Consumer complaint received 2023-12-01
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
State: CA
Product: Credit card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Advertising and marketing, including promotional offers
Sub-issue: Didn't receive advertised or promotional terms

Complaint:
I am writing to formally dispute the {$1100.00} interest charge that has been applied to my account, as I believe this charge to be in violation of the Federal Trade Commission XXXX ( FTC XXXX ) and consumer protection principles. 

When I originally acquired the service from CareCredit MD, I was explicitly informed that the financing would be at 0 % interest until the balance was paid off. This verbal assurance led me to make decisions regarding the management of my finances and payment schedule. I made significant payments towards this balance, with the understanding that I was not incurring interest. 

However, I recently noticed an interest charge of {$1100.00} applied to my account, which is contrary to the verbal agreement at XXXX XXXX of sale. I acknowledge that I signed a document regarding the service, but I was given verbal information that directly contradicted this document. 

Additionally, I'd like to bring to your attention that I communicated my concerns to a customer service supervisor via chat. I was assured that there would be an internal investigation regarding this discrepancy, however, they did nothing to resolve my issue. 

As per the " Standards for Determining What Is Unfair or Deceptive '' under the FTC XXXX : Deceptive Acts and Practices : " A representation, omission, or practice is deceptive if it is likely to mislead a consumer acting reasonably under the circumstances and is likely to affect a consumers conduct or decision regarding a product or service. '' Assessing Whether an Act or Practice Is Deceptive : The three-part test dictates : a. There must be a representation, omission, or practice that misleads or is likely to mislead the consumer. 
b. The consumers interpretation of the representation, omission, or practice must be reasonable under the circumstances. 
c. The misleading representation, omission, or practice must be material. 

Given the above sections of the FTC XXXX, the verbal assurance I received about the 0 % interest financing meets the criteria of being deceptive. It was a representation that misled me, my interpretation of the representation was reasonable given the context, and the representation was indeed material as it influenced my decision to obtain the service and affected my subsequent financial decisions. 

Furthermore, the act of not disclosing this significant interest charge, especially when contradictory information was provided verbally, can be viewed as " omission of information '' which XXXX be deceptive as " disclosure of the omitted information is necessary to prevent a consumer from being misled. '' In light of the above, I kindly request that the {$1100.00} interest charge be reversed from my account and any future interest charges based on the same be stopped. I also urge CareCredit MD to honor the verbal agreement that was made at the time of purchase, which was in alignment with my reasonable expectations as a consumer. 

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. 

Sincerely,

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