Consumer complaint received 2022-05-25
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: PR
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:
Hi! 

Date : XX/XX/2022 Amount : {$1000.00} XXXX  : Reverse TPI XXXX Lodging : My situation : I was looking for a stay at a Hotel in XXXX XXXX on XXXX app. I had previously booked on that same website using my Citibank Costco Visa card to reserve a hotel and had been able to cancel because the offer said : Free cancellation. There was no problem. Me and my friends were looking for the best option for us and we wanted a Free cancellation offer. We were consciously looking for that. So we found a new hotel that was a better option for us. So I did the same thing, I had my friend on the phone and we both reviewed the offer of the hotel we were interested in and it also said : Free Cancellation. I wrote my card information to reserve the room, but suddenly I was charged the full amount on the spot. I got really scared because that was not what was supposed to happen. I only wrote my card information to reserve the room and pay at the end of the hotel stay by dividing the total between three persons ( XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ). But XXXX charged me immediately. I called XXXX customer service several times the same day to explain what happened and cancel the transaction and they never answered me. I spent a lot of time on the phone. Out of anxiety and fear, I canceled my Citibank Costco Visa card and reported the suspicious and fraudulent activity. I have already made two claims to the credit company and still they are blaming me and making me responsible for paying the money. I was never in the hotel, I did not stay in the hotel. I called the hotel several times to notify the situation and ask how they could help me, and they told me that they couldn't do anything because I made the reservation through XXXX and they are the ones who " can answer me ''. It happens that XXXX customer service is the worst, they do not help you at all. It is very difficult to contact them. They leave you waiting, they are unreachable. I feel very upset, anxious, frustrated. This situation is unfair and I feel that Citibank Costco Visa is penalizing me. I don't want to pay for a stay I didn't go to. It is unfair. I knew that XXXX was going to charge me immediately, I wouldnt use my credit card because my credit limit is basically that charged amount and that was going to affect negatively my credit score. When all of that happened and they charged me for that amount, I received a receipt that said : Cancellation cost : Non refundable. Thats shady and fraudulent because the offer was free cancellation at first and then when the charge was made it said, non refundable. Thats shady, thats lying, thats taking advantage from technology to manipulate situations. For so many reasons, this situation is unfair and I feel powerless because these big companies win all the time. I dont have {$1000.00}. I dont have that money. Please, help me. Something shady that happened is that I was unable to cancel the reservation in the app. I signed in in the webpage and the reservation didnt even appear. It was very confusing.

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