Consumer complaint received 2020-05-15
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: FL
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Problem when making payments
Sub-issue: You never received your bill or did not know a payment was due

Complaint:
I went to Victoria 's secret last year in XXXX of XXXX to purchase a small gift for a teenager. I was encouraged to apply for a credit card with the offer of getting {$25.00} free. My purchase totaled {$30.00} something dollars and my balance put on the card was {$7.00}. I never received a bill. Months later when getting calls from the company and telling them I never received a bill, they told me my balance was now {$50.00} something dollars. They have in their records that I told them several times I did not receive a bill. Just to dismiss this thing and keep it off my credit, I paid the {$50.00} something dollars sometime last year ( XX/XX/XXXX ) but it did not go through on the credit card for some reason and I was called back and it was immediately corrected and paid the next day. Today Mr. XXXX from Comenity bank ( XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX ) verified with me that they have that payment on record. They also agreed they have this payment on record when I spoke to them months before. I was told I was paid in full and never heard again at the time. ( I paid {$50.00} dollars on a {$7.00} account. ) I got another call months later that I owed {$160.00} something dollars with late fees. I complained to them and asked to put a dispute in and they agreed. Nothing came of it. I got a call this year saying I owe about XXXX or so and they show no evidence of me filing a dispute in the past. I finally found someone who I thought was willing to take some time on this, XXXX at ( XXXX XXXX, her direct line at Comenity Bank ) and she referred the account to a supervisor who looked it over carefully, realizing something is wrong and he put in a dispute, per her. She told me to call back on Monday to make sure the dispute went through. When I finally reached her the next week, after she had been out several days, XXXX now said she could not help me and customer service had to help me and she transferred me. Just one of numerous transfers. I finally did get a letter and a call saying the account was in dispute this time and the owed money was cleared for the time being until it is resolved. There were no follow up letters to this. When I called to check today on this, XX/XX/XXXX, after several transfers and holds, I was told the dispute was dismissed on either XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX or today, the XXXX ( I got three different answers from three different agents ) which I never heard about. I was then told that the loan was just sold to a collection agency called XXXX XXXX and written off. Again no notice. Ironically, I got a letter in the mail from them received today, the same day as these calls, when I got home, dated XX/XX/XXXX, about how I'm sorry you are having financial difficulties and call us so we can help you, from Comenity Bank about this account ( supposedly after the fact it was dismissed or transferred with no notice to me. ) I called inquiring about this letter and why I did not receive notice of the dispute results and was told by a female agent " that's a good question '' and I was again transferred and put on hold for 30 minutes. Mr. XXXX answered and told me he can not help me with this account as it is no longer in the bank 's hands. He could not give me much information but verified that a payment was made on XX/XX/XXXX for {$50.00}. I asked what they had on record for a balance and he said they just sold it for {$290.00} final balance! This is from a {$7.00} purchase that was paid off at XXXX and now never acknowledged although on their records. A losing battle. Now my credit shows 120 days late as of recent on Victoria 's secret which is my main bad mark and I need the credit for a loan for a medical procedure. Please help. I can't see paying even more when it did not help the first time and is not owed. thank you.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief