Consumer complaint received 2020-08-13
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: CA
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:
On XX/XX/2020 I called Customer Service Rep for ShopYourWay Card to inquire about a credit refund from a merchant due to Covid cancellation of the event. I was unable to view my account online for reasons I don't know. When the rep. told me the charges on the card I immediately disputed the charge of {$190.00} made by XXXX merchant. I told the customer rep that I never authorized that amount with the merchant. The rep told me he would report the dispute, close the card and issue a new card which would arrive in the mail between 7 to 10 business days. The amount in question was in dispute but never resolved. I kept calling and messaging on the online account but the company failed to take any action on the disputed charge. In XXXX, I noticed I was sent an email to pay minimum payment, then I called customer service for an update on the dispute as it appeared it was not yet resolved. Customer rep 's action was very unprofessional seemed she was making mockery of the issue. I was disappointed by such action and then it dawned on me that the company had no intentions to resolve the dispute transaction but making merrygorounds and make it seem as though they were taking actions but in actual terms the company made no effort to resolve the issue. The company sent me a document on XX/XX/2020, the company sent me a document to sign stating I never authorized the merchant to make such transaction. I signed the document and returned with a written and signed letter. Also, on XX/XX/2020 I received a notice from the company that it sent me notice to provide additional information to help it investigate the dispute. I never received such notice by mail or email, nothing of such record on my account, it was all fabricated to avoid dealing with the dispute charge that was another signal for me. I replied that letter and on XX/XX/2020, the company sent another letter via email to provide additional information to help it investigate the dispute. I replied and sent the original shipping slip which was enclosed in the package I received from the merchant ( the product in question was a free trial advertised by the merchant on a social media platform and I ordered the free trial product unfortunately it turned out to be a fraudulent concept by the merchant ). The company again sent another document for signature to indicate the dispute charge was not authorized on XX/XX/2020. The last notice I received from the company prior to reporting this complaint was on XX/XX/2020, where it stated that I was not required to make any payment on the account while the investigation is pending and that all interests and charges would be removed while the dispute is pending. to my shock and surprise, I received an email to make payment on the account and that payment is past due with interest charges on the account. Prior to receiving the payment notice in XXXX, a merchant XXXX made a credit refund of {$86.00} back on the card as the program I registered for sometime for in XXXX was canceled due to Covid.  I notice the company applied that credit to the amount in dispute and displayed a balance after making deductions from that amount. I called customer service to ask why that action was taken and I was told the credit will be refunded once the dispute amount is resolved. My suspicion about the company 's action on resolving the dispute was when it closed the initial card and re-issued another card without resolving the dispute or notifying me of its final decision on the disputed charge but rather reported the card as lost or stolen. The initial card is still in my possession and I never notified the company that the card was lost or stolen. After receiving the email notification to make payment on the disputed charge, I called the customer service number serviced by Citibank. The lady I spoke with initially told me there was no disputed charge on the account as the record indicates, then I told her I reported an unauthorized transaction since XX/XX/2020 but nothing was ever done to resolve it. After, much talk she then said the dispute was declined and that the company declined the transactions, reasons for declining the transaction was not given. There was no notice to that effect either by email or by mail. She said three notices was sent but I never received any. This showed to me how insincere the company was in handling the dispute which it never did in the first place but allowed time to pass over the event re-issued a new card and choose to impose a fraudulent amount charged on the account on its customers to pay. How is it that the company is imposing a payment on an unauthorized transaction that indicates it encourages the activities of fraudulent merchants.

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