Consumer complaint received 2024-09-01
Product: Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan — Installment loan
Issue: Problem when making payments — 
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL (GA)

We purchased furniture from Ashley Furniture XXXX XXXX SC on XX/XX/year>. The total purchase amount was {$7600.00}. We paid {$4000.00} by credit card and financed the remaining {$3600.00} with a special offer at 0 % interest for 12 months. Ashely later credited us {$100.00} for damaged furniture, leaving a balance finance of {$3500.00}. Upon purchase we received no details on the financing, so after a few weeks we telephone called Ashley for this information, the info including the name of the lending institution being Synchrony. They advised us that we would be receiving a statement from Synchrony. On XX/XX/XXXX, we received, not a statement, but a past due letter from Synchrony. Still not having a statement or any information on how to pay, we called Ashley again, and they assured us they would get it resolved. During this time Synchrony cancelled the original account they had set up for this financing, and started a new account, without us knowing what was transpiring, Synchrony apparently assuming the first statement info had been lost. With the new account Synchrony sent us a welcome letter with confusing info regarding a new account info and a late fee. With that, because we had had issues with Synchrony and with Ashley at this point, we decided to pay the total balance, to pay the loan off and not have to deal with Synchrony or Ashley from this point forward. We called Synchrony on XX/XX/XXXX to pay off the loan by credit card, only to be told by Synchrony that that did not accept payments by credit card. We questioned that, seeming to be the easiest and quickest, but advised them that we would put a check in the mail. A check for the total amount was mailed on XX/XX/year>, check number XXXX. On XX/XX/year> we called Synchrony to see if they had received our check. They advised us they had not, and not to worry about it, that it would probably take about XXXX weeks ( for some reason ). Because we were concerned about being charged late fees, we called again on XX/XX/year> to see if they had received our payoff check. Again they advised they had not received our check. Once again, on XX/XX/year> we called Synchrony to see if our check had been received. Again they said they had not received payment. And again, XX/XX/XXXX we called to see if payment had been received and again they said they had not. We questioned the process and our concern during this call - the Synchrony agent tells us that we need to contact out back and get a copy of the check, and forward a copy to them for proof of payment. (??? ) We could not make the Synchrony agent understand that the bank would not have a copy, not until they ( Synchrony ) deposited the check. She never understood that. She then said she would contact their claims department, and could take up to 90 days to resolve the problem. At this point we've lost all confidence in Synchrony, and we just want to get the loan paid off, trying to avoid late fees and interest. Because the check had now been mailed a month earlier and Synchrony was still telling us that the check had not been received, we put a stop payment on the original check, and mailed the second check for the total amount of {$3500.00}, on XX/XX/year>. With the previous problems, this check was mailed to Synchrony via Certified Mail. After all of this, on XX/XX/year> we called Synchrony to see if our payment had been received. The automated customer service advised that a payment had, in fact been made on XX/XX/XXXX, for the total amount. But this payment had never cleared the bank- they never attempted to deposit the check. Again, we had been told for more than a month that they had not received anything. Immediately we called back to Synchrony to get answers. Questioning the situation and advising them of the time and expense this has cost us, the Synchrony stated that, they had put a hold on the check, since it was a large amount. So, for more than a month, they were sitting on the check- had made no attempt to deposit the check - and instead they were telling us they had no payment. We argued the point for some time, evident that the Snchrony rep had no idea.