Consumer complaint received 2020-04-05
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: IL
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Fees or interest
Sub-issue: Problem with fees

Complaint:
The information I am including in this consumer complaint form is related to a recent issue I encountered with XXXX  Rewards Credit Card issued through Comenity Bank. 

On XX/XX/2020 I called the Comenity/XXXX  credit card number at XXXX to make a payment via electronic check by phone as I realized I did not receive a statement in the mail. I explained I was experiencing problems receiving my mail and that I did not want to incur any late charges as I am a customer who diligently pays all my bills on time. 

Unfortunately, I was a few days late paying the statement, however, I still wanted to make my payment over the phone as I had previously done before using my checking account information. I spoke to a representative by the name " XXXX '' who verbally confirmed processing the payment and issued me with a confirmation number ( XXXX ). I also requested that my account be closed that day and asked her if I had any other fees that needed to be paid off. XXXX confirmed the only charges I had at that time were in the amount of {$250.00}. I made the payment through check by phone and she verbally confirmed the confirmation number. 

To my surprise, I receive a call from an XXXX  number a few days later from a representative named XXXX who explained she was calling from XXXX Credit Card to tell me that the check payment I made by phone was not processed correctly and explained the previous representative did not include one number from my checking account number in the transaction which caused the check to be returned. XXXX explained if I made the payment by phone with her I would not incur any additional fees. She also made adjustments to the payment and said I was overcharged and that XXXX should not have charged me the original amount. She charged me {$250.00} which was a minimal difference of XXXX cents. I made the payment and was reassured no additional charges would be sent to me and my account was closed as I did not want to deal with the back and forth calls I had to make to resolve this issue. 

Consequently, I received a new statement from XXXX/Comenity with a charge of {$27.00} charged on XX/XX/2020 for return payment fees. I called on Thursday XXXX and spoke with XXXX regarding the charge. She stated she was unable to help due to the account being closed, put me on hold for 15 minutes, then the call was disconnected, so I proceeded to email customer service online. 

On Saturday XX/XX/2020 I received an email from an XXXX XXXX stating they could not verify my identity and to reply to the email or call the XXXX. Interestingly, I had sent the message by logging in with my username and password, yet they still could not verify my identity. So I called and spoke to a XXXX who in turn transferred me to a supervisor by the name of XXXX. 

XXXX put me on hold, reviewed the recorded calls, and then proceeded to tell me I did not provide the correct bank account information and that he could not be of help to me. Keep in mind I had previously used the same account information to make a payment by phone which was processed in XXXX. In addition, it was their representative who took my bank information, put it through and gave me a confirmation number. He also said due to me choosing to close down my account and choosing " XXXX '' to shop with that he would not be able to help me. 

I explained that I was not being treated fairly and that despite the many years I had been a loyal customer who made payments on time I was not being treated as a valued customer. I believe his motive was out of retaliation as I chose to close my account. 

I am reaching out to your establishment and urging you to help me get these charges reversed and to stand up for the average hard working citizen. There is no reason I or any one else should be treated unfairly when conducting these types of transactions. We are an essential part of the community who help these banks thrive and stay in business. 

Thank you

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief