Consumer complaint received 2026-06-16 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Fees or interest — Problem with fees
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
Got it that actually strengthens the complaint. You had no idea it was a separate account until a late payment notice forced you to investigate. Here 's the draft : CFPB Complaint Citibank I am filing this complaint regarding an unauthorized credit card account opened in my name by Citibank without my knowledge or consent. I was an existing XXXX AAdvantage credit card holder. When XXXX transferred their AAdvantage portfolio to Citibank, I received a new card in the mail. I assumed this was a replacement card for my existing account, as I was not informed that Citibank was opening an entirely new, separate account. I was already an existing Citibank AAdvantage XXXX XXXX cardholder. I did not authorize a second account. I did not set up or acknowledge any new account terms. I received no clear disclosure that a new account with a separate {$99.00} annual membership fee was being created. The new account was never enrolled in autopay, as I had no knowledge it existed as a standalone account. The first time I became aware this was a separate account was when I received a late payment notification. Upon investigation, I discovered Citibank had charged a {$99.00} annual fee to this unauthorized account, the account had gone past due without my knowledge, and Citibank is now refusing to refund the {$99.00} fee citing a 37-day refund policy despite the fact that I never authorized this account or its associated fee to begin with. I escalated to an executive retention specialist who stated they could do nothing. A 37-day refund window is irrelevant when the account itself was opened without my authorization. This is not a cancellation request this is a dispute of an unauthorized account and unauthorized charge. I am requesting : ( 1 ) immediate closure of the unauthorized account, ( 2 ) full refund of the {$99.00} annual fee, ( 3 ) removal of any late payment from my credit report related to this account, and ( 4 ) written confirmation that this account will not negatively impact my credit. Want me to tighten anything or add your XXXX XXXX XXXX account details for reference? You said : XXXX gave their XXXX XXXX XXXX business to Citibank in XXXX of this year.XXXX gave their XXXX XXXX XXXX business to Citibank in XXXX of this year..... Citibank sent me a new Credit card that i didn't know about adding to the XXXX XXXX XXXX I'm already paying {$500.00} a year for. They then charged a {$99.00} membership fee to the new card. The new card didn't have autopay so it and went late payment for which i got a notification to make a payment this past Sunday XX/XX/XXXX. I get to work only to realize its a whole new account that i didn't authorize or setup and they are saying that because I'm more than 37 days beyond the charge of Membership fee on XX/XX/XXXX that i wont get a membership refund that i never authorized to begin withXXXX XXXX responded : Perfect, got all the specifics.Perfect, got all the specifics. Here 's the updated complaint : CFPB Complaint Citibank N.A. I am filing this complaint regarding an unauthorized credit card account opened in my name by Citibank without my knowledge or consent, resulting in an unauthorized fee and a late payment on an account I never agreed to open. In XX/XX/XXXX, Citibank acquired the XXXX XXXX AAdvantage credit card portfolio from XXXX. I was an existing XXXX AAdvantage cardholder at the time of the transfer. I am also an existing Citibank AAdvantage XXXX XXXX cardholder, for which I pay a {$500.00} annual fee. When the portfolio transferred, Citibank sent me a new credit card in the mail. I received no clear disclosure that this represented a new, separate account being opened in my name. I reasonably assumed the card was a replacement or continuation of my existing XXXX account being migrated to Citibank not an entirely new account with separate terms, a separate billing cycle, and a separate annual fee. I did not authorize a new account. I did not agree to new account terms. I did not set up autopay on this account because I had no knowledge it existed as a standalone account. On XX/XX/XXXX, Citibank charged a {$99.00} annual membership fee to this account a fee I never authorized. Because I was unaware the account existed, it was never enrolled in autopay and received no manual payments. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a late payment notification, which was the first moment I became aware this was a separate account at all. Upon contacting Citibank, I was told that because more than 37 days had passed since the XX/XX/XXXX fee was charged, they would not issue a refund. I escalated to an executive retention specialist who stated they could do nothing. This response is unacceptable. The 37-day refund policy is wholly irrelevant here this is not a cancellation request. This is a dispute of an unauthorized account opened without my consent and an unauthorized charge applied to that account. I am requesting the following resolution : Immediate closure of the unauthorized account Full refund of the {$99.00} annual membership fee charged on XX/XX/XXXX Removal of any late payment notation from my credit report associated with this account Written confirmation that this account will not negatively impact my credit standing The opening of an account without clear, affirmative consumer consent, combined with the application of fees and the resulting credit impact, represents a serious consumer protection concern. I am prepared to escalate this matter to my state Attorney General and pursue all available remedies if Citibank does not resolve this promptly.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief