Consumer complaint received 2015-08-01
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: TX
Product: Credit card
Issue: Payoff process

Complaint:
I have an issue with CitiBank not automatically cancelling auto-pay. My Minimum Payment Due was {$3700.00} by XXXX. Statement note says : " Please pay at least the minimum payment due, which includes an overlimit amount of {$3100.00}. '' I paid {$4500.00} on XXXX, which was above the required amount and timely. On XXXX Citi deducted {$3100.00} ( which was my over the limit amount, already paid! ). I called on XXXX and a Citi Manager was confused by the error, and promised funds of {$3100.00} would be returned to my checking account by XXXX. No money appeared, so I called on XXXX and found that " my request had been denied because it would put me over the limit ''. As I do not receive a fee for over the limit I challenged, but they would not refund the additional {$3100.00}, stating that the original {$4500.00} payment was not sufficient, and that it was applied to charges I made In My Current Billing Cycle ( aka, my *not yet completed* billing cycle )! They stated this was due to being over-the-credit-limit due to charges I had charged *since my last billing statement *. I told them that I had satisfied my minimum payment and even paid a little extra. I do not believe it is legal to demand payment for charges made during an open/current billing cycle and that Citi fraudulently deducted funds from my checking account. Regarding payment application, my Citi Card Agreement ( XXXX ) states the following : Application of Payments. Payments in excess of the Minimum Payment Due are applied in accordance with law. This means that we will generally apply payments in excess of theMinimum Payment Due to balances with higher APRs before balances with lower APRs. We generally apply payments equal to or less than the Minimum Payment Due and creditsto lower APR balances first. 
Regarding the Autopay Policy on Citi 's website : Will an additional payment stop my AutoPay automatic payment? 
We may reduce your AutoPay amount when non-AutoPay payments have been made during the monthly billing cycle. The amount of the reduction will differ depending on the payment type you 've selected. Depending on the AutoPay amount you 've selected, the process will be : " Minimum Payment Due '' AutoPay - the AutoPay payment amount will be reduced or canceled if the amount of your minimum payment has been paid by additional non-AutoPay payments made during the billing cycle. 
( note, I met the scenario above fully ) https : //online.citibank.com/JRS/helpcenter/getHelpContent.do? dispFormat=popup & contentId=AdditionalPymtAtopAutoPayAutomaticPymt & contentType=help_item & JFP_TOKEN=X3KMNTWY & jfp.layoutFull # ( that link will work ) Important Notes : I am only signed up for auto-pay in case I forget to pay, it is rarely used. I make my own payments every month usually several times per month and the auto-pay always auto-cancels. I generally use this card for points and pay-off monthly ; I have n't paid off lately due to wedding expenses and this is unique to this scenario. I am not penalized for over-the-credit-limit transactions, they are allowed, with any amount over the limit on the day of the statement due/paid in full the next cycle, plus other charges. I feel this is a glitch in the Citi Payment system that could be affecting others and is illegal. Additionally, Citi was not able to immediately provide me with an electronic Payment Hierarchy to support their claims or even to read from on the customer service calls with XXXX employees. If I was not enrolled in the auto-pay program, I Would Not have been required to make additional payments until the NEXT Billing Cycle, and the {$4500.00} would have been considered a complete payment. This is DISPARATE TREATMENT between accounts that Are and Are Not enrolled in auto-pay. Last, Citi did not notify me of the denied request for refund of the {$3100.00}. XXXX manager stated there should have been a letter sent to my " Document Center '', and agreed it was not sent.

Company public response: Company chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief