Consumer complaint received 2017-09-01
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: TX
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Fees or interest
Sub-issue: Problem with fees

Complaint:
Total disputed amount being requested for refund is {$76.00}. Bank assessed late fees, finance charges, insurance fees and a mystery fee after account was closed with a XXXX balance. 

Due to difficulty in making payments and accessing a representative I decided to close the account. Reaching a representative was an extremely difficult task of a maze of menu options. This has since been corrected. This bank has NO automatic payment options. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX - Full payment as shown on the website account was made. The total balance which included a charge on XXXX XXXX XXXX for a late charge was paid. I sent a secured online message and stated the account was paid in full online and requested the account to be closed. The balance showed as XXXX. Message # XXXX ; Friday XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ET XXXX XXXX XXXX - Response received from Comenity Bank stating the account was closed as per my request by XXXX. XXXX but had a current balance of {$45.00} and this information would be provided to national credit reporting agencies. Message # XXXX ; Monday XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX - I replied that the full amount due was paid in full and the balance should be XXXX as indicated by their online account information. I requested this to be explain or correct and to confirm the account was closed with a XXXX balance. Message XXXX ; Thursday XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ET XXXX XXXX XXXX - Comenity Bank replied that they can confirm the account was closed on XXXX XXXX XXXX, the balance was {$45.00} and the next minimum payment of {$30.00} was due on XXXX XXXX XXXX. 

Attempts to reach a customer service representative were extremely difficult but many attempts were made to reach a person to have this issue fixed. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX - I called and reached a customer service representative. My wife was present during the conversation and was included as we addressed her account as well during this call. The representative explained that due to the account being closed, it was not possible to make any adjustments or waive any fees. I paid the entire amount of {$45.00} online while on the phone which the representative confirmed was received and also very clearly confirmed the account was at XXXX and no possible additional charges would be applied. I requested that a statement be sent to confirm this. We also paid off and closed my wife 's account. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX - I received an email notice of payment due for this account. I called and explained this was not possible as everything was resolved 100 % on XXXX XXXX XXXX. I was told it was paid late and that was what the additional charge of {$31.00} was for. I explained that it was incredibly difficult to reach any person ( now the system allows direct access to a representative, but this was not the case previously ) and that it was not possible for any charges to have incurred as it was paid in full on XXXX XXXX ( which clearly included the late charge on XXXX XXXX as part of balance ), then again was paid to cover the supposed delayed late charge on XXXX XXXX XXXX. The representative apologized they are unable to waive or adjust any fees or charges as the account was closed. A conversation with his superior where I complained that it is impossible to have any charge of {$31.00} as any possible charges ( which I fully dispute are legitimate ) were paid in full on XXXX XXXX XXXX. She explained it was a legitimate late fee because the balance was not paid until XXXX XXXX when it was due on XXXX XXXX. The fact that I paid everything on XXXX XXXX XXXX and that the disputed amount of {$45.00} was paid on XXXX XXXX XXXX and CONFIRMED by the representative on the phone that the payment was received and would in fact close out the account entirely with a XXXX balance did n't seem to matter. She held that the charge is legitimate and there was nothing she could do but would make notations on the account. 

The entire problem is due to the difficulty of the bank 's system. I have rarely encountered any bank that does not allow for automatic payments. I am a XXXX and work out of the country extensively. I set up automatic payments for every opportunity. My wife manages all accounts where possible and this one was extremely difficult to manage for her with many obstacles. The effort was there on our side. We paid all fees even if we do n't agree they are fair. Now we are faced with what appears to be abuse by the banking system against us in an unjust and unfair way including being dishonest. 

I am seeking the following resolution : 1. Immediate refund of the {$31.00} paid on XXXX XXXX XXXX. This was an impossible charge based on the closure and confirmation made with the Comenity Bank representative on XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
2. Immediate refund of the late charge of {$30.00} paid as part of the {$45.00} on XXXX XXXX XXXX. This is not reasonable as the late fee assessed on XXXX XXXX XXXX was paid as part of the {$380.00} which should have closed out the account with XXXX  balance. 
3. Immediate refund of the {$7.00} which has no associated fee. The account was at XXXX balance once the {$380.00} was paid on XXXX XXXX XXXX. The bank claims a finance charge of {$8.00} and an account assure ( insurance ) fee of {$0.00} for a total of {$8.00}. With the late fee of {$30.00} this equals {$38.00} and not {$45.00} meaning there is a mystery charge of {$7.00}. 
4. Immediate consideration of the remaining disputed amount of {$8.00} as it seems impossible to have finance and insurance charges on a XXXX balance. 

Total disputed amount being requested for refund is {$76.00}.

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief