Consumer complaint received 2023-03-14
Company: Affirm Holdings, Inc
State: CA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Card was charged for something you did not purchase with the card

Complaint:
My original submission to Affirm : On Wednesday, XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call from XXXX with an automated message that fraud was suspected on my Affirm account and asked me to verify whether I had made a purchase. I had not so I pressed the key to say no. I was then connected with a man who said he was an Affirm representative and he would help me. He said to stop the fraudulent charge I would have to go through a process using the Affirm app. At that point I asked him why he couldn't just stop the charge and he said the systems required me to take some actions but he would be happy to walk me through the process. He then instructed me to open the Affirm app. I told him I did not have the app ; he told me I needed to download it and he would wait and walk me through the process. 

I downloaded the app and then he told to stop the fraudulent charge I needed click on the virtual card button, type in Cancel as the Merchant in the amount of {$5000.00} which was the fraudulent charge amount. I questioned him on this process and told him it didn't make any sense to me. He reassured me that this was the processed required. When I was then asked to indicate the payment schedule, I questioned him again and he said not to be concerned this was the Affirm system, just indicate any of the payment options because Affirm would not be processing anything. Twice during this process I got codes via text from Affirm which he asked me to share with him -- again I questioned him about this given the text message, but he again reassured me that he was an Affirm representative and I needed to share the code with him to get rid of the fraudulent transaction. After getting a message from Affirm on the app that the Cancel loan request was accepted, he said the matter had been handled and hung up.

I got emails and texts from Affirm after the call that said the request had been processed and it would be confirmed when " Cancel '' processes the order. I found this odd, as much of this interaction was, but the original automated call and the man 's demeanor seemed official so I trusted him. Clearly, I shouldn't have.

Today, I got an email from Affirm saying " Great News '' and indicating Cancel had processed my order and my loan details were below. I was confused by the email because it said the first payment was due on XX/XX/2023 and it listed a finance charge. The email was received at XXXX XXXX  and I read it around XXXX XXXX 

At almost the same time I was reading it, I received an automated call from XXXX, saying it was from Affirm and saying it was about my recent loan application. It indicated I needed to speak with someone about the loan. When I pressed the number, a man came on the line, saying he was a representative from Affirm. I told him I had not applied for a loan and was concerned about what was going on with my account, but I though based on how he answered the phone he was from Affirm. He said he would look into it for me, and I needed to share the code Affirm had sent via text. Again, I told him that I the text said not to shared the code, but he said that did not apply Affirm representatives. I shared the code and he said he needed to put me on hold but to stay on the line as he would be working on my situation. He came back and said I had been sent another code that I needed to share with him. At this point, I told him I was becoming very concerned and I wanted to speak to a supervisor. At that point the call was dropped. I called back the number and a different man answered the phone and did not seem to understand English. 

At XXXXXXXX XXXX I got an email from Affirm indicating my loan request for {$4000.00} had not been approved. I then was certain I had been scammed and I immediately called the number at the bottom of the email. 

This was clearly a scam, I do not feel I should be responsible for the {$5000.00} or the finance charges. In addition, I want my account closed. 
______________________________________________ In response to this information above, I received the following email from AFFIRM on XX/XX/XXXX : XXXX - XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX  Fri, XXXX XXXX XXXX to me Dear XXXX XXXX We are writing to provide an update on your virtual card loan and the unauthorized transactions that have occurred on the card that you reported to us. 

First, I want to assure you that we take all reports of unauthorized transactions very seriously, and we are committed to protecting the security of your account. 

In light of the unauthorized transactions that you have reported, we have submitted a dispute on your behalf in accordance with the network rules and guidelines. Please note that submitting a dispute does not release you from your responsibility for the loan and payments, and it can take up to 90 days ( or longer in some cases ) to resolve this dispute.

While the dispute is being investigated, you will continue to be responsible for the outstanding balance on your virtual card loan and for any payments that are due. It is important that you continue to make payments until the dispute is resolved. Late payments may impact your ability to take out future loans with Affirm, and payments 30 or more days overdue may be reported to XXXX as delinquent. 

Once we have an update on the outcome of the dispute, we will reach out to you with additional information as well as next steps. If you have any questions or concerns about the dispute or your ongoing obligations under the loan agreement, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are here to assist you in any way that we can. 
Sincerely, Affirm Account Safety Team helpcenter.affirm.com XXXX ref : XXXX : ref _______________________ I made a payment of {$1700.00} on XX/XX/2023 because I do not want my credit rating to be impacted. 
_________________________ On Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX, I called AFFIRM to inquire about the status of my complaint. After some time, the representative told me the matter had been resolved, I would not be held accountable for the loan and I would be getting a refund for the payment I made. he said that he did not understand why I had not been communicated but that he would freeze my account and the matter would be closed by the end of the week. 
______________________________ Today I called AFFIRM and spoke to another representative. He told me that he had a record I had called on the XXXX but that he couldn't listen to the call. However, he said I had been sent an email on XX/XX/XXXX telling me that AFFIRM denied my complaint and I was responsible for the fraud. I told him that I had never received an email. I asked to speak to a supervisor. 

The supervisor told me that the email was an internal one and that it has never been sent to me AND that I would be responsible for the monies. I asked her to reopen and escalate the issue as anyone looking at it could tell it was fraud. She agreed to do so. I also said I would make the next payment because I did not want my credit rating impacted but I expected all my money to be refunded AND I intended to register a complaint with the CFPB and the Eldercare Abuse of California.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation