Consumer complaint received 2020-05-07
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: FL
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: Store credit card
Issue: Getting a credit card
Sub-issue: Card opened as result of identity theft or fraud

Complaint:
During my stay in XXXX ( as indicated in my passport and the attached immigration form XXXX ) I was the subject of a fraudulent event on XX/XX/XXXX, when a thief opened a VISA XXXX card ( apparently in my name, since I never received any statement from XXXX ), and the subject made a purchase of around {$1400.00} USD with an address that does not belong to me. It is clear that the thief took advantage of COMENITY CAPITAL BANK and XXXX 's systems controls. 
By simply doing an INSTANCHEK on the Web, this could have been easily avoided. Also, by cross checking my mail address with other providers, for example my internet services, cell phone or credit card to realize that Ive never lived at the address that the offender used for this fraud, not even close, nor have I ever had that address in my life. ( Bills attached ) I found out about the fraudulent act when, by chance, the XXXX XXXX app informed me about the closure of an account due to non-payment in XX/XX/XXXX of this year. 
This VISA XXXX has never belonged to me. I Have always had an excellent credit history. So, in the midst of the pandemic, I called the bank and reported the fraud, and then did the same with all the credit bureaus and froze my credit. 
When I called the bank, Ms. XXXX from fraud operations refused to give me any more information other than that the address linked to that XXXX account was not the one I was giving her, but a completely different one. She said it was something like on the XXXX or so, but refused to tell me the complete address. 
( Later, upon reviewing my Experian record, I was able to see that fake address was that in XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, FL. ) Ms. XXXX asked me for an address where to send the required information to evaluate my case, as I mentioned I did not permanently reside in the United States and my activity is traveling 70 % of my time between XXXX and XXXX XXXX as XXXX of my company. I proposed my daughters address ( who is attending her Master at UM in XXXX XXXX and is a US citizen with a permanent residency in Florida ). 
For all of that, she would be able to receive and send any requests from the bank to any destination without any problems and therefore solve any issues. 

That is why the address XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX FL XXXX appears in my file since XX/XX/XXXX. See XXXX report when my current address is registered since XX/XX/XXXX in the same report. 

I find the banks behavior very strange, modifying an address by phone without any physical verification, PHOTO ID via FAX, or electronically SCANNED via email. 

To my surprise, contrary to sending me an information kit and procedure on how to report my dispute, I was informed by my daughter that she received two statements by the bank, requesting to pay the scam, What is even worse, they claim in the letter they sent me that they have already resolved that there is no evidence of fraud based on the information I have supposedly provided, when I actually had only given them my daughter 's address until now. 

Since valuable information was not taken or obtained to resolve this case, Im providing the bank with each and every piece of evidence and records to collaborate with the investigation, assuming that there is no ill intent but task overload due to Covid-19.

After having complied with reporting to all Government Agencies such as FTC, CFPB, Police Department and CBB, and having verified on the Equifax website that I was a victim of IDT in the aforementioned data breach, I can only expect a quick and positive resolution by Comenity Capital Bank in order to close the case.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief