able to find them, which I could not. 
XXXX. XXXX included a picture of the shirt that was supposedly shipped, which shows images of the XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXt that I ordered. This again shows the information provided was not authentic to my purchase. 
I attempted to email XXXX again to initiate a return of the shirt I had received and received no reply. I also called the customer service number on the XXXX XXXX, though the phone had been disconnected. 
I called Barclay Card and explained the situation of the imitation merchandise and was told, they could not open a new claim number, but I could submit a dispute under the same claim number, along with the reason for the new dispute. On XX/XX/2023 I mailed XXXX XXXX a description of the overall situation along with XXXX side-by-side comparison pictures of the shirt I received compared to an authentic XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I also included the actual listing page from the XXXX website, the Dinalala FAQ page stating they sell authentic merchandise and that purchases are shipped within XXXX business days. 
After submitting the XXXX dispute based on the imitation merchandise. XXXX XXXX mailed a response stating that they can not refund my payment because the merchant has not violated the terms and conditions of the contract. This is concerning for several reasons. 
XXXX. The first reason is that XXXX XXXX completely dismissed my submission without reading it. The Federal Trade Commission states that if a consumer is subject to online shopping fraud, their first line of defense is to reach out to their card issuer. Unfortunately, XXXX XXXX did not operate under these principles. 
XXXX. This would imply that the terms and conditions of the contract that Barclay Card is referring to does not address merchant fraud in any manner.

3. The terms and conditions of the contract that Barclay Card is referring to allows for fraud.

4. The final possibility is that the terms and conditions of the contract that Barclay Card is referring to promotes a Buyer Beware setting and allows for merchants to prey on unsuspecting consumers.

None of these options are positive. 
I did attempt to reach out to XXXX again and by this time, the website had also been removed. 
I called Barclay Card again after receiving this decision letter in the mail, because it appeared the information I sent was not actually reviewed. When I called on XX/XX/2023 at XXXXXXXX XXXX the agent ( I cant find her name ) looked at the merchandise comparison pictures with me, and even in XXXX and XXXX, agreed very much that the item in question was not the same as the authentic XXXX shirt. Although she is not able to make the decision, she sent a note to the back-house investigative team to reopen my case and she instructed me to send the information again to the Billing Disputes department. I mailed the complete packet of supportive information again on XX/XX/2023. The packet was lost in the mail, per USPS Tracking, and I had to mail a third copy to Barclay Card on XX/XX/2023 which was signed for on XX/XX/2023. 
The XXXX response from the Barclay Card Dispute Office once again says that after a detailed review even though the letter is dated the same XX/XX/2023 day it was signed for through my Certified Mail submission. There could not have been a detailed review, only a quick dismissal and another denial letter. 
The review would not need to be nearly as detailed as they would leave one to believe they performed. A quick scan of the comparison pictures I sent along with the picture of the XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX shows as the shirt delivered, which has nothing to do with my purchase and the tracking information from XXXX should allow for a reasonable conclusion that this was not the authentic product. 
I am submitting this complaint based on the fraudulent merchandise that was sold to me and the lack of cooperation from Barclay Card to review my complaint. With the size and impact of fraudulent XXXX activity it is concerning that Barclay Card is unwilling to get involved.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief