Consumer complaint received 2017-10-15
Product: Credit card or prepaid card — Store credit card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement — Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement
Company: CITIBANK, N.A. (PA)

CFPB Complaint Statement of What Happened In XXXX, I contracted with Sears/XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  ( XXXX ) to purchase open-stock base cabinets for my kitchen. I retained all of the paperwork so that, when the time came, I could be assured of getting the exact same wood, style and color for the upper cabinets. 
In early XXXX, I contacted Sears/XXXX to initiate the purchase. I spoke with XXXX XXXX XXXX, Team Member, and informed her about the open-stock base cabinets I purchased in XXXX. Additionally, I informed her that I now wanted to purchase matching upper cabinets. XXXX XXXX XXXX, Project Consultant, came to my home on XXXX XXXX, XXXX to get preliminary measurements and to provide cost information. I showed him the paperwork from my original purchase describing the cabinet wood, style and color. XXXX XXXX never mentioned that Sears no longer carried XXXX products. He did state that he didnt think they carried the stain on my lower cabinets anymore, and brought in wood samples in order to get the best color match possible. However, he never said anything about there being a problem with the door style or type of wood. 
The total cost of the upper cabinets was {$5200.00}. XXXX XXXX contacted Citibank for available terms. Even though my credit score is in the 800 's, I was only approved for an 18-month no interest plan. I knew I couldnt afford the monthly payments ( approximately {$290.00} per month ) so I gave XXXX XXXX a check in the amount of {$2000.00} payable to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. This reduced the monthly cost to approximately {$180.00} per month. 
There were no printed documents provided. XXXX XXXX gave me a CD, and had me digitally sign on his tablet for each document on the CD. Therefore, at that time, I had no knowledge that, per the terms of the Sears " Estimate and Proposal '', Sears was not to accept more than 30 % of the total cost ( approximately {$1500.00} ) for a down payment. So, knowingly, Sears wrongly accepted approximately {$470.00} additional money from me. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX came to my home on XXXX XXXX, XXXX to get the final measurements. Although I showed him the paperwork from XXXX as well, he never made mention of the fact that Sears no longer used XXXX either. Since XXXX XXXX was the Project Coordinator in XXXX, it seems he, of all people, would know that XXXX products had been discontinued. Please note that XXXX is still in operation and does, indeed, still manufacture the cabinets I purchased in XXXX. My check for {$2000.00} was endorsed by XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX on XXXX XXXX, XXXX. 
Finally, the upper cabinets were installed three months later on XXXX XXXX, XXXX. On the morning of XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I realized that something was wrong, and it didnt take long to figure it out. However, it was Sunday, so I waited until Monday, XXXX XXXX, XXXX to contact XXXX XXXX by telephone to inform her that the style of the newly-installed cabinet doors was not the same as the doors on the base cabinets. XXXX XXXX actually sounded annoyed that I expected something to be done about it. She asked if XXXX XXXX had brought doors into my home for me to look at, and I said " no ''. She then commented that she " hated to throw XXXX XXXX under the bus, but ''. I told XXXX XXXX that I would email pictures to her that same day so that she could see the difference. As of XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I hadnt heard from XXXX XXXX, so I followed up with an email asking if she had spoken with anyone about the incorrect cabinets. I never received a response. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I sent another email to her, as well as to XXXX XXXX. I never received a response from either of them. Later that day, I contacted Citibank and filed a dispute with them for the {$3200.00} charge to my account. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I sent another email to both XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received a call from XXXX XXXX telling me that all of my emails ( from XXXX XXXX, XXXX to the present ) had gone to her spam folder. Additionally, she stated that when I first contacted her, she didnt know the meaning of open-stock, and had n't been able to locate my XXXX order. I happen to know that was not true because the Building Permit that was issued on XXXX XXXX, XXXX was in my married name, which they would not have known without pulling up my old records from XXXX. However, sometime after my divorce was finalized in XXXX XXXX, I took back my maiden name. 
At this point no one had offered any solutions to the problem and XXXX XXXX asked if I had any ideas. I suggested that Sears replace the doors on the base cabinets with doors matching the upper cabinets. I felt that was a reasonable solution that would minimize both the cost to them as well as the huge inconvenience to me. XXXX XXXX agreed, but she seemed to be uncertain that Sears would bear the cost. I made it clear that I would not pay any additional cost for their " error ''. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX came to my home to get measurements to replace the base cabinet doors. 
Having not heard from anyone, I could only presume that the doors were being manufactured. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I emailed XXXX XXXX regarding the status of the new doors, but never received a response. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I placed a call to the Sears Credit Card Dispute Department. I was informed that they have not received any progress reports from XXXX since XXXX XXXX, XXXX, which was of concern to them. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I emailed XXXX XXXX again, but never received a response. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I called XXXX XXXX and left a voice mail message asking her to contact me, but she never returned the call. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I sent an email to XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, and XXXX XXXX XXXX, General Sales Manager, requesting a refund of the {$2000.00} down payment. XXXX XXXX email wasnt deliverable because his " email address couldnt be found ''. So, I then forwarded my message to XXXX XXXX XXXX, District Sales Team Administrator. Unfortunately, her email address " couldnt be found '' either. In the meantime, I didnt hear from XXXX XXXX or XXXX XXXX. I sent one more email to XXXX XXXX on XXXX XXXX, XXXX, but never received a response. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I sent an email to XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX authorizing them to have all of the cabinets that were installed on XXXX XXXX, XXXX removed no later than XXXX XXXX, XXXX. I also stated that I must receive a refund of the {$2000.00} down payment, and be provided with proof that the {$3200.00} charge to my Citibank account had been cancelled, before the cabinets could be removed. Again, neither party responded. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received a call from XXXX XXXX XXXX, Credit Dispute Specialist,  located in Florida. Per her request, I forwarded to her all of the futile, unanswered emails that I had sent regarding this situation. After receiving those emails, XXXX XXXX responded by email that she had escalated the situation as far as she could and that she would contact me when she receives a response. I also expressed my concern that my 18-month no interest plan was slipping by during the dispute, and that I couldnt afford to make multiple make-up payments. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received a phone call from XXXX XXXX XXXX, Regional General Manager, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. We talked for a while and then he said he wanted to make a call and would call me back in 30-45 minutes, which he did. XXXX XXXX had called XXXX regarding the warranty on the base cabinets. XXXX XXXX said that the branch wanted to replace the doors on the base cabinets, but allegedly that wasnt a viable option due to a measurement issue. 
He wanted me to send him a test email, which I did, and he also verified receipt of my email thread with I.T. XXXX XXXX said he would use the company credit card and get the doors made. XXXX told him the XXXX of my base cabinets was discontinued as of XXXX XXXX, XXXX, which means that SHIS didnt respond to the situation quickly enough. XXXX also said the warranty would not be applicable in this situation. XXXX XXXX said he would be able to get me an extension on the 18-month no interest plan, but that also turned out to be a falsehood. I will now have to pay interest if the debt is not paid off in full and on time. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I called XXXX XXXX. She said she had spoken to XXXX XXXX and that he had made an offer to replace the entire lower cabinets at no cost to me, but that it would take 6-8 weeks. I told XXXX XXXX that I wanted to think about it. She agreed and said she would call me next week. Later that day, I emailed XXXX XXXX requesting a draft of the offer we had discussed that morning. She replied that she would have the branch send it to me. As of XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I had not received any response and, therefore, emailed her again stating that I just wanted the details, not a formal contract. XXXX XXXX never responded. I had expected to hear from XXXX XXXX on Monday, XXXX XXXX, XXXX, but never heard from her that day. 
However, I did receive a letter from XXXX XXXX XXXX stating that Based on the response received from the XXXX XXXX XXXX Department, they state they are currently working with you on a resolution. We have closed our investigation at this time. If you do not receive a merchant resolution within a reasonable amount of time, you may re-contact us and we will re-open your dispute. I was somewhat surprised by this as I wasnt even contacted before they made the decision to close the investigation. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, having still not heard from XXXX XXXX, I sent another email to her, XXXX XXXX, and XXXX XXXX once again authorizing the removal of the cabinets after I received my {$2000.00} down payment and was given proof that the {$3200.00} charge to my credit card had been cancelled. 
I called XXXX XXXX, who then called and got XXXX XXXX on the line as well. XXXX XXXX had sent " the cabinet information '' to XXXX XXXX. XXXX XXXX said he didnt think Sears would remove the upper cabinets, but told me he could give me a discount on them if I chose to keep them. He offered {$1500.00}, which I noted was not even 1/3 the original cost. I dont know where the numbers came from, but he added an additional {$330.00} plus an additional {$150.00} bringing the total to {$1900.00}. I presume he then rounded up to {$2000.00} ( same amount as my down payment ). Sears could refund my {$2000.00} down payment to me or apply it to my Citibank account. At no time did I say that amount or the plan was acceptable. 
We then discussed my concerns about the second option replacing the entire base cabinets. I talked about concerns such as plumbing and HVAC work that would be necessary, as well as possible damage that could be incurred. XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX assured me that Sears would take care of all costs, including plumbing, HVAC, and any damage that may be incurred. There would be absolutely no cost to me. He asked about hardware. I informed him that I only wanted hardware on the base cabinets because it was not needed on the upper cabinets. He reiterated that the hardware would be at no cost to me as well. 
XXXX XXXX said she will talk to her manager, XXXX, and will also let Citibank know about the offers. At no time did I say that either of the options was acceptable. I told XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX that I would like to receive a written document outlining the two possible offers so that I could review each one thoroughly since we had discussed so many variables. XXXX XXXX said she would have the information emailed to me the next day, XXXX XXXX, XXXX. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received an email from XXXX XXXX, District Administrator XXXX. Only the document offering {$2000.00} was attached and it did not give me any options. It stated that the {$2000.00} would be applied to my Citibank account. 
On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I called XXXX XXXX, who confirmed that she also had received the single settlement offer. Before we went any further, she contacted XXXX XXXX and he joined our conversation. I was totally shocked when XXXX XXXX said that the other offer couldnt be put in writing because they wouldnt be able to fulfill it. 
When I asked why each of them had made the offer in the first place on more than one occasion both XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX said they had since researched it, and realized they couldnt make that offer because they would not be able to fulfill it. I asked over and over why neither of them had researched the situation prior to making the offer. It obviously didnt take very long to research it since it was still being discussed as a viable option only hours earlier. XXXX XXXX continued to give the same response. The conversation was becoming heated. Suddenly XXXX XXXX said that she and XXXX XXXX could not talk with me anymore and that I would have to work with Citibank from now on. 
After contacting Citibank, they told me to send a letter to the XXXX XXXX XXXX Department in South Dakota explaining why I was not accepting the offer made by Sears. I mailed the letter to them by overnight express on XXXX XXXX, XXXX. In the meantime, I had received a phone message from Citibank asking me to contact them, which I did on XXXX XXXX, XXXX. I was informed that I was to disregard the letter dated XXXX XXXX, XXXX because the dispute had been reopened, and that a letter was sent to Sears on XXXX XXXX, XXXX giving them until XXXX XXXX, XXXX to respond. 
I called Citibank on or about XXXX XXXX, XXXX and asked if they had received a response from Sears. I was told that while they had received a response, there was no specific information on their records as to their decision. However, I would receive a copy of the letter in 7-10 days. On XXXX XXXX, XXXX, I received a letter from XXXX XXXX XXXX dated XXXX XXXX, XXXX. It stated, " The XXXX XXXX XXXX Department has made several attempts to contact you to make an appointment to address your concerns. We have no recourse to intervene when the merchant is making a good faith attempt toward resolution of your issues. '' Those statements are outright lies. They have access to my mailing address and my email address. Additionally, I 'm at home nearly all of the time, and when I am out, I have voice mail service.