Consumer complaint received 2025-02-11 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems — Other problem
Company: NAVY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
State: WA

Complaint narrative:
This is a massive complaint that reads like a saga. This problem spans 6 months, has 4 major corporations involved, eats up over $XXXX  a month and there is no end in sight. In an effort to resolve this issue I have contacted every applicable elected official, community organization and government agency one can list outside of the White House itself. And no one seems to know what to do. Therefore, I have composed this complaint in writing to better articulate the issues I am facing, the severity with which they negatively impact my life and why these injustices should have been corrected long ago or never transpired in the first place. 
	On XXXX XXXX XXXX  my phone was stolen. The phone was ultimately recovered but it was missing the sim card. I could not call XXXXXXXX  directly so I had to call someone else using XXXX who then had to get another phone, call XXXXXXXX  and hold the two phones together so that I could talk to them personally to request a new chip. On this call I was informed that my autopay would be changed to $XXXX  a month until I could get the new chip activated in order to prevent me from having to pay all of the associated costs, fees, taxes, etc. associated with activating a phone number. Unfortunately, this never worked out to be the case. Even my status as an enrollee in the Military Magenta Plan, which I am only qualified for due to a XXXX% XXXX rating from the VA, was not enough to be treated with basic dignity and respect. At no point did XXXX ever just do what they said they would and charge me $XXXX  a month. Their billing practices are so predatory that even 3 months after my phone was stolen XXXX was still charging me full price for a plan and adding carry over charges from after the phone no longer worked! How XXXX can justify billing me more than $XXXX  a month for a phone number and cell phone I cant even use is beyond reason. 
Their logic is so twisted that, instead of just doing what they said they would in the first place, they would rather charge me a fee to refund the money they billed incorrectly. How is it just that I am being billed for an error that was not my fault? If I have to pay this then where is the incentive for XXXX  to do ever anything right? All they have to do is make a mistake on my billing and then they get to charge me money to fix it? If my claim that our agreed-upon bill was only $XXXX  a month is enough to win not one, but three, credit card transaction disputes with my bank, how do they justify billing $XXXX  in XXXX  and telling me that I owe an additional sum of more than $XXXX? XXXX agrees it made a billing error and now wants to charge me to the tune of more than $XXXX  to correct that error. XXXX will not stop billing me for junk fees (Back Out Fee, even though I never had a contract and my phone is paid off), made up charges, administrative costs, etc. and I dont know what to do because even my bank isnt trustworthy. 

	Navy Federal Credit Union is the second subject of this complaint due to unauthorized Force Charges approved on my credit card without my permission or knowledge. These charges, from XXXX, were approved even after I had disputed every XXXX Transaction since XXXX, had my credit card shut off, had the line of credit frozen due to a separate fraud claim and received a new (but still not activated) credit card. What is the point of learning and following the rules if they dont really apply? How is it fair that Navy Federal can freeze my credit card to protect me from fraud then authorize transactions on the card number they just froze? Why does XXXX get to use my credit card but I dont? Why is Navy Federal Credit Union allowed to forcibly take my disability check without so much as politely informing me? How am I supposed to trust Navy Federal when they take my money without my permission only to profit from the money I already cant afford to spend by charging me interest and fees on a transaction I never even knew about? Not to mention the negative consequences if I cant/wont pay. The only reason I even have the privilege of being nickel and dimed by Navy Federal Credit Union is because they had someone in boot camp, in a Navy Uniform, come in and talk to us about switching our direct deposit to Navy Federal. They deprived us of sleep for two days and then forced us to make major financial decisions all while a representative from Navy Federal Credit Union just so happened to be there. How convenient. 
12 years later, I am still an account holder with Navy Federal Credit Union.  I even sponsored my entire family so that they could open accounts of their own. You cannot imagine the shame and embarrassment I feel each time I make a phone call begging for someone to help me as I am literally being robbed by the same financial institution I convinced my family to use to plan my nephews financial future and they are there listening to the entire thing. The emotional stress of this was enough that I had to seek emergency counseling from the VA. Im starting to feel like everything is pointless. If disabled veterans can be bullied and pushed around like this without consequence then whats the point of anyone trying? My bank has already profited from me so much over the years, when is enough finally enough? They sucked up so much of my paycheck from active duty military service, AmeriCorps stipends and now my XXXX  money. Ive struggled financially for years because of Navy Federal. They even denied me relief as a struggling humanitarian after the XXXX XXXX was wiped out by two Category 5 Hurricanes and I spent 4 months without electricity, running water or a roof. This negatively impacted my credit score. This financial institution has done things like this to me for years. However, taking my money without my permission is the straw that broke the camel's back. Anyone else that stole money from me would spend the night in jail and have to face a judge. What does Navy Federal get? Probably nothing. 

