Consumer complaint received 2018-04-11
Company: TRANSUNION INTERMEDIATE HOLDINGS, INC.
State: GA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Credit monitoring or identity theft protection services
Sub-issue: Billing dispute for services

Complaint:
I was interested in checking my credit score, so I went to www.TransUnion.com. The landing page of TransUnion 's website has a prominent link that states " MY CREDIT SCORE & REPORT. '' Unbeknownst to me, there is fine print below this link that says creating an account / checking your score will sign you up for a service that costs {$19.00} per month. The fine print is located below the scrolling threshold, such that I had no idea that I would be charged {$19.00} for checking my credit score.

There is nothing else in the sign up process that says anything about being charged {$19.00}. There are several pages of information to fill out about before you can receive your score. One of the pages during the sign up process does request a credit card number, but I assumed that was to verify my identity since every other question related to my identity, since nothing on the page indicates that your credit card will be charged {$19.00}, and since it made sense to me that a credit reporting agency may need a credit card to gather the correct information for my score. Upon completing the sign up process, I received an email regarding the {$19.00} charge on my credit card and monthly subscription to TransUnion. 

I am a very frequent online shopper, and have been for at least 15 years. This is the first time in my life I have ever been charged for an online service without knowing it. This is the first time in my life I've ever seen a website notify the user about charging money for a service through the use of fine print below the scrolling threshold on a typical web-browser. I have attached two photos to this complaint. The first shows what their home page looks like on my browser. The second shows the fine print, which is only revealed if I put the browser in " full screen '' mode.

While I am an attorney, I am not versed in regulations regarding online storefronts. However, I would hope that an institution as large and powerful as TransUnion is not allowed to charge people for services through the use of fine print. A simple XXXX search shows hundreds of complaints about this exact same issue -- in which people were charged {$19.00} without being informed. 

After I learned I was charged, I called the customer service phone number provided on TransUnion 's website to ask for a refund. I told the customer service representative that the website did not tell me I would be charged. She told me that it states it clearly on their website that I would. I was looking at the website during the phone call, and told her that it does not state that ( at this point, I still was unaware of the fine print, and could not see it, even though I was actively searching for what she was describing ). I asked to speak to another representative because she sounded foreign and I was concerned she was not understanding my issue. The representative then immediately hung up on me. TransUnion does not offer any customer service e-mail or contact form on their website, so I have also sent them a XXXX message about this issue, but highly doubt the company 's social media department will be able to help me. 

I am hoping that your agency will help me achieve a refund of the {$19.00} charges, and to help TransUnion change its practice so countless others will not be charged without knowing it like I have. Again, you'll see that this is a huge problem by doing a XXXX search of complaints about this exact issue. I do not believe it is appropriate for such a large organization, which advertises itself as protecting consumers, to charge customers for services without notifying them conspicuously. I do not believe it is appropriate for the organization to only disclose its charges in fine print. 

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 monetary relief