Consumer complaint received 2017-07-21
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: NY
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Fees or interest
Sub-issue: Problem with fees

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I instructed Comenity Bank to close my " XXXX XXXX XXXX '' account. ( This action was taken due to shenanigans with their rewards program. ) I had paid the full balance shown on the account that same day. I received a letter from Comenity Bank dated XX/XX/XXXX  stating : " Thank you for contacting Comenity Bank. As the bank that issues your XXXX XXXX XXXX credit card account, we 're here to help with your questions. As you requested, WE HAVE CLOSED YOUR XXXX XXXX XXXX CREDIT CARD ACCOUNT. We received your FINAL PAYMENT of {$290.00} on XX/XX/XXXX and YOUR ACCOUNT BALANCE IS NOW XXXX. We have reported this information to the national credit reporting agencies and your credit file should be updated within the next forty-five ( 45 ) days. Although you requested your account closed, we hope that you will continue to shop with XXXX XXXX XXXX. We value you as a customer and if you would like to apply for a new XXXX XXXX XXXX credit card account in the future, please go to the store or visit the XXXX XXXX XXXX website. '' [ emphasis added ] More than two months later, beginning in the second week of XX/XX/XXXX, I started receiving multiple phone calls daily from an unknown number. After about a week, they finally left a recorded message saying they were calling about my XXXX XXXX XXXX account. When I called them back on XX/XX/XXXX, they claimed that I owed {$25.00} and change on the account. I told them about the letter I have and that the account was supposed to be closed as of XX/XX/XXXX. They then said that a late fee had been added to the account because I had made my full balance payment a day late. This seems to be true, and I would have paid the late fee if I had known about it. I told them I do n't think they 're allowed to add charges to an account after they notify the customer of its closure, and asked why they had n't informed me of the late fee. The only answer I could get was that the {$20.00} late fee had been added to the account at the " end of the billing cycle '' and that I was being charged {$5.00} and change in " interest '' on that balance. I asked them how there could be a billing cycle on a closed account but was again given no explanation. To make matters worse, this person on the phone ( I do n't recall his name ; he only gave a first name ) stated several times that I owed {$25.00} and change. Later in the day, it occurred to me to check the account online. There it states that I owe them {$72.00}! Apparently they had continued to add late fees and interest charges for two more months while I understood the account to be closed. This means that even if I had paid the {$25.00} and change the telephone rep had stated as the full balance on the account, there would have been a remaining balance and they would have continued to add interest and late fees to this account that was n't supposed to exist anymore. I left a message in the " secure message center '' on the bank 's website on XX/XX/XXXX. They were supposed to reply to that message within 48 hours but it has now been over 72 hours and there is no reply. I am making this complaint because, while I am willing to pay that first late fee, I do n't think this bank should have the right to add fees and interest charges to an account after notifying the customer in writing that the account has a XXXX balance and has been closed. I 'm sure you are aware that Comenity Bank is behind a great many supposedly " private label '' retail credit accounts. So it is n't just the {$72.00} they are trying to take from me. I ca n't help wondering how many people they do this to every month and how many millions of dollars they are taking that they are not entitled to.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief