Consumer complaint received 2024-07-27
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Fees or interest — Charged too much interest
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY (DC)

On XXXX XX/XX/2024, using my XXXX XXXX, I logged onto the XXXX XXXX. I wanted to make a payment that would cover the remaining statement balance on my American Express charge card for the billing period XXXX XXXX XXXX 

To do this, I took the following steps : Clicked on " Payments, '' Clicked on " PAY & TRANSFER, '' Clicked on " Manage '' under " Pay Bills, '' Clicked on " Add a New Bill, '' Selected on " Add a Credit Card, '' Typed in my American Express account number, and verified my identity. 

Once American Express was successfully added as a payee, the app asked me the following : ( i ) The amount to be withdrawn and paid to American Express. The app required that I type dollars and cents; and ( ii ) The " received by '' date for when American Express would have the monies. The app required that I select the date from a calendar. XXXX XXXX dates were shaded out in grey while there was a blue circle line around the current date, XX/XX/XXXX. Only XXXX XXXX could be selected. 
After typing the amount, I clicked on XXXX XXXXXX/XX/XXXX because that was the payment due date for American Express. The next screen asked me to confirm the payment information : the payee, the dollar amount, and the receive by date. I later received email notification that my transaction was successful. 

On XX/XX/2024, American Express " processed '' the payment. Because this was 1 day after the due date, I was required to pay interest for the next XXXX billing cycles : ( i ) {XXXX  for XXXX XXXX XXXX and ( ii ) {$250.00} for XXXX XXXX XXXX 

I contacted XXXX and was told that American Express had in fact received the payment by XX/XX/XXXX, and that XXXX was not responsible for when companies choose to process the payments. I contacted American Express and was told that it goes by the date the payment is " processed '' to determine whether payment was paid in time. 

The combined practice -- XXXX allowing consumers to select a date when monies are " received by '' and American Express determining when to process a payment regardless when it was received amounts -- is unfair and deceptive. 

It is unreasonable to expect a consumer to know that processing date controls for the following reasons : The American Express billing statements make no mention of " processing. '' Instead, they focus on when the payment is received. By way of example, page 1 of every billing statement includes a " Late Payment Warning '' section that states, " If we do not RECEIVE your Minimum Payment Due by the Payment Due Date, you may have to pay a late fee '' ( emphasis added ). For another example, page 2 of every billing statement includes a " Payments '' section that states that payments " must be received by XXXX XXXX... to be credited as of the day it is RECEIVED '' and those " receive [ d ] afteXXXX XXXX XXXX. will not be credited... until the next day '' ( emphasis added ). Further, no where in the billing statement is there an indication that the term " credited '' means " processing. '' On XX/XX/XXXX, just moments after confirming the payment information on the XXXX app, the amount in my checking account had been reduced by the amount I had wanted withdrawn and paid to American Express. I received a statement from XXXX confirming that American Express received my payment by the due date of XX/XX/XXXX.