Consumer complaint received 2019-12-01
Company: TD BANK US HOLDING COMPANY
State: CT
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report
Sub-issue: Account information incorrect

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2019, I logged into my Target RedCard credit card account in an effort to make a valid payment agreement to start paying back a balance that I had with them. The repayment plan offer was made to me for a 48 month repayment plan at $ XXXX/m, which I ended up agreeing to. The payment required a payment to be made the same day, which I did make. I was under the clear impression that this payment plan would keep in good standing and that my minimum payments would be changed to $ XXXX/m because all of the information provided to me indicated that I am not required to pay anything extra. 

I logged into my account in XXXX of 2019 just to make sure that everything was all set and to my surprise, the account was still indicating I did NOT have a payment plan in place. I made a call to the company the same day and they assured me that everything was all set and that my account, statement and credit would be updated within 2 billing periods. I trusted that was the case and left everything as is. I checked my credit report a month later and the account was now showing 120 days past due and not the 90 days that it was before. Confused as to how I could be MORE behind now ( after giving them 2 payments ) I called them again. When I questioned this, a customer service rep did not seem to have an answer and after she placed me on hold to talk to a manager, she came back on and indicated that the credit report would not be updated unless I paid my minimum payment which was different than the payment agreement. 

I was very confused, so I asked why I was not told this when 1 ) When the payment agreement offer was made to me 2 ) When I called last time. She advised me she was not sure. I told her that I would review the documents that I had and call back. My last call to Target RedCard was on XX/XX/2019 ( 3rd call in total ) around XXXX. I advised the customer service rep that I feel that I was misled and that no one can seem to provide me the reason why it was not made clear to me that my credit report would not be updated. She apologized and said she would escalate the call to manager and someone would call me back within 24 hrs around the same time. When I asked to speak with a manager I was advised that managers do not take calls but rather " return calls ''. I have yet to receive a call back. 

A couple of things that I feel are very inappropriate and hurt me as a consumer 1 ) The payment agreement terms that were provided clearly indicate that I am NOT required to make any larger payments than the XXXX that was agreed upon. No where on the payment terms does it indicate that this will not satisfy the " minimum payment requirements '' and that they will continue to report me to the credit as " late '' 2 ) Had I been told by the original customer service rep or the payment terms letter or my statement that I HAD to " catch up the account '' in order to avoid further negative credit reporting, I would have and could have made the effort to do so. By NOT being clear, they have caused me to be mislead about their intention therefore causing further damage to my credit report. Had I been made aware of the FULL terms of the agreement and what I was getting myself into, I would not be as upset over this. But there was a clear issue and none of the customer service agents were able to address it properly. 

3 ) The simple fact that they clearly indicate on the payment terms paper and on the statement themselves that " you are not required to pay anything more than '' is very confusing. By failing to disclose that they are going to continue to report the account as past due even if you are on a " payment plan '' they are clearly attempting to avoid the consumer changing their minds and breaking the payment plan as there is no clear incentive to pay. I believe advising a consumer that they do NOT have to pay anything extra but still indicating a different " minimum payment '' is not proper. It creates confusion and can be misleading. 

I believe that the way this was handled was deceptive, misleading and has hurt me immensely. My credit report is not showing this account as being 120 days late for the past 4 months ( regardless of my efforts and payments ). I do not believe that this is fair to anyone. 

I have attached the Payment Terms Agreement that was provided and a copy of the XXXX Statement.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation