Consumer complaint received 2019-12-31
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: SC
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: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
Yes, back on XX/XX/2019 I purchased a used car frame from a merchant in XXXX SC. The name was XXXX XXXX owned by XXXX XXXX XXXX. I called Mr XXXX in XXXX and he was on his way back from out of town. I ordered the car frame over the phone from him and asked him if it could be done by the end of XXXX and was told yes. Mr XXXX gave the phone to his wife and I gave her my credit card information and paid for the item. XXXX came and went and no frame. XXXX and XXXX came and went and no frame. During this time many emails were sent and phone calls made to them and hardly no return messages were sent back, just very few return messages replied back. I was given excuses that Mr XXXX was XXXX with XXXX XXXX and not working in the shop and another excuse was he was going to XXXX and more. The car frame had to be sent to an outside vendor to sand blast all the rust off of it and then after that process it had to be powder coated then the process would be finished. I know that is not an over night process but was told it would be done by end of XXXX. So the first week of XXXX and I still had no frame I texted Mr XXXX and told him I was contacting my credit card company and reversing the charges. Its now XX/XX/2019 and I still have no frame from him. 

So the first part of XXXX I started the dispute process with Citibank. The dispute was for XXXX. I called Citibank once the dispute was in process and was told by an agent that they told me they were sure all would be fine and work out. Citibank had given me a provisional credit of XXXX while the dispute was going on and I told the agent I didnt want to spend that if they thought the dispute would not be ruled in my favor and that was when they told me they were sure all would be fine. I told the agent I didnt want to spend that credit if they thought dispute would not be ruled in my favor as I had went ahead and found another car frame from a merchant in Pennsylvania. The agent told me to go ahead and spend that credit that it was mine and they were sure all would be fine. So I purchased the new frame. 

On XX/XX/2019 I received a letter from Citibank that stated they had ruled in the favor of the merchant Mr XXXX. I was asked at that time if I had the car frame yet and told them I had received nothing. I was mailed other paperwork and one of  those was questions and merchant answers from Mr XXXX banking institution. One of the questions was at the time of payment was the product delivered to the cardholder, ME. He replied Partial. I had received nothing. That was not true statement from Mr XXXX. So I started the dispute process again. XX/XX/XXXX I was mailed a letter from Citibank and it stated that their investigation had ended and they had tried multiple times to resolve it but Mr XXXX was not willing to give a refund. I was told over the phone from a XXXX a dispute manage with Citibank that I needed to take them to court or file with the XXXX and complain on them. 

I got in touch with Citibank Headquarters and spoke to XXXX in the dispute department. Her phone number is XXXX. She listened to what I had to say and said she would listen to the recorded message between me and the agent back in XXXX. On XX/XX/2019 XXXX called me late that evening at XXXX eastern time. She told me and I'm paraphrasing here but she told me that the agent was not very clear in their response to me and XXXX told me that the agent was borderline on their response to weather Citibank could write off the dispute amount or not. I told XXXX XXXX was lead to believe all was going to work out in my favor and was told to purchase the other frame which I did and now I'm being charged for the second one. The agent even told me to send Mr XXXX another email and say to him that I no longer wanted his product anymore which I did that. I did it the day after I spoke to the agent on the phone. The agent told me to do that to " Cover myslelf '' so to speak and I did what they told me to do and still did not side in my favor. I told XXXX I've been a loyal customer for over 30 years and I didnt expect them to just roll over and take it that I expected a little loyalty as well back to me as I've never had to have a dispute in over 30 plus years and now when I needed the help and backing I didnt have it from them. XXXX told me there was nothing she could do to help me. She told me that Visa had rules to go by and that she couldnt help me. She told me that there was nowhere in all the emails and text messages that said the frame from Mr XXXX would be done by the end of XXXX. The only place it says that is where I referenced that in two different emails I sent Mr XXXX asking if it was still going to be done by the end of XXXX as I was told but Mr XXXX never responded to those emails. Not hearing from the XXXX was one of a few reasons I started the dispute process as I expected to be notified of the process and called back or texted back or emailed back when I called, texted or emailed them but they never seemed to contact me back in a timely manner. 

I'm very frustrated with Citibank as I've given them many pages of emails and text messages from Mr XXXX and this process. I believe I'm in the right here and have not done anything wrong in any way. I still have no product from Mr XXXX nor do I want his product now. I believe I've been more than patient with him and understanding and have put up more than most people would have. In fact if Mr XXXX had called and told me that he was XXXX and told me all of these excuses he had personally I might have been more understanding but not ONE time was I called or notified. He just told me in a text that he was XXXX. Not I'm XXXX and things are going bad at the moment can you work with me on this and be patient with me etc but Not ONE time was that ever done. Citibank has all of the information from me and this matter and they just are taking the word of Mr XXXX at this time and not doing anything for me. I'd like them to do something.

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