Consumer complaint received 2021-04-21
Company: BARCLAYS BANK DELAWARE
State: CA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems
Sub-issue: Other problem

Complaint:
I am a holder of the XXXX ( Barclays ) Credit Card. Ive been a cardholder for several years and have never had any issues. On XX/XX/2021, I was contacted by the Fraud Department via telephone and email about possible suspicious activities on my account. Prior to the XXXX, I had not used my credit card, I paid it off. I also set up alerts to let me know when charges were made above a certain threshold. It turns out, all activities were fraudulent and I immediately reported them as such. Upon seeing that my card was being used without my authorization, I immediately reached for the visible card, which was the newly issued card ( note, this card had yet to be activated ). I reached for the card to get the telephone number. During the recorded call, I was asked if I was in possession of my card, I honestly responded by saying yes because I was looking at the new card issued ( to replace the old card that was set to expire ). I was never asked the clarifying question of if I was in possession of my old card. I didnt think this mattered because I knew I didnt make the charges. I was confident that, as with a few other fraud activities on other credit cards in the past, that I would be relieved of all of the fraudulent charges. XXXX issued a provisional credit and removed all but {$320.00} cents of the charges. The company alleged that after complete investigation, they determined the charges were valid. I was stunned and immediately responded to the letter issued on XX/XX/2021. I reiterated that the charges were fraudulent. I would NEVER TRY TO GET OUT OF PAYING FOR MERCHANDISE I CHARGED. I have very good credit and pay for what I purchase. If you look over my entire credit history with your company, you will see that I have made significant purchases, and have always paid timely and eventually paid you in full. Ive been a great customer for years, and was insulted by the determination that these charges were valid. I waited on the line to speak with someone in security for past approximately 45 minutes ( during my work day ) ; this was totally unacceptable customer services, especially dealing with issues of fraud! I am writing because even after disputing the fraudulent charges again, not being presented with any written proof ( there wouldnt be any since I did not make the charges ), I was held responsible for the payments. When I reached out to Barclay, I was told that since I said I was in possession of my card, the charges were valid. I was in possession of the new replacement card ( ending in the same number ), so I answered the question honestly that I was in possession of the card. I was very upset when I made the call, and was speaking with a representative overseas who follow a script. Not one time did the representative ask me if I was in possession of my old card set to expire. I did not realize that I was not in possession of the card until a couple of days after I reached out to XXXX to report the fraud. Because I know I had not used this card in a while, I did not realize that I was not in possession of the old card that was about to expire. I dont know when that card went missing, and still do not have possession of it. Note : the new card was not activated I did not plan to activate until the old. I am formally appealing this decision ; These fraudulent charges need to be reversed. I also plan to pursue any and all legal actions available to me in I am still held responsible for these charges. In addition, I will demand camera footage and time stamps from places/merchants where these purchases were made. I am fully prepared to show that I was not at any of those locations able to make these fraudulent purchases. I am copying the Comptroller and the Consumer Finance Complaint Department because I hope the right decision is reached. Unfortunately, I think its quite deceptive on Barclays part to not try to find out the entire story and get the clear full picture before rendering a decision. A representative should have been able to see that there were two ( 2 ) cards ending in the same number. The question should have been, we see that you have two cards ( are you in possession of both ). I would have then looked for the old card and saw that it was missing. This did not occur, which his horrible services to the customer. Again, the charges are fraudulent and need to be reversed. Thank you.

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