Consumer complaint received 2023-05-01
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: CA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
I am filing this claim with the CFPB to recoup all of my money spent on XXXX XXXX products. 
My wife and I were walking from our room to the beach when we saw the storefront. XXXX XXXX, the store salesman and our dedicated sales rep after purchase, asked whether I wanted a XXXX XXXX. I said yes, then our small talk led to us being convinced to go into the store for a free XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX free trial use of their XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX The solution in the store worked well, so we showed interest, and we were then given a free trial use of their XXXX  XXXX which was supposed to remove lines on your face. Both products seemed to show noticeable differences on our faces so we purchase the XXXX XXXX XXXX and ( because of the large amount of money spent ) we were given a number of XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX 
Furthermore, we were given an entire replenishment set of all the XXXX for when we ran out. 

All product had to be shipped to us in California ( from Hawaii ) because : 1 ) They didn't have all of the product, and 2 ) My wife and I travelled with carry-ons, so we didn't have room in our suitcases. 

We arrived back home, received the product, and realized there was missing product, so we contacted XXXX XXXX, and he told us he would ship the missing product to us. By 'contacted ' I am referring to text conversations between my wife and him. Weeks went by and the correct products never showed up. On top of that, we quickly realized the product we did have didn't work anything like what was used in their store in XXXX. 

Upon this realization, we tried to find any details on XXXX that would allow us to return the product for a full refund. After reaching out to XXXX, the messages between him and my wife started turning green ( rather than blue, as occurs when messages are being sent and received between XXXX XXXX  ). As a result, we called him and the store in XXXX and got ahold of the store. They told us over the phone and in email that they would forward our concern to XXXX, but we never heard back from anyone. At this point, I was no longer able to get ahold of the store in XXXX and XXXX was nowhere to be found ( still ). I started searching online for some details about XXXX, most importantly their customer service contact phone #.  Until a few months ago, however, their website was extremely unprofessional and the only means for reaching out to them was through their online portal. They failed to include a company address and phone # at the time. No one ever called/emailed us back, so I filed the claim with Citibank. 

Citibank kept our correspondence/filed claim spinning in circles by focusing on details of my initial claim that were irrelevant. For example, they requested a checklist of product ordered versus product received, so I provided the checklist, yet it was irrelevant because we were trying to ship ALL the product back to XXXX since late XXXX XX/XX/XXXX. 

Some time between XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX, XXXX polished their website so that the company looked legitimate. They even included a contact phone #. When I realized this, I immediately contacted the phone # and left a voicemail. I did this 3+ times in XXXX and I have yet to receive a call back. 

So, after being denied by Citi 3+ times over the course of the past ~1 year, I am now emailing you for some assistance. The supporting evidence I've provided Citi is very detailed, so ( again ) I am filing this claim with the CFPB to ultimately recoup my money. I've supplied ample evidence supporting my case, but Citi continues to deny the charges as fraudulent or recoupable.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation