Consumer complaint received 2023-04-29
Company: Netspend Corporation
State: FL
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose prepaid card
Issue: Problem getting a card or closing an account
Sub-issue: Trouble getting, activating, or registering a card

Complaint:
On approximately XX/XX/2023 I purchased a prepaid PayPal debit card at a local XXXX XXXX. At the time I was in transition and struggling with homelessness and most of the hotels in the area only except credit or debit card payments.I had recently lost the primary debit card I received my paychecks on & needed a card to pay for the next few nights of lodging. The packaging said that I could link the debit card to my existing PayPal. The card was priced at about {$2.00}. When I got to the counter I was told that there was a minimum of {$20.00} payment that needed to be uploaded to the card in order for me to purchase it. I puploaded {$300.00} at the time of purchase. When I called the the XXXX number on the debit card in order to activate it I had trouble. I received a message that I no longer was eligible for a prepaid Account & there were supposedly some issues involving my history with Netspend. I did have a Netspend card probably 15 to 20 years ago. it was another prepaid debit card that I had decided to stop using because they charged high fees for swiping your card they charged a monthly maintenance fee and there were just better cards out there at the time so I stopped using Netspend along time ago and I had no idea that my Netspend history would have anything to do with the prepaid PayPal card. at any rate I accepted that I would not be eligible for a PayPal card and ask how I would go about receiving my refund In the amount of {$300.00} that I had just put on the card. I was told that the only option I had for a refund was to have a check sent to me in the mail this cause an inconvenience for me because I did not have a mailing address I was temporarily living from motel to motel I also needed money for somewhere to stay that night. The whole reason I purchased the debit card. I was told that I would have to wait 10 to 15 days to receive a check in the mail. I mentioned to them that I was homeless not having a stable address. several times and there was never any other option for me to receive my refund.

I dont understand why they make it a requirement to buy the card and put money on the card if they have a criteria that may possibly make a person ineligible for an account. 
As of now it is XXXX XXXX and I still have not received a check to the address that I gave them. I called them yesterday to ask them if the check has been sent and what was going on & I was told that there would be a delay in the processing of my check and I would have to wait another five days. this changes the date of my refund from approximately XX/XX/XXXX to now XX/XX/XXXX. This is close to a month. They instantly accepted the money! But they do not instantly return it. That night I slept outside with my kids at the park. I had put all my cash in the card thinking I could pay for a few nights at a hotel. That was everything I had that day. the customer service agents keep saying that theyre sorry and they apologize but theres no genuine apologetic tone from the customer service agent. They all say the same exact responses like Im talking to a robot. They hear my situation but they offer no other options for people to receive their money except for a check by mail. This has been a huge inconvenience and has created a total hardship for my family. this should not happen to people please help me with this. Thank you.

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 explanation