Consumer complaint received 2017-12-26
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: MN
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:
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I used my CitiBank XXXX to get my car out of a mechanic garage called XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX, MN. The work was n't done, but I was forced to pay or my car was going to be held hostage. It was already there for 5 months. I had to call a tow truck to get it out because it still did n't run. The receipt that I signed was for XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX, MN for {$3800.00}. I did n't have any glass work done and not in XXXX, MN. 

I contacted XXXX XXXX XXXX several times asking for receipts and repair slips so I could take my non-running car to another shop for repairs. I had already given them {$3000.00} on top of this amount. I never got any paperwork from them. 

On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I notified Citi that I wanted to dispute this charge in a one line box on their website.. 

On XXXX XXXX, XXXX I received a letter in regular mail dated XXXX XXXX, XXXX that stated the merchant responded and my case was closed in their favor. And they took back my conditional credit. 

I immediately called Citi and told them this must be a mistake! How did they " win ''? I was told to get a 2nd opinion from a similar merchant with a letter head or business card. Because my car does n't run, and I have to locate another specialty shop, I called around to make an appointment to get this estimate. 

On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received another letter in the mail from Citi dated XXXX XXXX, XXXX, which was only 9 days from their original letter, advising that since I did n't get them the documents they needed, my dispute of the dispute is closed. That left me zero time to get an estimate. 

I called Citi again and stressed how unfair this was to me, their customer. I was given until XXXX XXXX to get them a 3rd party statement from another garage, which essentially was an additional 14 days. 

I got the car towed to another man, and he wrote a 3 page letter disputing the work the original mechanic was charging me for. He faxed it to Citi. 

On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received an email stating they only received one page, and my dispute is again closed. 

On XXXX XXXX, I personally re-faxed the 3 page letter and contacted Citi. Because it takes 24 hours for documents to load and show, he said not to worry, I have an additional 41 days. I do n't know how he came up with that number. 

I am complaining today because I think the Citi dispute process is unfair. Especially when you call and all you get is a recorded message and no way to leave a message. You never get to speak to the same person twice, and they do not seem to care about me, their customer. I 'm not even sure they read what the dispute is about or the answer from the original merchant. They did n't even notice that I never made a purchase at the store I am disputing the charge from. The dispute is open - the dispute is closed- a few extra days here and there. All I know is I have a payment due in a few days and I 'm not paying for something I am disputing. 

They all seem to waive around how they are following Federal Practices, but I 'm not sure they know exactly what they are, which led me here today ; to find out what rights I really do have. I paid for a brand new shiny engine, I got an old used beat-up one. And one that does n't run. And no receipts to chase down a warranty. I got a 3rd party merchant to confirm that the motor is not new- at MY expense. This process is taking way too long and is very confusing and stressful. They are asking me to provide information as if this is a court of law, but ask nothing of the merchant. 

I feel Citi should give me my credit back and let this XXXX XXXX XXXX take me to conciliation court ( where I would win hands down ).

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