Consumer complaint received 2024-11-22 00:00:00
Product: Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan — Installment loan
Issue: Getting the loan — 
Company: PNC Bank N.A.
State: DE

Complaint narrative:
I was online loan " shopping '' in early XXXX for a personal loan with a decent rate to repay/consolidate a few minor existing loans. It appears to be an industry norm in the personal loan realm to not conduct a hard pull while someone submits an application to check their anticipated APR rate on the requested loan. That being so, I submitted a personal loan application on PNC 's website thinking that they would display the available rates based on a soft pull of my credit. Unbeknownst to me, PNC conducts a hard pull on your credit once you apply -- this information is not explicitly apparent on their online personal loan application site. After finding out they pulled my credit, I decided to continue with the application process since the damage was already done. 

I received an email from XXXX regarding the required documentation for PNC to make a decision on my loan. The email, received in XXXX, indicated I had XXXX days from receipt of the email to provide the requested information. I submitted the requested documents within XXXX weeks and received a phone call from a loan officer indicating that I had been approved. I requested that the information regarding the loan details be sent to my email to review the terms on my own ; however, to my surprise, the loan officer refused. The only information I received over the phone was the loan 's APR. This phone call occurred in early XXXX. The loan officer said if I wanted to move forward with the process I must go in person to a local branch. I proceeded with the process, mainly because my credit already took a hit, and scheduled an appointment at my local branch.

I attended the appointment towards the end of the week and signed the required paperwork at the branch. I asked the loan officer who assisted me at the branch whether I'd be able to obtain my credentials to view my loan statements and documents via the PNC online portal. The loan officer said that my credentials should be good to go as soon as the loan processes. I obtained a cashier 's check and deposited the loan into my personal checking account with another financial institution, the check cleared within a day. 

Seeing that the check cleared, I reached out to PNC 's online support for login help on XX/XX/XXXX. The online support indicated that they could not see an active loan on my account. I assumed the loan was still processing and proceeded to reach out to PNC 's online support on the following Tuesday. Still, to my surprise, the online support indicated my account did not show any active loan. This same week, the original loan officer that I closed the loan with at my local branch called me to say that I needed to come in to finalize a missing document ( a little odd that PNC would give a cashier 's check for several thousands of dollars without ensuring that every document was signed and finalized the day of closing ).

Nonetheless, I attended the following week and finalized the document. I informed the loan officer at the local branch that my online credentials still did not work and that the online support indicated I had no active account. The loan officer looked puzzled and said she'd reach out to them herself and give me a call in the afternoon with the solution. This conversation occurred last week and I still haven't received the follow-up call. On XX/XX/XXXX, I decided to reach out to online support once again to address the issue. This time, the online support agent said, " [ a ] fter further review, I do not show an online profile created just as yet. '' The agent recommended I call PNC 's " Consumer Underwriting '' team at XXXX. I did exactly that the following day. 

The Consumer Underwriting individual informed me that I can not access PNC 's Online services because I do not have an active checking or savings account with them -- this information was never once conveyed to me. The main reason I even looked at getting this loan with PNC was for the online convenience of accessing my documents and making payments online. As a matter of fact, the email I received from PNC states the following : " Next, we've included your loan details below, so you have easy access to this important information. 

You can also view your loan details and payment information any time by signing on to or setting up your PNC Online Banking and accessing your digital statement. You can find your digital statement by selecting your account and clicking View Online Statements. '' The entire time I was under the impression that I would get access to PNC 's Online Banking portal due to their false advertising. I'll attach the email for your review. Additionally, I've reviewed the footnotes, and nowhere is it indicated that I need a PNC checking or savings account. This has been an incredibly misleading and frustrating process. Now I'm stuck with the loan terms and the hassle of having to make any additional payments in person.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation