Consumer complaint received 2019-02-18
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
State: WA
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Confusing or missing disclosures

Complaint:
I've used PayPal Credit over the past couple of years to make purchases on XXXX based on offers of no interest credit I was offered on multiple purchases. I've borrowed and paid back several thousand dollars. This past XXXX I was offered a " 24 month with no interest and equal monthly payments '' promotion provided I spent over {$600.00} which I took advantage of. I made purchases totaling {$2200.00} and was told I would have 24 equal payments of {$92.00}. Subsequent to that purchase I also agreed to use PayPal Credit to purchase items using their " 6 months with no interest if paid in full '' which, about the same time I made the 24 month purchase, they started saying there would be a " minimum payment '' with these 6 month promotions. Previously, those promotions would be " 6 months no interest and no payments '' if paid in full - which I always have done. While I wasn't sure how they would calculate the minimum payments on the 6 month items I assumed whatever payments I would make would apply to the balances of those items and reduce the amount I needed to pay them off during the sixth month time period. After I got notice of the first month with a minimum payment that exceeded the {$92.00} on the 24 month promotion I made a payment in excess of that minimum simply so I could calculate how they allocated the different amounts - meaning, how much would go to each purchase as there were multiple purchases on the 6 month promotions. I was stunned to see that they applied nearly the entire amount of the payment - {$450.00} - to the 24 month items. I first emailed them and got a " canned '' response stating that the payment would be applied to the 24 month item and if I wanted to " re-allocate '' the payment, I could do so after the next statement billing cycle. While I thought that strange ( and, when I looked back, not all of the {$450.00} payment was applied to the 24 month items, but instead about {$390.00}. I was never able to figure out, looking at the statement, how they planned to allocate the payment ) I then called and had the payment re-allocated with the intention the minimum on the 24 month items would be paid first and the rest would go toward the first items due, which was in early XXXX. This happened the next month as well and I ended up calling and having the payment re-allocated ( I thought ) with the first part of the payment being the {$92.00} on the 24 month promotion. Looking back on the statements, I'm still very confused as to how they're allocating the payments ( and, I get a different explanation each time I call ) - but, at that time, when I called I made an additional payment while I had the representative on the phone. He told me simply to call in each month and they could allocate the money exactly as I wished - with any payment over the {$92.00} being allocated to the 6 month items as I requested. This month, on XX/XX/XXXX I had a minimum payment of {$260.00} due, so I called in and made a payment of {$1000.00} which would make the minimum payment on the 24 month promotion ( the {$92.00} ) plus pay off all of what was due on XX/XX/XXXX. I was assured by the representative that would be what happened. When I checked back a couple days later almost the entire payment amount had been applied to the 24 month promotion. So, I started a chain of " messages '' ( emails? ) via PayPal 's website requesting they allocate the payment as I had requested. After three or four messages the allocation was changed to the entire " minimum payment '' - including whatever was required because of the purchases using the 6 month promotions - being applied to the 24 month promotion and then the rest going to the XXXX items - leaving a balance of a bit over {$160.00} on the XXXX items. I then called in an attempt to get all the money I had intended go to the XXXX items applied as I had agreed with the PayPal representative who I originally scheduled the payment with over the phone. After feeling as if the person I was talking to didn't understand what my intentions were I requested to talk to a manager who then told me their rules require them to apply ALL of the " minimum payment '' to the items with recurring monthly payments - the items I AGREED to terms which said I would have 24 EQUAL monthly payments of {$92.00}. The manager stated that until I had paid off the 24 month promotion this is how the initial part of any payment would be allocated - therefore, essentially, changing the terms of the agreement. Obviously, PayPal feels the FACT they offered me a promotion which called for the 24 months of EQUAL payments of {$92.00} was not anything resembling a contract or firm agreement. By my calculations, depending on how long it takes me to pay off the items I purchased using their 6 month promotion ( the last ones are due to paid off by XX/XX/XXXX ) I might have paid an additional ( almost ) {$1000.00} over the agreed amount of the payments on the 24 month promotion. Additionally, after going through this with the manager I looked more closely at how PayPal has been allocating the payments thus far, and it's hard to understand what they're doing. I don't believe they are allocating the payments in any way according to what I've been told or even according to what the manager explained to me. I do believe my total amount owed is correct, but their statements are not clear as to how these payments are being distributed. Additionally, I find NOTHING on the statement which would tell me how they were going to allocate the payments - meaning their decision to apply ALL of the minimum to the 24 month promotions seems arbitrary and certainly was nothing I agreed to or would have agreed to. I've made the purchases and I will pay off all these items, but I really object to them forcing me to pay the additional money each month in order to be able to pay off the items I purchased on the six month deals. I believe it is an attempt to make it more likely I will end up paying interest on some of the items because, as I said, I'm going to have to come up with close to {$1000.00} more than budgeted to be able to pay off the six month items on time. And, then, I have no idea how PayPal plans to deal with what's left of the 24 month promotion payments, because, obviously, I will have paid much more than the agreed upon {$92.00} per month. This last month the excess I ended up paying over the {$92.00} was {$160.00}. I would say, I find this practice dishonest at best and likely fraudulent. Obviously, with PayPal 24 equal monthly payments isn't really that. The interest for anyone who doesn't pay off the items in the 6 months is close to 30 % and, I find it offensive that it appears PayPal is attempting to create situations where people are more likely going to end up paying this interest. Finally, after looking more closely at the statements, I find PayPal 's entire system confusing and, very possibly, arbitrary.

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