Consumer complaint received 2017-08-17
Company: BARCLAYS BANK DELAWARE
State: TX
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Advertising and marketing, including promotional offers
Sub-issue: Didn't receive advertised or promotional terms

Complaint:
To Whom It Must Concern : On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I applied and was approved for a Barclaycard Ring MasterCard. The sole purpose of me getting this credit card is because they offered me promotional 15 months of 0 % interest on any balance transfers made within the first 45 days of opening this card. My intention was to transfer {$6000.00} from my XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX platinum credit card to this card and pay it off with zero interest. While doing the online application for the card, there was an option to submit a balance transfer and I did so. It was indicated by a green check mark that my balance transfer had been submitted successfully and that it would take 4-6 weeks to process. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received a letter from Barclay, dated XXXX XXXX, XXXX, stating my initial balance transfer was unsuccessful. I promptly called and spoke to XXXX ( Confirmation # : XXXX ) and she assured me that she would resubmit the same balance transfer and that it would be expedited to only take 7-10 business days. Even though she was unable to give me a reason as to why the first balance transfer failed, I would have to say that she was the most helpful Barclay representative that Ive spoken with to date. I patiently waited for this balance transfer to come through my XXXX account and finally, on XXXX XXXX, XXXX, my {$6000.00} balance transfer was accepted. A few days later, while making an online XXXX purchase with my XXXX checking account, XXXX informed me that debit card was invalid. I double checked the numbers and it still gave me an error. I promptly logged into my XXXX account online and was shocked to see that on XXXX XXXX, XXXX, {$6000.00} had been taken out of my XXXX credit card as a STOP PAYMENT on the Barclay balance transfer that had already been approved and accepted. This caused me to go over {$2000.00} into the negative as I had now exceeded my credit line with XXXX. This also caused a stop payment on an online purchase I had made earlier that day with my XXXX credit card, and put a freeze on my debit card and any checks coming through ( causing XXXX to not recognize the account ). I immediately called Barclay but could only be told a Manager would call me back within XXXX. Finally, on XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I was able to speak with XXXX, who stated he was a Manager with Barclay ( Confirmation # : XXXX ). After several HmmmI dont knows, he proceeded to tell me, with lack of empathy or willingness to resolve my issue, that the second balance transfer submitted on the XXXX of XXXX had been kicked back by the 3rd party who issued the check due to an invalid account number. At this point, I got XXXX from XXXX on the line, and asked if she could verify the account number with XXXX from Barclay. The account number was correct and she confirmed that there was no mistake on my part as the customer. All of the information I had given Barclay regarding the balance transfer was correct. The three of us were on that phone call for two and a half hours and the primary reason was due to XXXX lag and sheer indifference to my situation. My dissatisfaction as a customer with Barclay Bank did not seem to matter to him one bit. Not only did he never recognize the mistake that his financial institution had made ( he blamed it on the 3rd party that had issued the check ), but he never apologized for the subsequent hardship it had caused me. In fact, when XXXX asked him to send over a fax or email confirming that the balance transfer error was not caused by me, so that she could at least unfreeze my debit card and give me access to those funds, XXXX wasnt even cooperative. I have truly never experienced anything like this. Feeling defeated and in desperate need to get my accounts back to normal, I asked him to put through a third attempt on the same balance transfer, hoping everything would eventually be resolved between my Barclay and XXXX credit accounts. He read me the required recording, I verbally accepted, and then when I asked if he could guarantee that the same error would not happen again, all he could say is that there was no way to guarantee that. Still, I was hopeful that with speaking to a Manager and having plenty of notes in my account with Barclay, this would be the last time I had to speak with anyone at Barclay about an issue. Two days later, on XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I was having tapas at a local restaurant. I attempted to use my Barclay card to pay for my {$6.00} tab and my server politely advised me that my credit card had been run through twice, and twice declined. How could this be? I knew I had over {$500.00} in available funds and this is after the balance transfer had been submitted for {$6000.00}. One would typically feel embarrassed in this kind of situation but I felt relieved. I knew that this was absolutely the final straw on this Barclay account. I quickly paid my server with cash and called Barclay one last time. I was surprised to automatically be transferred to fraud protection where XXXX asked to verify my account. When I asked her why my credit card had just been declined, she told me that since my third balance transfer had not been verified, my card was put on hold. I was enraged. How could my balance transfer have not been verified when I was on the phone with a Manager for two and a half hours and he had a recording of me saying to proceed with the transfer? She said that two managers had called me the next day and I had not been able to be reached so they CANCELLED the third balance transfer. If it is Barclays policy to verify a balance transfer with a Manager call back ( which Ive absolutely never heard of ), then why did XXXX not inform me of that incoming call during our conversation? I was not under any impression that I should be waiting for a XXXX # to call me in the coming days and, like most people, I do not pick up calls from phone numbers I do not know. Just two days earlier, when I had asked XXXX if there was anything else I needed to do on my end, shouldnt he have told me that? I was a 100 % certain I had done everything right on this third balance transfer and somehow, I still failed to get my money. This is when I asked XXXX to transfer me to Barclays Cancellation Department. Up until now, having dealt with subpar professionalism, and, unenthusiastic, mediocre customer service, I was hopeful that at least the Cancellation Department would fight for me as a customer. I have good credit, I have good history with my other financial institutions, I really thought whoever I got on the line would really feel for my situation and try their best to make an effort to keep me as a customer ; to right their wrongs. I got XXXX XXXX she said her initials were : XXXX ) and much to my dismay and disappointment, it was very evident in the beginning of our call that she was not there to save customers. She seemed to be reading off of a script and after I gave her an exhausting but concise summary of what an awful experience I had had dealing with her institution, she didnt so much as let out a sigh. I believe her exact words were ok as she continued on with her script, as if nothing I said meant anything to her. There was no apology, there was no regret, there was not even an offer to make it right. Maybe I was nave to have hoped for more. It actually became comical when she restated that I would lose my promotional 45day 0 % balance transfer feature should I cancel my card, to which I replied to her that I had not received one benefit to this card and that would be quite alright.

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 monetary relief