Consumer complaint received 2024-04-25
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Fees or interest — Problem with fees
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (GA)

This is my experience relative to a XXXX credit card account which is handled by Comenity Bank. The credit card is a new one. I paid the balance in full through the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, which involved a check in the amount of {$680.00}. The payment due date was XX/XX/XXXX, and I had the credit union send a check to be received on XX/XX/XXXX. The check was sent from my account, and apparently credited to them, on XX/XX/XXXX. In any event, the Comenity Bank neglected to credit this payment to my account until XX/XX/XXXX. This was XXXX days past the due date, and they charged me a late fee of {$30.00}. Its not that the {$30.00} is going to break me, but there is a principle involved. I do not like for big banks to take advantage of me, which they certainly attempt to do. And in this case, Comenity Banks monthly interest rate is 33.24 %, which is just obscene. Such greed!. 

When I received the bill from XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX. I noticed that they had charged me {$30.00} as a late fee. Consequently, I called the Customer Service Department. The first person with him I spoke, a man named XXXX, was cordial and he offered to waive {$15.00} of the {$30.00} late charge. I maintained this was unsatisfactory, and that my rudimentary knowledge of business law was such that if an entity such as Comenity Bank wished to use the XXXX as their agent, which they did - the date of the postmark was the effective date of payment, as that was when the payment was delivered to the agent. He was unable, according to Comenity Bank policy, to wave more than XXXX of the late charge. I did not feel like the late charge was justified in the first place. I then escalated the situation to a supervisor named XXXX. He was unable to help, so I escalated the matter to his supervisor, a woman named XXXX. I spent some thirty-nine minutes on the telephone, plus the time I am spending compiling this documentation. At all times the agents with whom I talked were courteous ; they ere just unable to help. Accordingly, I dont even know why the Comenity Bank has a Customer Service Department XXXX 

I would offer a brief summation of the situation : XXXX credit card account is handled by Comenity Bank. 
XXXX. Payment Timing and Late Charge : o I paid the balance in full through the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX via a check for {$680.00}. 
o The payment due date was XX/XX/XXXX, and I had the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX send a check to be received on XX/XX/XXXX. 
o However, Comenity Bank did not credit your account until XX/XX/XXXX, which was XXXX days past the due date. 
o As a result, they charged you a late fee of {$30.00}. 
o While the amount itself XXXX not significantly impact you, the principle of the matter is concerning. 
XXXX. Interest Rate and Concerns : o XXXX Banks monthly interest rate of XXXX XXXX seems exorbitant, although it is not applicable in this case as the balance was paid in full.. 
o I rightly express concern about big banks taking advantage of customers. 
3. Contacting Customer Service : o Upon receiving the bill from XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX, you noticed the {$30.00} late charge. 
o You called the customer service department. 
o The initial representative, XXXX, offered to waive {$15.00} of the late charge, which you found unsatisfactory. 
o You believe that the postmark date should be the effective payment date if Comenity Bank uses the XXXX mail as their agent. 
o Unfortunately, according to Comenity Bank policy, they can not waive more than half of the late charge. 
XXXX. Escalation to Supervisor : o You escalated the matter to a supervisor named XXXX and then his supervisor named XXXX  She was unable to waive the full late charge Its frustrating when financial institutions dont align with reasonable expectations. Their shortsighted policies are - I feel- usurious and greedy. I maintained that I was not going to let this matter go away readily, and that they would spend more time in answering my correspondence than if they had simply done the morally correct thing by waiving an unjustified and unwarranted late charge. Accordingly, I would ask that you compel the Comenity Bank to waive the additional late fee. 

Very truly yours, XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX