Consumer complaint received 2026-06-18 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — Store credit card
Issue: Fees or interest — Charged too much interest
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: IL

Complaint narrative:
In XX/XX/XXXX, I purchased approximately {$12000.00} in kitchen cabinets using my existing Home Depot credit card. No promotional financing was offered at the time of purchase. When I received my first billing statement after the purchase, I contacted Home Depot XXXX XXXX and asked if I could receive the XXXXmonth interestfree promotion. Home Depot told me they would honor the XXXXmonth promotion and that it would be applied to my account. I was not told this was a deferredinterest promotion, and I did not receive any written terms, disclosures, payoff requirements, or deadlines. At that time, I also did not know that Citi XXXX XXXX was the credit provider behind the Home Depot card. From XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX, I made every monthly payment on time on my Home Depot card. I was never informed that minimum payments would not satisfy the promotional requirements, nor was I told the exact payoff amount or the exact date by which the full balance needed to be paid. Based on what Home Depot told me, I understood the promotion to be interestfree for XXXX months. After the promotion ended on XX/XX/XXXX, Citi added approximately {$10000.00} in interest to my account, increasing my balance to over {$21000.00} and raising my minimum payment to about {$730.00}. I was never informed that failing to pay the entire balance by the deadline would result in retroactive interest. My online Home Depot account also displayed a message stating Some Promotional Balances may not be shown on this page, which prevented me from seeing any promotional payoff details or requirements. This further contributed to my lack of information and understanding of the terms. After the promotion ended on XX/XX/XXXX, Citi added approximately {$10000.00} in interest to my account, increasing my balance to over {$21000.00} and raising my minimum payment to about {$730.00}. I questioned this amount because even without any promotion, the interest on a {$12000.00} balance over XXXX years at Citis typical APR ( around XXXX % ) would be approximately {$7200.00}. The {$10000.00} interest charge effectively reflects an interest rate of about XXXX %, which is far higher than the standard rate and does not make sense for this account. I contacted Citi to dispute the interest. I was forward to XXXX from Citi who told me they would only remove the interest if I paid the entire {$12000.00} balance in full first. She also offered to extend the promotion until XX/XX/XXXX but refused to remove the interest. When I asked for an explanation of how the interest was calculated and requested escalation, I was told there was no higher department to speak with. I am requesting CFPB assistance because I was never given written promotional terms, I was told verbally that the promotion was interestfree, I did not know Citi XXXX XXXX was the lender, I paid on time for XXXX months, and the interest charge appears excessive and unfair. I am asking that Citi remove the interest, reinstate the promotional terms, or provide documentation showing how this interest was calculated.

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 non-monetary relief