Consumer complaint received 2018-07-16
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
State: NJ
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Private student loan
Issue: Getting a loan
Sub-issue: Confusing or misleading advertising

Complaint:
Hi, I am writing to report Citizens Bank for predatory lending, false marketing, and high-pressure sales tactics and practices. Citizens Bank falsely advertised eligibility criteria that do not correspond to their actual business policies, and its officers pressured me to apply for a loan I would not be eligible to receive. On top of that, Citizens Bank 's officers refused to provide any clarification as to what the actual eligibility criteria are. 

I completed XXXX school in 2016, and I have student loans that I have been looking to refinance at a better rate. As an international student on an XXXX visa, I couldn't find any program that would deem me eligible. In XXXX of this year I received a mail ( scan attached ) from Citizens Bank prompting me to apply to refinance my student loans. The eligibility criteria attached clearly state that " US citizens, permanent residents, or resident aliens with a valid US social security number residing in the United States '' are eligible. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I decided that I would be interested in the product, and I proceeded to process a rate quote online. After receiving a rate quote, I was prompted to apply. The website confirmed the eligibility criteria included in the mail I had received earlier, under which I would be eligible. Knowing that most student loan refinance programs are open only to US citizens or permanent resident, I decided to proceed with more caution, and I opted to call Citizens Bank 's customer service to receive more information.

Citizens Bank 's officers revealed that the eligibility criteria listed on the mail I received are not correct. In fact, they shared with me that, as a resident alien ( with a valid US social security number and residing in the United States ), I could not apply on my own. I could only apply with a US citizen or permanent resident co-borrower and, if I did, my income would not be counted towards my debt-to-income ( DTI ) calculations to determine eligibility. In my particular case, I could have applied together with my wife, who is a US citizen. Only her income would be counted ; however, both my liabilities and hers would be included. In order to understand whether I could feasibly apply, I inquired about what is the maximum DTI allowed, and I was told that that is proprietary information that can not be shared. Despite all of this, the representative pushed me to still apply to see whether I could be approved or not. Knowing that my DTI calculated without including my income would be high, I decided not to proceed with my application. I shared that I would complain with the CFPB, and a few days later I received a mail ( attached ) stating that my income would not be considered on this application. However, their marketing materials never indicated this. 

Luckily, thanks to my background I have knowledge of predatory lending and practices, and I was able to recognize this before applying. Unfortunately, other consumers might not be as informed, and will fall trap of these subdolus practices. I appreciate your help ensuring that other borrowers don't fall trap of these false claims.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation