Consumer complaint received 2016-04-12
Product: Credit card — 
Issue: Customer service / Customer relations — 
Company: CITIBANK, N.A. (NY)

Citibank with XXXX XXXX had a promotional offer to open credit cards under the Citi XXXX XXXX line : spend {$2500.00} in the first 3 months and the cardholder would receive XXXX free weekend stays at a hotel in the XXXX portfolio. I applied for the card in XXXX XXXX and spent more than {$2500.00} in the first 3 months. I never received my rewards certificates. I called Citibank on XXXX/XXXX/XXXX to inquire about them, was told they had been issued ( although I never received them ), and that I had to call XXXX regarding details. XXXX told me when I called they were issued and they expired XXXX/XXXX/XXXX. When I said I never received them, XXXX said the company had " gone green '' and no longer issued paper certificates, and that they did not have an email address associated with my XXXX profile. I know this statement is incorrect because XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX I received emails from XXXX 's reservations department. When I asked XXXX for an extension of the rewards certificates ' expiration dates, I was told Citibank handles that aspect, but, regardless, that I only had to reserve by XXXX/XXXX/XXXX, not stay. I called Citibank again and was told I would have my certificates reissued in 10 to 14 days, with later expiration dates. Also, I was told I only had to book by XXXX/XXXX/XXXX, not stay. I called Citibank again on XXXX/XXXX/XXXX to ask about the reissued certificates, and was told they would not reissue them ( and, in any event, the agent said the Citibank system showed a XXXX XXXX, XXXX expiration date for my certificates ). The Citibank agent again told me I only had to reserve by XXXX/XXXX/XXXX and not stay by then. Then I called XXXX again, and, after a series of phone transfers, was twice told that I had to complete my stay by XXXX/XXXX/XXXX. Through each call, each company said the other company handled the certificates and did not seem to know what aspect of the card 's promotional offers belonged to which company. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I sent XXXX and Citibank a letter ( attached ) describing my horrible customer service experience, and participated in a three-way call with both companies on XXXX XXXX, XXXX. The Citibank account specialist on that call informed me a referral was sent to XXXX, but that no new certificates would be issued by XXXX. After the Citibank Account Specialist and I say on hold for nearly an hour, a XXXX representative finally spoke with us and said the certificates would not be reissued but XXXX would give me a paltry number of XXXX Rewards points as consolation. The representatives continued to place blame on each other. I informed them I do not want a consolation, I want the promotional offer that induced me to sign up for the card and that I missed due to their lack of communication and miscommunications. 
I would understand if I, through some fault of my own, misplaced or overlooked the certificates when they were sent to me, but that did not occur. I was simply never sent the certificates and never informed they had supposedly been issued until the month of their alleged expiration. Not only do I want my owed sign-up bonus, I feel deceived by both Citibank and XXXX, and am concerned that their practices are misleading to other customers. These business practices harmed me, and likely harms other consumers ( indeed, cursory web searches reveal similarly situated customers ), and I request the CFPB review them.