Consumer complaint received 2016-02-29
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
State: CA
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other (i.e. phone, health club, etc.)
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX, I opened an account at XXXX at the XXXX in XXXX XXXX, XXXX, and purchased a {$7000.00} diamond ring and earring set. While it is true that I was informed at that time that in order to qualify for the ring, I would have to apply for and receive a jewelry loan from GE Capital Bank, doing business as " Synchrony Bank, '' located at XXXX. XXXX XXXX, XXXX, XXXX XXXX, with online presence at XXXX and although I did receive said loan and was informed that I would have monthly payments to make in regard to this purchase, XXXX to XXXX and XXXX to Synchrony Bank , certain events have transpired which have forced me to recognize the necessity to protest and to report very questionable and illicit business practices on the part of Synchrony Bank : 1 ) One of the sales representatives at XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX , advised me at the time of purchase that my monthly bill for XXXX XXXX would be {$320.00}, and after conferring with Synchrony Bank in a telephone call made from the store to which I was not directly privy, XXXX informed me at that time that a monthly payment of " {$30.00}, or maybe {$40.00} if you want to get ahead and pay it off more quickly '' would adequately satisfy my obligations to Synchrony Bank . I was given the address for both XXXX and Synchrony Bank, and was given the options of either mailing separate monthly payments, in the amounts of {$320.00} and {$40.00} to XXXX and Synchrony Bank, respectively, or that of paying on both accounts every month at XXXX in person. 
Since that time, I have without fail made monthly and timely in-person payments on both accounts, in-person at XXXX, according to the timetables for the respective accounts specified by XXXX at the time of purchase ; 2 ) In XXXX XXXX, I was contacted by a representative from Synchrony Bank, RE : Synchrony Account No. XXXX, and advised that I was in arrears due to insufficient monthly payment, to the tune of $ XXXX.I advised the collections representative at Synchrony Bank that I was advised by XXXX XXXX sales representative XXXX XXXX that my minimum monthly payment was $ XXXX {$40.00} ; the collections representative from Synchrony, despite verbal confirmation I received from Brown subsequently, insisted that my minimum monthly payment was {$68.00} all along. 
Though greatly disturbed by Synchrony Bank 's bait-and-switch tactics, I overpaid {$200.00} in response to Synchrony 's demand for {$110.00} to allegedly bring my account " current, '' and have paid Synchrony {$70.00} by the first of every month via hand delivery at XXXX every month since without fail ; 3 ) On Monday, XXXX XXXX, XXXX I received yet another hostile series of aggressive collection calls from a call center representative from Synchrony Bank, alleging roughly {$110.00} in late charges accruing from a supposedly tardy payment for XX/XX/XXXX. I verified through my Credit Union payment of my XXXX XXXX bill with Synchrony, and even offered the collections agent from Synchrony Bank Routing No. XXXX, Sequence XXXX. XXXX, Account XXXX, Check XXXX, cashed on XXXX XXXX, XXXX in Batch XXXX, XXXX days prior to due date XXXX XXXX, XXXX to establish timely payment, but the collector was intractable in her inaccurate position. I paid {$120.00} to settle the matter, but advised Synchrony at that time that I would seek investigation by responsible and appropriate parties into their very shoddy, opaque, and dubious business practices. 
While I realize clearly that third-party lenders such as Synchrony Bank make their bread and butter on the hardly golden " XXXX '' applied to outstanding balances, fair trade law prohibits the type of deliberately fraudulent and usurious practices in which Synchrony routinely engages.

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief