Consumer complaint received 2019-05-16
Product: Credit card or prepaid card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem when making payments — Problem during payment process
Company: BBVA FINANCIAL CORPORATION (NM)

I openned the account ( s ) with XXXX, the branch manager at the XXXX and XXXX location. She recommended a secured credit card because I had not had credit nor know to use credit in a long time ( 10+ years ) according to my credit report. I had known about XXXX XXXX secured XXXX cards but they told me the higher the limit the better so they put my XXXX cash into some securitized savings account with interest, enclosed, I have made I think in a year XXXX   cents interest but it was to protect the bank. I used the credit card and the last payment was in XX/XX/XXXX and they closed the card. I am under a XXXX program with the department of XXXX XXXX and I am in XXXX XXXX and used my card for groceries and rent that I had planned to use my savings with in the first place. Later I learned that I had to pay with more cash for those expenses despite I had already given them what I had, the XXXX cash. I made my payment on XX/XX/XXXX forXXXX and the day later of my payment they froze the credit I could not charge my account anymore. I called internationally to them because I am a XXXX under a XXXX/XXXX   XXXX program and my only way to access funds for housing and food is through my cash at the bank or through my mother helping me through deposits into my bank so I can access the cash through the atm/credit card. So on XX/XX/XXXX my checking account ending in XXXX had XXXX and I withdrew tuition of about 1300 per my promisory note with my school ( under XXXX ) XXXX until the State of NM send the check with tuition so that I would not be withdrawn from school and online access to learning while in school. I still had a positive balance in my checking account but no credit in my card because they cut off the credit and they told me that the access to use the card is cut and will never be reopen however they kept the account open ( the card ) because it is better for my credit and that I had to pay the full 1500 or 1600 balance then to be able to have access to the frozen CD of XXXX that I have with them. Then they will take the XXXX and deduct whatever they have to and give me the balance after that but only after it goes to collections. I explained that i was overseas and if I do not pay rent I will get evicted and I need to buy food. They told me that those are the rules of the product, that they can not use my savings money to pay my credit card and the fees and all the checking account but after 21 days after it is closed. That was 2 months ago. When I spoke to the manager at XXXX XXXX, who was very nice and tried to help ; he said that they have not closed my credit card ( that was a weak ago ) that they only closed my access to make purchases and charge. That the balance is still there and that iif I close the card, it will ruin my credit. I explained that I have to have good credit for a job and to reinance the house, that that was the point of the higher interest card secured that they told me they will build my credit. I told him that my deposit made of XXXX is putting a disparate impact to people like me and that it is working as a negative amortization certificate of deposit. He told me that he can close my account to go to collections and I have to wait another 21 days to get access to my savings of XXXX because the bank has to protect itself and that money is for their protection. For some reason they oppened 2 checking accounts and the credit card was not linked for overdraft protection