Consumer complaint received 2020-05-27
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: VA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Fees or interest
Sub-issue: Problem with fees

Complaint:
Below is a copy of a letter that I am sending to Macy 's Corporate Office. 
XXXX To whom it may concern, I have been a Macys American Express credit card account holder for many years. The account ends in *** according to the Macys website. I intended to use that account when I made a purchase at the XXXX XXXX XXXX Macys located in XXXX, VA on XX/XX/XXXX. The purchase was a bottle of cologne, totaling {$70.00}. At that time, the sales associate suggested that I apply for a Macys Credit Card account. I stated that I already had one and gave her the necessary information to access that account, as I did not have my Macys credit card with me at that time. After pulling up my current Macys account with the information that I provided, she stated that I was eligible for some type of upgraded account, and if I opened one, I would receive 20 % off of my purchase. I agreed, and she processed the application for this upgraded account. I was given paperwork for the account and the transaction was completed. She then told me that This new account will replace your current Macys Credit Card account. The cost of the cologne was {$70.00}, and I was told that the discount would be reflected on my bill. I left the store assuming I had opened a new Macys credit card account.

About one week later, I received a letter from Macys stating that though I have been approved for a Macys American Express Card account, I could not be approved for a Macys Credit Card Account because I already have one with them. Their policy does not permit the opening of multiple accounts, and therefore they were unable to offer me the Macys Credit Card account. I have this letter. Its reference number is **********. This tells me that I only have one Macys Credit Card account, the one that I have had for years, ending in ****. This account is connected to my XXXX XXXX XXXX checking account via eBills. At no point did I receive any notifications of an eBill from Macys. I have not received an eBill from Macys on that account since prior to XXXX of XXXX. 

I have logged into my Macys Credit Card account and show no charges for either the Macys Credit Card account nor the Macys American Express card credit accounts. 
Apparently, despite what that letter dated XX/XX/XXXX says, an account WAS opened in my name, and the charge for the cologne was posted to that account. I received no documentation through the mail until the end XXXX, XXXX. This was a bill showing a payment due date of XX/XX/XXXX. This was the first statement that I received, and it did not arrive until near the end of XXXX. Shortly after that, I received another bill with a payment due date of XX/XX/XXXX. That bill showed a late fee and interest. No charges were showing on my Macys Credit Card account, nor had I received any eBill to my XXXX XXXX  XXXX Account. My XXXX bill then came with additional fees and interest. I contacted Macys customer service and explained my situation. Clearly an account was opened in my name despite having a letter in my hands that stated that no account was opened because an account could not be opened due to me already having an account. After spending some time on the phone, I was told that one of the late fees could be removed, but the remaining late fees could not be, the interest charges would also remain, and I would be responsible for paying the bill in full. I requested to speak to a supervisor but was told that I would be told the same thing. I informed the customer service representative that I was willing to pay only the original charges, and that I would not be paying any fees or interest, and I wanted to know why an account was opened when I have a letter stating that an account could not and would not be opened. He wasnt able to explain how that happened and reiterated that he could not remove all of the charges and interest fees. I again requested to speak to a supervisor. I was put on hold. When the representative returned to the call, I was informed that the supervisor stated that he would tell me the same thing and that there was no reason for me to speak to him. I again explained that I would not be paying any additional fees or interest over the original sales price, and if they were removed, I would be happy to pay the bill in full immediately. The representative advised that he could not remove all the fees and interest, and I advised him that I would be making no payments to my account. 

I have since continued to receive monthly statements with additional interest and fees. Today I called XXXX, as that number was on a letter that I received regarding my account. I spoke with a representative and a supervisor and again explained the situation. I was told that nothing could be done about the fees and interest. I advised that this was my last call to them and that I would be contacting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as well as the credit reporting agency with this issue in order to get it resolved. 

I am enclosing a copy of the letter that I received, dated XX/XX/XXXX, stating that an account was unable to be opened for me. You may contact me at either my email address, XXXX, or my phone number, ***-***-****. 

Thank you for your time,

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