Consumer complaint received 2024-04-23
Product: Credit card — Store credit card
Issue: Trouble using your card — Can't use card to make purchases
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (TX)

For over 2 years I have had and maintained an IKEA Projekt Card issued by Commenity Bank. I have used the card 's promotional financing options to place a few purchases and always paid the balance off during the promotional period. 

I check all of my credit account, including this one, almost every day.. I routinely update information, check that no one has used my account without authorization, and manage any rewards or other requests that show up on my account. In the last 2 years, I applied for and was granted a credit line increase to {$7500.00}. Just 2 weeks ago, I updated my address on my account because I moved to a new house.

After moving, my family and I planned a purchase of IKEA products, using the promotional financing available with my Projekt card. I checked that my account was in good standing and that my available credit was more than my purchase. My purchase was approximately {$2500.00} ( to fully utilize the 24-month no interest financing ) and just over only XXXX of my available credit. I attempt to place the order, and my card does not work. 

I call the number on the back of my card, the customer service number. They inform me that my account is on " inactive '' status and that there is nothing that they can do. I must call a different department the next day and I was assured that the new department would be able to " lift the inactive hold ''. I explained to my disappointed family that our IKEA order will have to wait ... even though my account remains in good standing, and my available credit still shows to be {$7500.00}, I can not access the account for the purchase. 

So I dutifully call the new department. After being transferred between 3 representatives for " verification '' I was told that there was nothing that could be done... I would have to wait 7-10 business days for the account to " automatically update ''. I asked to speak to more senior representative and was transferred to a supervisor. In that call I was advised that my account is open, has a XXXXXXXX XXXX  has {$7500.00} in available credit, but is " blocked ''. I was further advised that there was nothing anyone in the entire company could do, I would have to wait for a new department, " the credit disputes '' department to review my account. 

This is now the 4th or 5th explanation that I have been given. I have been told that there is no way to communicate with the " credit disputes '' department because they do not have phones. I was told that I could either apply for a new account, or send a letter. So I attempted to apply for a new account, and was not allowed to proceed with the application because the computer system identified me as having an open account in good standing. 

At the end of the day, I have an actively managed account that nearly-daily displays that I have available credit and has absolutely no notice, alerts, warnings, or any other indication that my credit line is not available to me. Again, it still displays this as I write this complaint. Yet, I can not use my account because it is either 1 ) " in active '', 2 ) " closed '', 3 ) " on hold '', 4 ) has a " block '' placed on it, or some other mysterious status that only Comenity is aware of and refuses to inform me about, warn me about before I attempt to use my card, or explain how to fix other than sending a letter asking what is wrong with my card. 

None of these answers can be true at the same time as my account center actively displays that my available credit is {$7500.00}. And their insistence that I " just use a different payment method '' amounts to extortion of interest, as my account is held open explicitly for the purpose of accessing promotional financing ( specifically 0 % interest for 24-months ) associated with the Projekt card.