Consumer complaint received 2020-02-24
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
State: MO
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: Card was charged for something you did not purchase with the card

Complaint:
-At a paid XXXX XXXX event XX/XX/XXXX-XX/XX/XXXX by  XXXX  XXXX/Ms. XXXX XXXX, Ms. XXXX moved me ( I was seated, next in line, had been waiting about 45 minutes for her financial staff member to return from her lunch. ) from her financial staff member who completed all other machine transactions successfully. Ms. XXXX moved me across the room next to a merchandise checkout area where her sales staff checked out customer 's other purchases. 
-It quickly became obvious Ms. XXXX was not able to successfully complete the transaction. I estimate her attempt at about 45 minutes, from the time I started paying attention, her financial staff member had already checked out the person behind me, then three people who were further down the line and was working on another. I had set my driver 's license, credit cards and checkbook in a row alongside Ms. XXXX 'XXXX  computer. We were there so long customers were coming up to ask me to get or put items back on the shelves behind me. Things were not going well. 
-I got up to help a XXXX staff lady who was attempting to get a very large box onto a rolling cart. I believe it was at this time that MsXXXX XXXX decided to fraudulently run my credit cards in a " chip to chip '' transaction without my knowledge, permission, agreement, disclosure, merchant 's agreement, customer copy or any other documentation. Ms. XXXX does not have my signature on anything. You will have to ask Ms. XXXX why she did not just simply return me to her financial staff member who could have easily and successfully completed my transaction within normal, standard business practices. Her financial staff member completed all other machine transactions. 
-Ms. XXXX opened a {$12000.00} loan with Synchrony bank in my name without any signed documentation, signed disclosures or anything to prove I wanted or intended to use my Synchrony card to pay for this purchase. I had opened the Synchrony card with the help of XXXX 'XXXX  financial staff member about two weeks prior to the XXXX  because she informed me that there would be special promotions and discounts if I used it at the XXXX. Ms. XXXX could not go over anything and was unable to print anything. 
-Ms. XXXX explained that she was unable to print anything out, would forward all documents to me at her shop and we would go over them and complete the transaction in her shop. I have been a customer of XXXX 'XXXX  for almost 20 years. 
-Due to the ice/snow storm forecast ( included in documents ) Ms. XXXX then requested that I take the machine home with me so she would not have to worry about getting it back to her shop. She stated she had a lot of other merchandise to return to her shop. This certainly seemed like a reasonable request and as Ms. XXXX loaded her machine into the back of my car, she knew she had already fraudulently run my credit cards through without my knowledge or any signed documentation. Much later I learned Ms. XXXX could now claim " intent to purchase '' and that I had " received something of value. '' Ms. XXXX did not disclose any of this to me as she was reassuring me we would meet in her shop to complete everything. Ms. XXXX used safeguards for honest merchants to try and twist her fraudulent actions into something Synchrony Bank could support. WHY not just take me back to her financial staff member to complete the transaction honestly? 
-It took until XX/XX/XXXX for Ms. XXXX to finally meet with me. ( I was out of town for 10 days of that period. ) When Ms. XXXX talks about her staff repeatedly having to go over receipts and documents, that is not true. They were calls I was making to finally get a meeting to receive information and complete this transaction. I still did not know at this point that Ms. XXXX had fraudulently used my credit cards and had opened a {$12000.00} loan in Synchrony Bank without my knowledge or any documentation. 
XXXX XX/XX/XXXX meeting did not go well. Neither did my follow up. There were no documents or information, only a worksheet I had been given by Ms. XXXX at the XXXX. There was no documentation of any agreed to conditions. 
-My daughter is the single mother of XXXX young children and was being treated aggressively for XXXX XXXX. I would not have purchased the machine, but the XXXX Rep and Ms. XXXX agreed to push back the one-year warranty and the one year of lessons on how to put the machine together until XXXX or XXXX. My daughter had her last  XXXX on XX/XX/2019. 
-On XX/XX/XXXX, Ms. XXXX 'XXXX  machine was returned to her shop after she was notified by e-mail twice prior to the drop off. We returned the machine in exactly the same condition Ms. XXXX loaded it into my car. 
-***I immediately notified Synchrony Bank . It was my position that Synchrony Bank and Ms. XXXX had no standing to decide how I was going to pay for anything. Certainly not without my knowledge, permission, disclosures, documentation, merchant or customer copies, or my signature. *** -Synchrony Bank has decided that Ms. XXXX 'XXXX  altered and forged signature original worksheet is valid and sends it to me in all their correspondence. I send them back both Ms. XXXX 'XXXX  altered, forged copy of the worksheet and my UNSIGNED CARBON COPY of the original worksheet. Unfortunately for Ms. XXXX, I kept the only document she gave me at the XXXX. All forms are in the Documents. 
-When we returned Ms. XXXX 'XXXX  machine to her shop, we opened the machine well within her shop and took photos to prove everything was intact and that we had not opened or used anything. I am XXXX ( an XXXX  ) and my husband is XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX Ms. XXXX wrote " ... dismantled, destroyed, and left your ... .machine at our entry door interrupting our business, along with your disrespectful and threatening remarks. '' ( Letter in Documents ). This letter gives you a small idea of what it is like to try to deal with Ms. XXXX, her ethics and her standard of business practice. Ms. XXXX claims to have video of this event. I authorize everyone to view this video, I would like to see it too. Her letter is complete nonsense. But it shows you Ms. XXXX 's mind set as well as her arrogant and aggressive manner. 
- I tried to ask the XXXX  Corporation to allow me instead to purchase a machine at the reputable XXXX  Dealer ( I have purchased two machines with Synchrony loans and absolutely no issues in the past ) in our area - XXXX. ( XXXX 's is 28 miles away, XXXX is only 5, I wanted to be closer to home. ) I ask that I be allowed to keep the promotional items Ms. XXXX incorrectly claims she gave me - they all came from the XXXX XXXX. XXXX XXXX disagreed and I returned all the promotional items I actually received to Mr. XXXX XXXX at XXXX Corporate Headquarters. Ms. XXXX 's sloppy " receipts '', incorrect and random dating/prices, altered and scribbled out listings on worksheet and Ms. XXXX 's previous behavior made it impossible to have an honest return with her. 
-At this point I have no machine, no promotional items and no documentation that I ever agreed to or took out any loan of any type with Synchrony Bank for this machine in Ms. XXXX XXXX possession since XX/XX/2019. All promotional items I actually received and signed for were returned to the XXXX XXXX. 
-Synchrony Bank has no documentation, no disclosure given to me, no request for any loan from me, no signature on any merchant copy or credit card slip or anything else, but they continue to allow their business partner to keep Synchrony Bank 's {$12000.00} for her fraudulent and substandard business practices.

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