The third subject of this complaint is XXXX  XXXX  and XXXX together. Specifically, the XXXX  in XXXX, Washington at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXr, WA XXXX. I purchased a XXXX XXXX XXXX from this location in XXXX  after being cut off from the world since XXXX  due to the ongoing issues with XXXXXXXX. I came in asking for the cheapest possible phone I could get with the cheapest possible plan because I really only needed a phone to do essential things (e.g. verify identity as a veteran through VA systems, verification codes using text messages, etc.) until I could figure out the XXXX problem. The employee told me that I didnt need to buy a flip phone and that he could even get me a brand name smartphone  for cheap. Eventually, we landed on a XXXX XXXX XXXX. When I swiped my card, I was told that I was being charged $XXXX  for the phone because of sales tax but other than that everything would be free for two months and if at that time I did not wish to continue as an AT&T customer all I had to do was tell them no thank you and I could even keep the phone. The employee, XXXX, made a comment to me about how amazing this deal was because he didnt know how it worked or how the cell companies made any money on this. Which struck me as odd, because isnt it your job to know? Well, who would've guessed, it didnt work that way. Before XXXX  was over XXXX was contacting me to collect on a past due balance of over $XXXX. Imagine my surprise. I was able to arrange a payment plan with XXXX but that was the end of my good luck. So far, XXXX are the only ones who I cant complain about. Its not their fault that Im on the hook spending almost $XXXX  a month for one cell phone I cant use and another one I never wanted.  	
I went into XXXXXXXX  to request a refund. As it turns out, XXXXXXXX  does not actually sell the phones. It is a private contractor that works inside the store that sells the plans and really, I need to contact them directly in order to resolve the issue. Initially, the employees were helpful and sympathetic and wished me luck as they gave me the phone number. Sadly, the phone number given to me was not valid. I looked online for a way to contact XXXX  and tried calling, emailing and even tweeting them using that information. Still nothing. I called XXXX back to let them know that I needed the updated contact information. The employee on the phone was extremely rude so I asked to speak to a supervisor. The supervisor explained to me how busy they were with the electronics department so I decided to go in to ask for the phone number in person because calling was obviously not working. Eventually, I did speak to a manager in person. XXXX was her name. I asked to speak to the highest-ranking person that was currently available in the store because this was such a serious issue. XXXX  informed me that she was the person I was looking for and that the buck stops with her. I explained to her my issues and the bad service I had been receiving from her employees and her response was to look at them and roll her eyes while I was still talking. The people that work in her store sold me a bad product, give me bad information so that I cant correct the mistake that they made, argue with me on the phone when I call to let them know they made another mistake and I still need help, she tells me she is the one accountable for all of this only to treat me like garbage in front of her employees when all I ever did was ask for help to solve a problem they caused. No wonder the standard is so low in that store. Look at who their example is. After arguing with XXXX, I was eventually directed to the XXXX XXXX itself because XXXXXXXX  has XXXX  jurisdiction over them anyway. Its almost like she didnt need to be vindictive to me at all. 
After finally speaking to XXXX  at XXXX  I was informed that I could not get a refund on this product because it was after a two-week buyers remorse window. XXXX  seemed to really care and be empathetic to the situation. Especially when I explained to him everything that the other employee had said about the two-month promotion that never actually existed. When all was said and done I did leave with the contact information for the district manager of XXXX. But when I called his mailbox was full and with XXXX  as an example of things to come I knew my complaints to anyone there would fall on deaf ears anyway. 

This is when I had to go get XXXX XXXX from the VA because I just felt like I couldnt take it anymore and that my suffering was worthless. Why is the impetus on me to know every single one of the laws of our society, every single one of the rules and regulations to follow for my bank and every single policy to follow for every individual vendor I do business with instead of them just treating people with dignity and respect to begin with? How is this the better option? How are they allowed to lie in order to sell, and trap me with, a product that I never would have purchased otherwise? Of all three parties involved no one can provide me a refund or any meaningful relief. XXXX XXXX and XXXX  can all be in on it when they profit from lying to me but when it comes time to correct it none of them can be held accountable? And this is legal? This is theft by deception plain and simple and I want my money back.
Since being unable to reach the OSL district manager I have contacted the VA, XXXX, NCUA, CFPB, State Rep. XXXX XXXX, Sen. XXXX XXXX  the WA State Attorney General, the WA State and Federal Utilities Commissions and the local Vancouver, WA police Department. I have filed complaints with all of them in addition to utilizing resources from the XXXX XXXX  and Washington State Bar Associations to assist me legally through the complaint resolution processes.  If they want a war theyve got one because the only thing I ever did to deserve any of this was be the victim of a crime.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation