Consumer complaint received 2016-06-07
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: WV
Product: Credit card
Issue: Billing disputes

Complaint:
Macy's/Deparment Stores National Bank is charging me interest on {$0.00} - I missed a payment on my Macy 's account for the billing statement issued XXXX XXXX, 2016. The " Payment Due Date '' was due XXXX XXXX, 2016. After realizing I missed the {$280.00} payment, when I receive my statement for the following month XXXX XXXX, 2016, I was charged {$27.00} for the late fee and {$5.00} interest on my purchases. Which made my new total {$310.00}. No big deal, I understand that this was a result of my negligence. The " Payment Due Date '' on the XXXX XXXX, 2016 statement was listed as : XXXX XXXX, 2016. I paid the bill in full ( {$280.00} previous balance + {$27.00} Fees Charged+ {$5.00} interest totaling {$310.00} New Balance ) on XXXX XXXX, 2016. So I assumed I had paid my debt in full, and as a result my account balance should remain {$0.00}. 
The following month, I received my statement for XX/XX/2016. It said " Previous Balance : XXXX ", " Payments '' : XXXX, " Interest Charged '' : +5.47, " New Balance '' : {$5.00}. 

The problem is that I paid the balance in full on XXXX XXXX, 2016, before the payment due date : XXXX XXXX, 2016 and was charged {$5.00} interest on a {$0.00} balance. In the " Information About Your Account '' section of my bill the first section is entitled : " How to Avoid Paying Interest on Purchases. '' In this section it blatantly says, " Your payment due date is at least 25 days after the close of each billing cycle. We will not charge you any interest on purchases if you pay your New Balance by the payment due date each month. '' I missed payment for the XX/XX/XXXX bill I received with statement closing dates : XXXX/XXXX/2016 to XXXX/XXXX/2016 : Payment due XXXX/XXXX/16. I paid my bill in full for the XX/XX/XXXX statement I received with statement closing dates XXXX/XXXX/2016 to XXXX/XXXX/2016 : Payment due XXXX/XXXX/16 - paid XXXX/XXXX/16. The XX/XX/XXXX bill with statement closing date XXXX/XXXX/2016 to XXXX/XXXX/2016 is the bill where I was charged interest. But I should n't have been if " We will not charge you any interest on purchases if you pay your New Balance by the payment due date each month. '' was a truthful or valid practice of the company. 

I thought my balance was {$0.00} and did not receive any statements in the mail like I 'm signed up to receive whenever I have a balance on my account. This resulted in additional missed payments, for the XXXX 2016 bill for the amount of interest ( {$5.00} ) and the XXXX 2016 bill for the amount of interest + a late fee ( {$5.00} + {$2.00} ) on my account. Macy 's reported this missed payment on interest that I should not have been charged for to the Credit Bureau ( XXXX ) as an unpaid account, but I was never contacted or made aware. 

After sitting on the phone with representatives from the customer service number provided on my bill. They refused to even acknowledge that I paid my " New Balance '' for the bill I received in XX/XX/XXXX, in full, by the due date, and thus should have been charged {$0.00} interest the following month ( XX/XX/XXXX : billing cycle XXXX/XXXX/16 to XXXX/XXXX/16 ). After speaking with a supervisor I was told that they would " resolve '' the {$5.00} interest, and was supposed to be given a credit for that amount ( not including the {$2.00} fee for late payment on what should have been {$0.00}. ) While on the phone I told the supervisor I just wanted to {$0.00} my bill but should n't have to pay interest that the policy states I would n't be charged for. So I agreed to just pay the {$2.00} late fee & small balance from a purchase, using my bank account that they had on file. The payment I agreed to verbally from my account and the {$5.00} credit from the company have yet to be posted on my account activity. 

My credit has been negatively affected by their error, and the company wo n't correct a mistake that violates it 's own policy. I know XXXX other people who have also recently been charged interest after paying their bill in full.

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