Consumer complaint received 2016-01-21
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: NY
Product: Credit card
Issue: Billing disputes

Complaint:
On XXXX XXXX, 2015, I made an on-line purchase for pillows totaling {$49.00}. I charged this to my Macy's/XXXX XXXX Credit Card , which was recently sent to me as a replacement for my original Macy 's issued card. Following this, I awaited receipt of a bill from Macy 's so that I could pay the correct amount owed on time as I have consistently done in the past. HOWEVER, I NEVER RECEIVED A BILL FROM MACY 'S. I would have gladly paid the amount I owed in XXXX, but since I never received a bill as I had in the past, I was unaware of the fact that this bill was outstanding. I have subsequently learned that Macy 's made " recent upgrades with their online payment system '' on XXXX XXXX, 2015. The result was that I never again received any statement, invoice or notice about the outstanding charges either by email or paper statements, from XXXX through XXXX 2015. To clarify, I HAVE NEVER RECEIVED ANY EMAIL MESSAGES OR E-STATEMENTS OR PAPER ACCOUNT STATEMENT FROM MACY 'S INDICATING THAT I HAD ANY OUTSTANDING CHARGES OR LATE FEES SINCE THE ORIGINAL PURCHASE IN XXXX. 

On XXXX XXXX, almost five months later, I finally received a bill from Macy 's for {$190.00} [ {$140.00} of this being late charges ] and was told my account was now in collection. I called to inquire about this outrageous bill ; the customer service representative was less than helpful. She told me that even though Macy 's never sent me any bills or notices, that this was somehow my fault and that there was nothing she could do to help sort out this problem. I asked to speak to a manager and she said she would note that and ask that someone call me. She also stated that I had agreed to receive notices via email, which I do not recall doing. In fact, there is nothing on the Macy 's online account website that allows customers to make this choice. 

On XXXX XXXX, I made a payment over the phone for the total balance I originally owed -- {$51.00} -- and a different CS rep agreed to waive two months of late fees, which was the limit of her authority. 

My balance according to Macy 's remains at {$73.00} in late fees. THIS IS STILL UNACCEPTABLE. Macy 's supposed " upgrades '' to its billing system appear to have caused the termination of any communications with me or issuance of any monthly statements. Instead, the new system initiated the assessment of late charges at an alarming rate, without any knowledge on my part. 

I believe it is totally deceptive and unfair for Macy 's to charge me such excessive fees due to Macy 's own failure to send me a bill or notify me until now. This new system appears to be designed to ensure that extravagant late charges are applied without the customer being notified of them. 

Further, several of the online guidance items entitled " How do I add my Macy 's Credit Card to my existing macys.com profile? And " How can I dispute a charge on my Macy 's Credit Card? '' which evidently are administered through yet a fourth corporation, Department Stores National Bank, do not work and did not allow me access to complete any of these functions online in the past few days.

Company public response: Company chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief